Flamekeeper Workshops:
Spring 2026
Tending the flame of the human journey in our neighborhood
The San Francisco Contemplarium is back with two Flamekeeper Workshops this Spring – lifting up the vital work of tending to the "flame" of the human journey in those around us through presence and support.
We are partnering with two incredible individuals from two pioneering organizations who have tended the flame of humanity in San Francisco for decades – the Zen Caregiving Project and Community Boards.
Join us at each session for an engaging fireside conversation followed by a reflective workshop exercise. We hope to see you there!
Mar 22
with Roy Remer, Executive Director of the Zen Caregiving Project and author of Zen Caregiving: How to Care for Yourself While Caring for Others
Join us for a fireside conversation with Roy Remer, author of Zen Caregiving: How to Care for Yourself While Caring for Others and Executive Director of the Zen Caregiving Project, as we explore what it means to show up for others without losing ourselves in the process. We'll examine the inner life of service, from the difference between helping and truly serving, to the freedom that comes when we release our attachment to fixing or having the right answer. We'll explore how mindfulness and compassion can ground us in our roles as caregivers and community members, and we'll get curious about the role of intention in our service to others: Why do you show up? What keeps you coming back? How do you move through resistance?
Whether you serve professionally, volunteer in your community, or simply want to care more sustainably for the people in your life, we look forward to this conversation with you. We will have a lively fireside chat with Roy in the first hour, followed by an interactive skill-building workshop in the second hour where we will craft and affirm a short intention for your service to others.
Apr 5
with Rachel Vyda-Venning, Program Director of Community Boards
Join the Contemplarium and Community Boards for a fireside-style conversation on what it really means to live together in a city – especially when we’re in conflict. We’ll explore how our families and backgrounds shape our conflict styles, what Community Boards has learned from 50 years of community mediation in San Francisco, and how everyday disagreements can become chances to practice the kind of neighbors we want to be.
After the conversation, we’ll move into a guided small-group exercise in triads. You’ll reflect on your own relationship to conflict, share stories in a supportive setting, and identify one or two concrete ways you’d like to “become” more of a peacemaker in your own life and community.
About this series
Join us for these public events this Spring for Flamekeepers to gather, learn together, and support each other as we explore vital questions about how we can be present and supportive to other’s through life’s challenges.
We’ll learn from local practitioners whose daily work is steeped in the topics we’re exploring. After an exploratory fireside chat followed by Q&A, we will have a chance to practice hands-on skills of presence and accompaniment with each other through a workshop of guided exercises.
In a world that rushes to solve, advise, or move on, Flamekeepers offer something else: the gift of an honoring presence. This series invites us into the nourishing community, support, and skillbuilding that this important work deserves.
Location: The Commons, 550 Laguna St.
Tickets: $15± (sliding scale tickets made possible by the Flamekeeper Fund)
Want to go deeper? These conversations are just the beginning. Join our Flamekeeper Cohort to continue exploring, practicing, and growing with like-hearted neighbors. Applications are set to open later in the Spring.
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