Midwinter 2016

Chokecherry Grove invites you to join us for Winter Solstice on Friday December 23rd!

As the wheel turns it is good and proper that we invite and honor the gods, who stride upon the shores of Asgard, to our sacred fire in celebration. The deities of the occasion will be Njord and Skadi. In addition, we will do our very best to see that the sun, who now lives the long time away from us, will again resume its inexorable march toward the longer days.

There will be time, during the rite, for those who wish to make offerings to their patrons, deities, ancestors or anyone to whom it is proper to give such gifts.

Following the rite there will be a time for feasting and fellowship .We encourage those who gather to bring food to share.

We will meet this time at Jefferson Unitarian Church: 14350 W 32nd Ave, Golden, Colorado 80401. Gather at 7 pm; ritual starts at 7:30. Our celebrant will be Kevin "Arth yn Rhedeg" Jenkyns.

UPDATE: All cash donations we receive at this event will be given to the Dumb Friends League shelter in Castle Rock where one of our members volunteers.

Samhain 2016

We will be celebrating Samhain this year on Sunday October 30th. As the winter season begins, we leave our familiar site beside our Mother Platte and move to a series of more sheltered locations. For Samhain, that will be 2929 S Elm Street, Denver, CO. For this ritual we will gather at 5 pm, and the ritual will begin at sunset. The theme this time will be Welsh, with some dual-language sections, and the celebrant will be Rev. G. R. Grove. We will be collecting toys again this year for Toys for Tots, and ask that everyone bring at least one new toy. There will also be the usual potluck and fellowship after the ritual.

Saturday's schedule

8 am - site opens
9 am - Colorado Deputy Regional Druid Rev. G. R. Grove - Early Druids of Celtic Europe - What do we know, what do we guess?
10 am - ADF Archdruid Rev. Jean "Drum" Pagano - Fire in Avestan Religious Thought and Practice
11 am - Central Region Regional Druid Rev. Amber Doty - ADF Organization
12 noon - Lunch
1 pm - ADF Seers Guild Chief Rev. Rowen Grove - Þorbjörg’s Charm Bag: The Tools of a Spákona
2 pm - Kevin Jenkyns - Connecting with the Land Spirits
3 pm - Q/A Panel (Rev. Pagano, Rev. Doty, Kevin Jenkyns, Anthony Fleming)
4 pm - ADF Bard Laureate Rev. Melissa Ashton - Music in Ritual
5 pm - Unity Ritual
6 pm - Potluck Supper

Update

Unfortunately one of our invited speakers, Rev. Kirk Thomas, will not be able to attend our Rocky Mountain retreat this year due to the death of a cousin. However, the retreat will otherwise take place as planned, with his spot on the schedule being taken by our own Rev. Kevin Jenkyns (not an ADF priest, but ordained in a different tradition). Kevin will be speaking on connecting with the Land Spirits, building on the presentation he gave last year. Chokecherry extends our sympathy to Kirk for his loss, and we hope that he will be able to visit us next year.

Rocky Mountain Retreat starts soon!

Where does the time go? Chokecherry's Second Annual Rocky Mountain Retreat will begin two weeks from tomorrow with an evening gathering for preregistered participants, and will carry on through the weekend, concluding with an open-to-the-public morning ritual at Ruby Hill Park. All locations will be in south Denver, not far off the I-25 corridor. For more details and a preregistration link, see this page. And remember, there will be nothing like this in 1,000 miles!

Our newest project: The Kitchen Druid!

Chokecherry Grove has published a cookbook! You can get it directly from us at any of our public events, or from our publisher Lulu: http://www.lulu.com/shop/g-r-grove/the-kitchen-druid/paperback/product-22808547.html

More about October...

We now have a tentative schedule for Saturday's presentations at our October ADF Rocky Mountain retreat!

8 am - Site opens
9 am -  Colorado Deputy Regional Druid G. R. Grove - Early Druids of Celtic Europe - What do we know, what do we guess?
10 am - ADF Archdruid Rev. Jean "Drum" Pagano - Fire in Avestan Religious Thought and Practice
11 am - Central Region Regional Druid Rev. Amber Doty - ADF Organization
12 noon - Lunch
1 pm - ADF Seers Guild Chief Rev. Rowen Grove - Þorbjörg’s Charm Bag: The Tools of a Spákona
2 pm - ADF Archdruid Emeritus Rev. Kirk Thomas - Sacred Gifts
3 pm - Q/A Panel (Rev. Pagano, Rev. Thomas, Rev. Doty)
4 pm - ADF Bard Laureate Rev. Melissa Burchfield - Music in Ritual
5 pm - Unity Ritual
6 pm - Potluck Supper
7 pm - Site closes

Preregister now to reserve your space!

Our ADF Rocky Mountain Retreat...

... is coming soon!



https://countingdownto.com/

This will be an in-town, non-camping event at locations in south Denver. For more details, see our information page!

Lughnasadh / First Harvest

This year we are holding two Lughnasadh celebrations! The first, Friday evening July 29, will be at Jefferson Unitarian Church located at, 14350 West 32nd Ave., Golden, CO 80401. Gather at 6:30 pm, ritual begins at 7:00 pm. Join us as we celebrate and honor Artio, She-Bear Goddess, at Lughnasadh. Artio means “bear” and, like the bear, Artio wakes in the spring and is a goddess of The Harvest, Bears, Wild Animals, The Hunt, Fruits and Grains. 

Our second Lughnasadh, at our usual Overland Pond Park venue in Denver, will be Sunday, July 31st. Gather at 1 pm, ritual starts promptly at 2 pm. This will be an Irish-themed ritual, and the celebrant will be Rev. Debra "Rowen" Grove, our recently ordained Grove Priest. After the ritual, in addition to our usual potluck, there will be Lughnasadh Games!

Beltaine!

Spring is burgeoning all around us, and the Spirits of the Land are awake! Join us in this festive time of growth as we honor the Land Kin on the banks of Mother Platte. This will be a Celtic-themed ritual, followed as usual by a potluck, and (weather permitting) by a Maypole! Instead of collecting food bank donations this time, we will be giving half of the cash donations we receive to a local homeless shelter. So rain, snow, or sunshine, come on by if you're in Denver! We'll be gathering at 1 pm, and ritual will begin at 2 pm at Overland Pond Park, our summer home.

Eostre 2016

Thanks, everyone, who joined us in the park Sunday to welcome in the season beside our beloved Mother Platte. The weather was beautiful - a nice change from Imbolc's blizzard. We had a lovely ritual on the fisherman's platform, now repaired and improved after last summer's flood damage. Afterwards we had food and fellowship, and got in some good bird-watching as well! We expect to be meeting at the same location - Overland Pond Park - until Samhain, so come and join us on our high days. Our next one will be Beltane on May 1st.

Today...

Remember, we are celebrating Spring Equinox in Overland Pond Park today! Gather at 1 pm, ritual starts at 2 pm.

Spring Equinox

Join Chokecherry Grove to celebrate the Spring Equinox on the shores of the mighty Mother Platte!

We will be gathering to give praise and sacrifice to the three Kindreds and enjoy the company of our community. The chief deities of the occasion will be Idunn and Bragi, honoring the gifts of renewal that come with the season. Feel Free to bring any offerings you wish for any of the Gods, ancestors, and spirits. (Please limit your offerings to that which is burnable or biodegradable to reduce our impact on the natural environment which we hold ritual in!)

We would love folks to additionally bring a single piece of firewood from their home spaces to become part of our fire.

After the rite we will have potluck fellowship in the park! Please bring a dish to share that suits your own taste. We cannot have open glass in the park, so please bring beverages in cans, or expect to use a cup. Please also bring a an item to be donated to a local animal shelter.

Looking forward...

Despite the snowy weather, we had a good Imbolc ritual at JUC, and CUUPS has invited us to do another one there, probably July 29th. In the meantime, we are hoping to celebrate our next High Day back in Overland Pond Park beside the Platte. This will be on Sunday March 20th, probably around 1:00 pm. More details to follow soon.

Imbolc - Sunday January 31st, 2016

Our Imbolc ritual this year will be held at Jefferson Unitarian Church in Golden, Colorado. We will gather at 6:30 pm, with the ritual beginning promptly at 7 pm. Weather permitting, we will be in the courtyard of the church. Ritual will be followed by our usual potluck, so bring a dish that suits your needs. This time we will also be collecting pet supplies for a local shelter.