Letter from the SAF President

Dear friends,

In my first letter to you as SAF President I am pleased to report on many important developments which have positive implications for our future. Let’s begin with the success of our recent conference at Mt. Madonna Center. In addition to making over $5,000 our goals of attracting new students to Sensory Awareness (what we call “the work”), and of bringing together many of those who lead others in its study were both achieved.

Adding to the beautiful residential setting and frequently glorious weather was the growing openness and camaraderie among the participants, reminding me of what Charles Brooks once wrote: “In working together even for very short periods in Sensory Awareness, a group of people develop a sense of respect and affection for one another which is not often met with.” Indeed the simple power of this work is quite remarkable.

The SAF has been sponsoring these conferences partly as a way to bring many approved teacher/leaders together for a few days. We feel it’s important that there be ongoing opportunities for leaders to share their work and explore creative ways to help support the development of this valuable study in the world.

This year the leaders who attended the two day leaders’ meetings held prior to the general conference worked diligently with a facilitator and the newly elected president of the Sensory Awareness Leaders Guild, Virginia Veach, to identify and then prioritize the most important issues they felt facing the Guild and the work. As a result there was much discussion about the Guild itself, its structure, purpose, by-laws and how its members could best improve communications between each other.

In addition, the group also approved the forming of a Guild advisory council to explore creating possible criteria for the approval of new leaders. Since Charlotte Selver’s passing there has been no agreed upon way to approve new leaders, and a growing number of Guild members believe that the time is now to tackle this delicate question. This advisory group will attempt to get feedback from the full Guild membership with the intent of eventually making a formal proposal for its members to vote on.

Recently the SAF Board has begun the very important process of strategic planning with the help of a facilitator. The intent being to help focus the Foundation’s energies and resources on the most effective ways of ensuring a stronger future for Sensory Awareness and spreading its influence. Work on this should be completed in February and we will share the results with you in our next Newsletter.

As many of you may know, the SAF has recently sold Charlotte and Charles’ summer home on Monhegan Island in Maine. This was a particularly difficult decision for the Board as this home holds many dear memories for those of us who have been fortunate to experience its charm. Happily the new owners are long time Sensory Awareness students and leaders Bob and Penny Smith, who, like the house, are something of island landmarks themselves. They have assured me that fellow students will be welcome to visit the house whenever they are on the island.

This decision was based on what the Board felt would be ultimately in the best interests of the work and the Foundation, particularly in light of a declining trend in donations and membership since Charlotte’s death. The funds from this sale will greatly enhance the SAF’s ability to help the work grow and develop, and will also enable us to explore more creative and effective ways of fund raising and increasing our membership.

And as for membership, as we near the end of the year it’s important that you to please renew your membership dues and donate what you can so that together we can, indeed, continue to build a stronger future for Sensory Awareness.

In closing I would like to give my appreciation to the many people who made our conference so special. Three stand out: Sara Gordon, Stefan Laeng-Gilliatt and Ruth Denison. For so many years Stefan and Sara have worked tirelessly and unselfishly to support the Foundation and the practice of Sensory Awareness. Where would we be without them? At the conference and during its planning stages they helped out in a multitude of ways and were a great support to me.

One of the particular highlights of this year’s conference was the lively participation and spirit of Ruth Denison, pictured above joyfully driving Terry Ray's scooter through the conference room at the end of our final session. As a well known and respected meditation and Sensory Awareness teacher in her own right Ruth came to the conference simply to experience the work as a student/participant. As such she exemplified what Sensory Awareness is all about. At age 85 her energy, enthusiasm and playfulness were wonderful to behold. Her passion for this work should be an inspiration for us all.

With warm wishes for the holidays and the new year,

Richard Lowe