A 4 day in-person gathering, with 1 trainer, and a Deaf certified ANFT guide where you will have the opportunity to experience in-person forest therapy walks and simply connect and share experiences and stories with other guides.
In this immersion, you will:
Get a hands on experience
Get to know trainers personally
Get to know other guides and connect
Learn from shared experiences with other guides
Prepare for the 6-month remote training
Get the opportunity to ask specific questions that might come up
This immersion is the first part of the Forest Therapy Guide training for Deaf and Hard of Hearing participants. To view the 6-month remote training details click HERE
This is an ASL video by Deaf certified ANFT guide, Summer Crider, explaining the details of this retreat, including some video clips of the Aspen Camp location.
Aspen Camp was formed in 1967 by a parent with a Deaf child. Over the next 10 years, 17 acres of riparian land in Old Snowmass was donated to the camp. In 2008, Aspen Camp of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing was officially established as the business name to offer year-round programming for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Community from youth to the elderly.
Bunk Rooms in Cabins $120 for the 4 nights 6/4, 6/5, 6/6, and 6/7
$80 for meals in the main lodge for the 4 days.
Participants need to arrange transportation to the camp ground. The closest airport is Aspen Airport (ASE).
Arrival 6/4/23 in the late afternoon
Departure 6/8/23 in the early afternoon.
Program ends at noon on 6/18/23
VENUE POLICIES (Prohibited activities)
-Use tobacco or marijuana of any kind (smoking, chewing and/or vaping) outside of the designated areas
-Possess and/or use explosives or fireworks of any kind, including, but not limited to,legal and illegal fireworks, firecrackers, or similar items (see Parking Lot section below for details)
-Possess and/or use confetti, Silly String (or like products), fog machines, or glitter of any kind. Helium balloons are permitted, however they must be popped by the client and properly disposed of in a trashcan or removed by the client at the end of the event
-Throw rice on the AC property (inside or outside)
-Use tape, tacks or staples on the walls, floors, doors, furniture or existing décor
-Possess, use, distribute, and/or sell illegal drugs and illegal drug paraphernalia.
-Possess and/or use weapons of any kind, including, but not limited to, handguns,shotguns, knives, etc.
-Engage in fighting (organized or not), violence, horseplay or harassment of any kind with respect to anyone
-Conduct any acts that are criminal or tortious in nature
-Promote illegal behavior, or do anything to enable illegal acts to be performed
-Post, advertise, view, or transmit any pornographic, indecent and/or sexually explicit photographs, videos, or material
-Promote or participate in any lewd, indecent, or other sexual behavior, including, but not limited to partial or full nudity
-Intentionally cover any advertising or promotional materials put in place by AC
-Perform any act on the Property that could be considered a nuisance to any third party on or near the Property
-Engage in gambling of any kind
-Bring a pet onto the Property, except for service animals (such as guide dogs), or otherwise authorized in writing.
-Move or rearrange fixtures, furnishings, furniture, or other items of removable personal property on the Property
-Damage fixtures, furnishings, furniture, or other items on the Property
-Use candles not properly contained in a vessel taller than the candle itself and built to catch all drippings
DEPOSIT / CANCELLATION POLICIES
Lodging and Meal Payments are not refundable if a participant cancels enrollment. If the immersion gets canceled by the venue or ANFT for any reason, all tuition, lodging, and meals are fully refundable.
COVID POLICY
Masks are required by the camp personnel while in the Main Lodge meeting room, masks can be taken off while outside. Maintaining 6’ distancing is strongly recommended and must be in effect to the best of Clients’ ability, especially while eating and drinking. Hand-washing and sanitizing as needed throughout the day.
Participants will need to have a negative COVID test before entering the venue premises, within 24 hours of the start of the event. This can be an at-home-test and needs to be sent to Jackie at jackie@natureandforesttherapy.org
The training team will be in touch the month before the immersion to let you know what the specific COVID protocol will be during the immersion. The policy will likely mirror whatever the local policy iis at the time of the event. Much of the immersion will take place outside and everyone will have the option to wear a mask whenever they wish to do so. Please be in touch directly with the trainers for this immersion if you have any additional questions.
The tuition for the four-day immersion is $495.
Immersion tuition does not include transportation, lodging or camping fees and food. These expenses are separate from the program costs for the four-day immersion and are the responsibility of the trainee.
IMPORTANT: Please wait until you receive enrollment confirmation before booking travel and lodging.
Tuition figures are current as of January 1 2021 and are subject to change.
Jackie is a trainer and business manager with the Association of Nature and Forest Therapy Guides and Programs. She’s a certified forest therapy guide trained in 2017 at Sugarloaf Ridge State Park and has been guiding regularly in her communities ever since. She’s one of the first guides to pioneer guiding walks remotely via Zoom when the pandemic made guiding in-person unsafe for many months in 2020. Born and raised in China, Jackie came to the United States in 1990 to pursue her PhD in American Literature. She has had a diverse background in various fields such as teaching, translating, marketing, and practicing as a Certified Public Accountant. One of her greatest joys in guiding and training guides is witnessing the transformative impact on participants’ well-being on so many levels. She has co-led over 10 guide trainings worldwide as of 2022 and created a professional development course called Guiding Business Success for trained guides.
Summer , as a certified Nature and Forest Therapy guide, works in partnership with Nature to provide opportunities to help humans re-connect with the Earth and themselves. Born and raised in the cypress swamp of North Florida, Summer has navigated through various life experiences as a human being who happens to be deaf. After getting their degrees in Expressive Art Therapy and Deaf Cultural Studies, and certified in American Sign Language, Summer taught ASL, Spanish, and Deaf Culture in various high schools and colleges/universities for 15+ years. They also established a media consulting business, making educational films accessible to the sign language community.After they experienced some challenges with severe anxiety, Summer found Mother Nature calling them back home. Summer decided to study Nature and Forest Therapy through the Association of Nature and Forest Therapy and eventually found a new purpose- assisting humans from diverse backgrounds, cultures, and languages to rediscover their connection with the Natural world through the healing practice of forest bathing.
Summer , as a certified Nature and Forest Therapy guide, works in partnership with Nature to provide opportunities to help humans re-connect with the Earth and themselves.
Born and raised in the cypress swamp of North Florida, Summer has navigated through various life experiences as a human being who happens to be deaf. After getting their degrees in Expressive Art Therapy and Deaf Cultural Studies, and certified in American Sign Language, Summer taught ASL, Spanish, and Deaf Culture in various high schools and colleges/universities for 15+ years. They also established a media consulting business, making educational films accessible to the sign language community.
After they experienced some challenges with severe anxiety, Summer found Mother Nature calling them back home. Summer decided to study Nature and Forest Therapy through the Association of Nature and Forest Therapy and eventually found a new purpose- assisting humans from diverse backgrounds, cultures, and languages to rediscover their connection with the Natural world through the healing practice of forest bathing.
Tamberly Kerr - Conway - PhD
Tamberly serves as an ANFT Certified Guide and ANFT Certified Forest Therapy Trail Consultant. Tamberly holds an MS and PhD in Forestry, with a focus upon Human Dimensions in Natural Resources, focusing upon diversity engagement, health and nature connections, forest health/human health relationships, and community empowerment in conservation.
Tahia Devischer - PhD
Tahia is a research and teaching fellow at the University of British Columbia. She holds a PhD in ecosystems science from the University of Oxford, and is a certified forest therapy guide with ANFT. She works at the nexus of urban forests, human well-being and climate resilience.
Tamberly Kerr - Conway - PhD
Tamberly serves as an ANFT Certified Guide and ANFT Certified Forest Therapy Trail Consultant. Tamberly holds an MS and PhD in Forestry, with a focus upon Human Dimensions in Natural Resources, focusing upon diversity engagement, health and nature connections, forest health/human health relationships, and community empowerment in conservation.
Tahia Devischer - PhD
Tahia is a research and teaching fellow at the University of British Columbia. She holds a PhD in ecosystems science from the University of Oxford, and is a certified forest therapy guide with ANFT. She works at the nexus of urban forests, human well-being and climate resilience.
Tamberly Kerr - Conway - PhD
Tamberly serves as an ANFT Certified Guide and ANFT Certified Forest Therapy Trail Consultant. Tamberly holds an MS and PhD in Forestry, with a focus upon Human Dimensions in Natural Resources, focusing upon diversity engagement, health and nature connections, forest health/human health relationships, and community empowerment in conservation.
Tahia Devischer - PhD
Tahia is a research and teaching fellow at the University of British Columbia. She holds a PhD in ecosystems science from the University of Oxford, and is a certified forest therapy guide with ANFT. She works at the nexus of urban forests, human well-being and climate resilience.
Tamberly Kerr - Conway - PhD
Tamberly serves as an ANFT Certified Guide and ANFT Certified Forest Therapy Trail Consultant. Tamberly holds an MS and PhD in Forestry, with a focus upon Human Dimensions in Natural Resources, focusing upon diversity engagement, health and nature connections, forest health/human health relationships, and community empowerment in conservation.
Tahia Devischer - PhD
Tahia is a research and teaching fellow at the University of British Columbia. She holds a PhD in ecosystems science from the University of Oxford, and is a certified forest therapy guide with ANFT. She works at the nexus of urban forests, human well-being and climate resilience.
Our Mission: Support planetary health by nurturing heart-centered relationships between all peoples and the More-Than-Human World of Nature.
