Queer Retreat

Teachers

Leslie Booker is a Guiding Teacher at New York Insight. She brings her heart and wisdom to the intersection of Dharma, Embodied Wisdom, and Liberation. Using this framework, she supports folks in creating a culture of belonging through her teaching and writing on changing the paradigm of self and community care.

After training as a yoga teacher in 2007, Booker was drawn to Spirit Rock Meditation Center’s Mindful Yoga and Meditation training which she completed in 2012. Supported by her teacher Gina Sharpe, she continued her formal teacher training at Spirit Rock through their Community Dharma Leaders Training, graduating in 2017, and their Retreat Teacher training program which she completed in 2020. Throughout these years, she worked as the Director of Teacher Trainings for Lineage Project, where she shared the practices of yoga and mindfulness with incarcerated and system-involved youth for over a decade. She also worked with the youth population on Rikers Island through the LionHeart Foundation and at the National Institute of Health for two years.

Booker has spoken at venues including the Mind & Life Institute’s International Symposium, Contemplative Minds in Higher Education, the Fetzer Institute, and Vassar Colleges. She is a co-author of ‘Best Practices for Yoga in a Criminal Justice Setting’, and a contributor to Sharon Salzberg’s book ‘Happiness at Work’ and Dr. Rima Vesely–Flad’s book ‘Black Buddhist and the Black Radical Tradition’. Her writing and other work can also be found in Lion’s Roar, Tricycle Magazine, Yoga Journal and Ten Percent Happier. She currently lives in Philadelphia with her partner and pup.
For more information: https://www.lesliebooker.com/

Assited by

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Coral Short is a first-generation settler of Irish descent, raised in British Columbia on Sq'ewá:lxw territory and is now based in Tiohtià:ke/Montréal. After completing True North Insight's Mentorship program in 2022, they continued to organize Somatic and Dharmic gatherings, both in-person and online, fostering connections across diverse communities internationally.

As co-founder of Queer Sangha, Coral creates a warm weekly space where LGBTQ2S+ identities are celebrated and supported. Their life work extends to eco-somatic experiences in the forests surrounding Tiohtià:ke, guiding participants through immersive natural journeys in nature. Their morning meditation practice happens each morning while gardening on their block. 

Coral's practice is rooted in embodiment, connection, and nature. They embrace the ongoing struggle for individual and collective liberation, fostering heart-softening spaces of joy.

For more information, please visit their Instagram @coralshort.

 

Registration

LOCATION: 21269 Boul Gouin O, Pierrefonds, QC H9K 1C1, Canada.

Villa Saint-Martin is an Ignatian Spirituality Centre that welcomes retreats accomodating the needs of a wide audience, including Dharma organizations. Please note there are Christian symbols on the site.

All of the rooms at Villa St-Martin are single rooms with a sink. Washrooms are shared. 

ARRIVAL TIME: 3:30-5 pm, Thursday,  March 20. The retreat will conclude by lunch on Sunday, March 23. Everyone is welcome to stay for lunch. The teachers request that you plan to attend the entire retreat – please arrive on time and stay through the closing talk.

COST: TNI is dedicated to offering affordable rates to all. TNI retreat fees are on a sliding scale basis that allows participants to pay according to individual means. Fees do not include compensation for the teachings, and teachers rely on the generosity of retreatants for a sustainable income. There is an opportunity to offer dana (donations) to the teachers at the end of each retreat. 

A deposit of 50% of the base rate is required to register to the retreat. The deposit is included in all of our fees.