Juneteenth Retreat:

Meditation, Liberation, and Healing for People of African Descent

June 18–21, 2026

WJ Kelly Retreat Center, Bay St. Louis, Mississippi

This special Juneteenth retreat invites people of African descent to gather in sacred community, drawing upon the deep wells of African wisdom and Buddhist contemplative practices to reconnect with freedom, healing, and joy. Held in the heart of the south, this retreat offers a rare and necessary affinity space for practitioners of African descent—especially those living in the Gulf region of Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama, Tennessee, and Florida—to practice liberation in both body and spirit.

Guided by internationally respected teachers Dr. Vimalasara (Valerie Mason-John) and Arisika Razak, MPH, the retreat will include meditation, Dharma talks, embodied ritual, breathwork, chanting, movement, and periods of silence. Together we will honor the ancestral resilience of Juneteenth and hold space for grief, joy, and collective transformation.

This retreat is offered exclusively to people of African descent and is planned as a partial scholarship-funded experience. Through affinity-based practice, we offer refuge from systems of oppression and cultivate love, dignity, and spiritual empowerment.

This retreat will be led by two remarkable teachers:

Dr. Vimalasara (Valerie Mason-John) is an internationally respected Dharma teacher, author, and public speaker with over 27 years of Buddhist practice in the Triratna tradition. A trailblazer in the field of mindfulness and addiction recovery, she is the co-founder and co-author of Eight Step Recovery: Using the Buddha’s Teachings to Overcome Addiction, a pioneering, award-winning program that serves as an alternative to 12-step approaches. She is also the co-creator of Mindfulness-Based Addiction Recovery (MBAR) and has trained facilitators around the world in trauma-sensitive, culturally grounded approaches to recovery.

A queer Black woman of Sierra Leonean Creole descent, Dr. Vimalasara’s work integrates African spiritual traditions, Buddhist ethics, and shamanic healing to offer deeply affirming practices for marginalized communities. She is a senior teacher in the Triratna Buddhist Community and currently serves as Chair of the Vancouver Buddhist Centre in Canada. In addition to her Dharma work, she is an acclaimed author of several books including Detox Your Heart and Borrowed Body, and a European Diversity Award recipient for her activism within LGBTQ+ and racial equity communities. She is a senior Compassionate Inquiry practitioner, trained directly by Dr. Gabor Maté, and brings powerful insight into the healing of trauma and the embodiment of freedom.

Arisika Razak, MPH, is a beloved elder and spiritual teacher whose work draws on over four decades of experience in women's health, healing justice, and African diasporic wisdom traditions. Former Chair of the Women’s Spirituality Program at the California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS), Arisika’s teachings reflect a rich synthesis of African spirituality, Buddhism, womanism, and somatic awareness.

As a graduate of the Spirit Rock Dedicated Practitioners Program and the Mindfulness Teacher Certification Program, she has long held space at the intersection of contemplative practice and social justice. She is also a certified facilitator in Embodied Social Justice and regularly teaches at East Bay Meditation Center (EBMC), where she co-creates sacred space for BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ communities. A former nurse-midwife and longtime movement teacher, Arisika’s retreat offerings include ritual, song, dance, breathwork, and grounded spiritual reflection that reconnect participants with their ancestral wisdom and bodily resilience. She has presented nationally and internationally on womanist spirituality, decolonial healing, and sacred embodiment.

Financial Support

Gratefully, Flowering Lotus Meditation received a generous grant provided by Hemera Foundation and we are able to cover much of costs associated with teacher travel, facility rental, lodging and meals. However, a non-refundable financial commitment is due to reserve your spot and assure attendance.

Thursday - June 18 Check In 3:30-5:30 pm Dinner at 6 pm, program begins at 7:30

Friday - June 19 Full day of Programming Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner Served

Saturday - June 20 Full day of Programming Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner Served

Sunday - June 21 Breakfast and Closing Ceremony Depart Center by 11:30 am

You'll receive 8 meals, 3 nights accommodations and endless opportunity for rest and community. This type of programming regularly costs participants $750 per person. However, your $200 reserves your space and pays for food and accommodations.

When budgeting for this retreat please be prepared to practice dana/donate to your teachers at the end of the retreat. Read more about the practice of Dana?

Juneteenth Retreat

By Flowering Lotus Meditation

Juneteenth Retreat

Meditation, Liberation, and Healing for People of African Descent