A Yoga/Shiatsu Garden Retreat in Owen Sound, Ontario
May 6 and 7, 2011 (Friday 5:30 pm to Saturday 5 pm)

With Jane Loney and Eva Krechowicz

Let go and release the last of the winter kinks at this rejuvenating and fun mini-retreat in a spring garden setting. We will awaken our bodies and minds with the uplifting breathing of Kundalini yoga on Friday evening and a flowing Asana practice on Saturday morning. Saturday afternoon will bring the body into blissful balance with the “Best ever” restorative class. The Best Ever class combines restorative yoga with shiatsu therapy administered by the healing hands of Eva and Jane. To complete the experience, enjoy vegetarian food fit for a yogi.

Jane and Eva are professional Shiatsu therapists, each with over 19 years of experience. Jane teaches ashtanga and restorative yoga at the downward dog yoga centre and other studios in Toronto and Eva teaches private kundalini yoga classes in Oakville.

The tranquil and inspiring garden setting for this workshop is at Memory Garden Retreats, a bed and breakfast nestled in beautiful downtown Owen Sound, surrounded by the Sydenham river and within walking distance to downtown.

Cost: $250.00 per person // includes accommodation (double occupancy rooms), three meals, snacks and all classes

To register, please call Jane Loney at (416) 465-3320

What to bring: yoga mat and (heavy) wool blanket  
bathing suit and towel if you would like to use the outdoor hot tub.
walking shoes as there will be an extended lunch time to allow for a walk.

Space is limited to 8 participants.

Payment in full is required at time of booking. // Please make cheques payable to Jane Loney

No refunds less than 10 days from date of retreat // Let us know in advance if you have any dietary restrictions.

If you wish to extend your stay beyond Saturday, please call Jan Chamberlain at Memory Garden Retreats.

How do I feel about being elected to Owen Sound’s Council? I’m thrilled and ready. Thank you, voters and supporters, for the opportunity to serve and to give back.

This caring community has given me so much.

From way back in my teen years , when  my idol was the marathon swimmer, Marilyn Bell- Eddie Sargeant sponsored an Across  the Bay Swim and I got  to act out my version of being Marilyn. Then I was  sponsored by the city’s Recreation Department  to attend a Red Cross Water Safety Instructor’s Course and consequently was hired to teach at the  Harrison Park pools. The Y’s Men then sponsored my leadership  training at Geneva Park. That felt very special and  being selected for leadership  started a life time of volunteering in this community.

Besides always feeling cared for, there was (and still is), wonderful things to do with our families in this community. From the July 1st Fire Works, the band concerts in the park, the figure skating festivals, ball tournaments, house league hockey, and swim team and leader corps at the Y. We loved it all.

When campaigning I was told many stories of compassion--how there is a whole community of grateful bus riders who are treated very well by the drivers and the terminal staff; how so many tenants appreciate that the need for affordable housing is being addressed; and that there is more programming being planned for seniors.

Again, being involved with two Homecoming celebrations in 1987 and 2007, I continually bragged about the friendliness of this city. What wonderful celebrations they were. I  truely feel living in Owen Sound is just like one big CELEBRATION. I do think we should promote ourselves as the Celebration Capital of Canada.

So, as we celebrate our Council’s Oath taking, I  am sure this is a good time to be a civic leader. There is much hope and work going into becoming a Healthy Community. As we get involved and volunteer let’s have more open communicating and collaborating, more engaging citizens in taking care of our resources, our clean water, our waste management and infrastructure upgrades.

I care about our community and I pledge to do my best. But we are all in this together. So, one day at a time, one positive, caring, thought after another, let’s turn the whining into bragging. Owen Sound is an amazing city!! 

The election results continue to feel like a huge public "Thank you." Our fair city is very fortunate to have so many genuine, caring people who work for the betterment of us all. I am humbled and pleased to have been elected as a Councillor for the city. I appreciate every vote and will do my best to represent everyone and make intelligent decisions. I have a lot to learn about municipal governance and my son, Mike, lovingly commented, "that I always was supportive of lifelong learning" and this new venture will take my "lifelong learning" to a whole new level.

The campaign weeks were surprisingly exciting. There were 16 candidates for seven council openings and as we attended the All Candidates forums together, we learned a lot about each other. I also read everything on the City of Owen Sound web site. It's a very informative and I know I will be referencing it often. You can visit it at: www.city.owen-sound.on.ca.

This municipal election leaves me with is  the desire to help make this community as vibrant an progressive as we all pledged. We can build on the many positives we all experience now--the cultural tourism, the caring charities and health services, our educational institutions and the city services.

Again, thank-you for your vote of confidence. The inaugural session of council will be December 6th at the Roxy Theatre at 7pm and the public is welcome.

Jan Chamberlain, a community volunteer with a successful track record of promoting the city and creating events and programs, has filed her nomination papers to be a candidate for city councillor in the upcoming municipal election on October 25th.

Chamberlain is committed to building a strong, thriving and viable Owen Sound for current and future residents. She believes the new Rec Centre will have an extremely positive impact on the community, as will the new Family Health Team development. By focusing on positives – the continued enrollment growth at Georgian College, the Regional Tourism Marketing Partnerships, the Local Food Network and Festivals and Events – she will ensure Owen Sound continues to respond to the needs of current Owen Sounders; she will also help attract people to live here by choice and youth to return.

Chamberlain, a lifelong Owen Sounder who currently operates Memory Garden Retreats Bed and Breakfast in Owen Sound, has past local experience as an adult educator, chair of the Community Foundation Grey Bruce and the Bluewater Association of Lifelong Learning. She currently is serving on the City’s Doctor Recruitment Committee, the 150th Homecoming Legacy Fund Committee and the McQuay Tannery Seniors’ Centre Co-ordinating Committee.

Jan Chamberlain would like to see more opportunities for community engagement in the decisions about the future of Owen Sound.

I remember the buses coming to gobble up my children and take them to the rural school when we lived on a farm back in the early seventies. But today the bus dropped off a large group of Probus Club adults from Brampton, coming to visit Memory Garden Retreats. The visit was arranged by Parkinson Tours and was called Rural Gardens of Owen Sound and Wiarton.

Besides visiting here with me, the group was having lunch at Harrison Park, then travelling to Wiarton to visit Chimney Ridge Buckets and Blooms and then on to Keppel Croft Farm and Gardens at Big Bay before returning home to Brampton.

The weather, although still so hot, co-operated by being overcast making walking through the garden more bearable. There were lots of digital cameras in action and lots of questions. I described how the gardens developed over the years and how the compost making is the heart of the operation. I was pleased to offer a photo calendar keepsake and no sooner had the last person got back on the bus when there was a pop up rain shower. Good news was, the group was off to the Harrison Park Inn for a roast beef entrée with all the trimmings.

I feel very honoured to have been chosen to be visited and how I thrive on the many compliments. One gentleman mentioned “I should be proud” and that does sum up my feelings this evening. Everything I had hoped for came to be-the many lilies bloomed (top row flowers) and so did the crocosmia (to the right) and bergamot. In fact, I have had so much fun this past week, watching the blooms fatten and pop open. There were so many heat units; I watered constantly with the watering can emptying all the conserved water in the rain barrels. Then I pruned and dead headed and enjoyed every beautiful moment of all this getting ready.

How blessed I am to enjoy good health and to get to be a Stewart to this wonderful property. The hours my late husband, George, laboured laying paths, building wooden walkways and docks by the river and putting in all the foundation plantings is continuing to be so appreciated. It was a real thrill to share this garden at one of its peak times with the Probus Club members. Thank you all for your kind remarks. It was a wonderful day.

Walkway, het loogardensIn the middle of tulip season, and as it turned out, Iceland's volcanic eruption, I took the most beautiful trip of my life to Amsterdam, Holland and Bruges, Belgium. Discover Europe and Sandi Tinyk from Barrington Community School in Rhode Island were my wonderful guides on "Floral Flanders." I am grateful for Sandi's prior travel experience and stories which added so much to an already amazing itinerary. It was all so wonderful.

Canal Tour Bruges Each night we returned to our rooms with visions of spring flowers, Rembrandt, Vermeer, van Gogh, windmills and canals. We watched the TV updates of the Icelandic volcano that grounded Europeans. What a shocking contrast--from fantastic beauty to devastating black ash. The images of farmers wearing face masks to rescue panicked horses mired up to their knees in mucky ash will remain with me for a long time. What a contrast to the glorious country-side that surrounded us.

Of course I am home safe and sound and totally enjoying my own wonderful spring here at Memory Garden Retreats.  It is hard to put in to words how blessed I feel. I love it all.

If you are ever tempted to visit Holland here are some of the places that I visited:

• www.elephantparade.nl
• www.floralholland.com
• www.paleishetloo.nl
• www.hortusleiden.nl
• www.rijksmuseum.com
• www.keukenhof.nl
• www.thil-neis.com

As a person who has spent my childhood, adulthood and now elderhood in this city, I have a long positive, personal history with the Owen Sound Family "Y". It started with teentown dances held weekly when I was in the eighth grade at Ryerson School. It was during the early fifties dance craze era and I loved the darkened second floor all purpose room turned magically into a den of excitement every Friday night. Somehow I found myself on the teen town executive and was sponsored by the Y’s Mens club to attend a Y  leadership camp at Geneva Park. From that experience I was asked to give a talk about “Being a Leader" to the club.

So it came to be that I volunteered to lead, Neighbourhood ”Y” clubs, swimming instruction classes and First Aid classes and to Life Guard. Friendly Fred Gamble, the executive director at the time, made being in charge of the “Y” look like a wonderful career and I dreamed of setting a goal to attend Sir George Williams College to become a “Y” professional.

Even though I fell short of fulfilling that goal, I married and raised four children all to be “Y” leaders. They started young when I led movement education, on to Y nursery school, swimming classes, swim team, Y leadercore, Life guarding, Day camp instructors and counselors at Presqu'ile Camp. And during those years I continued volunteering as an Aquafit instructor and onto Nursery School executive, to the Y board doing special projects and becoming President in 1976-77.

I marvel when I realize the continuous learning experiences the “Y” has offered me:, fundraising, public speaking, promotions, and how to lead a meeting, to name a few. I will always appreciate this and as I continue to attend Aquafit classes (as a participant, not a leader this time) these wonderful memories  bubble up.

And now, with all the excitement of the New Rec Centre dream getting closer I want to passionately pledge my support to this project. As I sat through the public budget meeting on Monday night and witnessed the new crop of youth leaders pleading with the "city fathers" to BELIEVE in this facility becoming an economic driver for the future of Owen Sound and area, I was motivated to do all I can to help with making this happen. I’ll join the fundraising team, to help the city, the “Y” and the community find many creative approaches to getting this "Dream" built.

As I review the last decade, and move confidently into the future for Memory Garden Retreats, I can only feel very satisfied and pleased. What a congenial community this has all become. I continue to be delighted, hosting new guests to the Bed and Breakfast and enjoying friends coming to the Reiki, Readings and Relaxation days.

It is remarkable to me how all this came about and it is fun recounting the choices that lead to this wonderful outcome.

In the last decade my husband passed away. As a new widow I was often asked if I was going to sell the house. Many commented on all the work the gardens would be. What a surprise! Working in my garden is a joy. Therapeutic, I guess. I have so many memories of George doing everything which I now do. Sharing these memories have created my “grief garden” where I am healed a little more with each conversation. When I was asked to have my garden featured as part of the Georgian Bay Garden Club fundraiser, it was easy to say “Yes.”

The spring of 2008, I volunteered at Community Blooms for the Rural Gardens of Grey and Bruce Counties. As I talked with attendees I would get asked, ”Can you see them all in one day?” And when I said it would take at least three days, the next question was, “Can we stay at one of the gardens?”

With encouragement and inspiring help from my friends, Lisa Cruikshank and Gwynda McKee, my Bed and Breakfast business opened that summer. I’ll never forget my first Bed and Breakfast guest! Of course she toured and photographed the garden and then she asked when the meditation would start. I quickly arranged for a meditation practitioner to come and  the three of us shared a memorable evening, transforming a stranger into a friend. And that is what having B&B guests has felt like ever since.

I now have a  practitioner, Frances Brown giving reiki treatments, and Lisa Cruikshank does card readings with Angel cards. I help with the relaxing part by providing a restful atmosphere and some nutritious snacks. So we journey into 2010 with so much gratitude and happiness. And it will soon be time to start planning for this year’s garden.

Wow. What a wonderful weekend we just experienced. I attended, with my Bed and Breakfast guests, the  opening ceremony for the 22nd Annual Festival of Northern Lights and then the 64th Annual Kiwanis Santa Claus parade. The guests were delighted with both and I am reminded how proud we all are of  Owen Sound and especially how festive it looks at this time of year.

Also this weekend, another big event was the initial sod turning for the start of the new $33 million accessible recreational centre to be built on the Victoria Park site. This is a huge financial commitment for the citizens and we have all levels of government involved along with City and the local Y. And I will be proud to do my part.

Way back growing up in Owen Sound my membership in the Y was sponsored and I started volunteering, teaching swimming lessons in the "Old" Y  basement pool on the corner of tenth and third Ave East. I attended teen town dances there every Friday night and then attended a Leadership camp sponsored by the Y's Men Club. I continued  volunteering in many leadership capacities  and then helped  Dr Paul Hauch with his swim team in London while I was attending Teacher's College there. I had dreamed of becoming a Y General Manager and learned I would need to go to Sir George Williams College in Montreal. But my path lead me to getting my PHT (Putting Hubby Through) while George attended Western Medical School.

When George came into general practice in Owen Sound in 1966, I again started volunteering at the then" New"Y  on 2nd Ave E. and I have been an ongoing member all these past 43 years.  So I have watched the pool age and get patched up and keep going for all this time. And I got my dreams of leading in the Y well realized by having a stint as the Y President, doing fundraising to burn the mortgage in 1977 and continuing to teach aquafit for years and years. Now I attend as a happy participant two to three  times a week.  And I often think "What would I ever do if we didn't have this pool?"

So, yes I will help support the new rec  centre. And at this time of year, I give thanks for the amazing gardens George helped create here at Memory Garden Retreats. Keeling printers have helped me print another gift calendar. This year's quotes and photos will now be part of this web site but if you would like me to mail you a calendar gift just contact me through this site.

And have a Happy Holiday Season.

Jan at SaubleFinally I got to swim in Lake Huron while watching the Sauble Sunset. What a highlight. Brought back so many childhood memories of being at the beach with only a few others sharing the beautiful calm expanse of sand and water. A bit cool, but only at first and I was determined to make this a memory night with my good friends Rachel and Maryann.

So I had to stop at the Sauble Dairy Queen for a traditional soft ice cream treat. And even though he was about to close up for the night, Bev Buckton, the owner recognized me and surprised me by making me a supersize and gave it to me on the house. Again, I marvel at how wonderful it is to live to in this area and how amazing that Bev told me the best part of this business is working with all the neat kids, both local and seasonal all summer long. I was a seasonal summer worker at Sauble (the bowling alley) when I was a kid and so was Bev and the beat goes on. (Thanks Bev for the treat and the surprise.)

Getting home and still enjoying the unusual warmth of this September evening I look up at the night sky with new interest. Just this morning I had attended Doug Cunningham's lecture as part of the celebration of the International Year of Astronomy presented by BALL (Bluewater Association of Lifelong Learning). Doug made looking up fascinating and full of wonder and joy for living to learn more about our universe and the many more beyond our Milky Way. It's hard to put in to words the thrill of knowing about all that energy up there.

This September feels so special and so are friends to share it with. Thanks Maryann and Rachel, Bev and Doug.