The Holden Village Podcast

In the midst of the energy and heat of Abriendo Caminos, two of our teaching faculty, Emilie and Armando, their friend Flor de Marquez, and Kathie Caemmerer-Bach, one of Holden’s Co-Directors join in conversation discussing the Church, Holden and Emilie and Armando’s organization SICSAL. In this episode, Emilie also acts as a Spanish translator for Armando.  

Emilie Teresa Smith is an Argentine-born, Canadian-raised, Anglican priest...

Many things about Holden have changed since the mining days, but one thing remains the same, even in the heat of summer, the pool hall remains cool--an excellent place to escape the midday heat.  Nestled in a back room away from the joyous sounds of children bowling and playing ping pong, Elli, a long-term staff member and Elisabeth Cherland, a guest musician from summer 2024 teaching faculty discuss cyclic music, and the humanness...

This episode is a conversation between Holden Villages Naturalist Nic Caddell and a member of our summer 2024 teaching faculty Pamela Adams, a self-appointed freelance beaver detective. Nic and Pamela discuss the importance of beavers and other keystone species and the art of noticing. At the time of this recording, cottonwood fluff floats in the air and villagers take refuge from the summer heat in our beloved Railroad Creek. We h...

Anjuli Shah-Johnson is a somatic therapist who integrates teachings from the worlds of clinical social work and bodywork in hopes of walking alongside others in finding the paths that connect their body, mind and heart.  She is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and a Licensed Massage Therapist with specialized training in utilizing therapeutic touch and craniosacral techniques to tend to folks who have experienced trauma and who ho...

Rev. Dr. David Vásquez-Levy serves as President of Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley, California –a progressive, multidenominational seminary and center for social justice that prepares theologically and spiritually rooted leaders to work for the well-being of all.  A committed pastor, a nationally recognized immigration leader, and a sought after speaker, Vásquez-Levy leads at the intersection of faith, higher education, and ...

John Tirro is Pastor of Worship at St John's Lutheran Church (ELCA), in Knoxville, TN, and a composer of hymns, such as "To You All Hearts Are Open" (Holden Prayer Around the Cross, All Creation Sings). He has written hits for the pop end of Country radio (“So Much for Pretending” for Bryan White. “Imagine That” for Diamond Rio), as well as songs on best-selling albums by LeAnn Rimes and Rascal Flatts.

Trai...

Welcome to Holden Main Street: a playful podcast series dedicated to capturing the daily life and creative musings of ordinary folk at Holden Village. Who are the people drawn to this wild and uniquely transformative mountain community? How do their descriptions of hilarity, wilderness living, shared work and interior exploration shape the landscape of their time here? Expect to be delighted by improvised stories, poetry readings, ...

Laron has served diverse church ministries, quartet groups, and additional special engagements (funerals, weddings) for approximately 15 years. Laron has also taught students from different background and agents how to play piano by ear. Laron has enjoyed joining various forms of musical needs for diverse communities. Laron is a staunch advocate for learning a wide range of musical styles to enrich the musical experience. Laron has...

Giovana Oaxaca (she/her/ella) is the Program Director for Migration Policy with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America’s (ELCA) D.C. office for Witness in Society. In this role, she works for more just and humane federal immigration policies within a domestic and international context, engagement informed by the experience of Lutheran congregations and ministries, including the ELCA AMMPARO strategy. 

Giovana was previ...

Sara is a classically trained actress with tendencies to fly by the seat of her pants, an improv instructor and performer, who teaches others how to enhance listening skills, playfulness, empathy, connectedness, and liberation from fear of failure. She is an emerging papercut artist, whom you can visit at IG @saramacpapercuts.

David delights in listening to the aspirations of leaders and helping them and their teams unlock hidden re...

Saskia de Vries is a neuroscientist at the Allen Institute in Seattle Washington. Raised in California, she bounced back and forth between the west and east coast for her training, moving to Seattle in 2012 when she joined the Allen Institute. Her research has focused primarily on visual physiology, how the cells and circuits in our eyes and brain transform the visual world into perception. She is also very active in Open Science, ...

Paul Hinderlie began his earthly ministry making way too much wine and at the end was grilling fish for breakfast on the beach. Perhaps that's why Paul became a cook.

Carol Lund Hinderlie first came to Holden as a young staff member. Soon thereafter she brought her whole family to visit and work, beginning a long and fulsome history with the Village. She and Paul were married at Holden, spent two years on staff in the...

Lenny Duncan (they/them) is an artist. Preacher. Esoteric fool. Student Teacher. They produce art and media at the intersections of faith and radical abolitionist dreams in America. Lenny is the auhtor of Dear Church and United States of Grace, and the Forthcoming: Dear Revolutionaries - A Field Guide to the World Beyond the Church. A Phd student in historical and cultural studies of religion, who concentrates their studies in &quo...

Heather, Steve, Mark and Rachel talk with Dev about the Prayer of Jesus...part of the new vespers service (Bless This Night) that was composed and released at Holden Village this year. They reflect on their process and some of the decisions that they made in translating the Lord's Prayer into contemporary language and setting it to music.

The Prayer of Jesus
The disciples asked Jesus to teach them how to pray.
He said,...

Earth Ministry/Washington Interfaith Power & Light (WAIPL) transforms faith into action for the well-being of communities and the environment. We organize people of faith to advocate for strong environmental policies and provide strategic guidance to religious communities working toward environmental justice.

To learn more about Holden Village, visit: http://www.holdenvillage.org or to listen to more audio recordings v...

John Beck  received a BS in Art Education from Western Oregon University, completed a 5th year Art Education program at Portland State University, and received a MA in Education from Portland State University.  He is a member of the Oregon Art Education Association as well as the National Art Education Association.

To learn more about Holden Village, visit: http://www.holdenvillage.org or to listen to more audio recordings...

Cecie Suknaic Saulnier (she/her) was born and raised in Austin, Texas. She has been a part of Lutheran faith communities all of her life, and has been deeply impacted by the love, grace, and commitment of the people who have made up church for her. As a youth and young adult, Cecie felt most at home in church communities - from her weeks at summer camp to weekly Wednesday night youth group in high school to almost daily events with...

Due to the fires this Summer, many PCT hikers were diverted to the village. As a result, the village was blessed with many a hiker finishing their long journeys. For this episode, we have the amazing Monkey (trail name), who was kind enough to share her stories over tea. Please click on the link below to see how Monkey is raising money to procure more forests in her homeland: the Netherlands.

www.pctree.org

To lea...