Becoming a Community Elder (At Any Age and Stage)

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Most of us long for deep, nourishing community. Few of us were ever taught how to build one.

We arrive hoping to find belonging, and discover that communities on their way to thriving can become mired in conflict and drama, or in stagnation and burnout. What if the difference is not luck, and not finding the right people, but a set of capacities that any of us can practice?

Here at Emberlight, every day we practice ways to embrace death and support one another with loving presence. That practice asks something of us. It asks for the willingness to face ourselves, to tend our relationships, and to grow up together.

The communities we long for are not made by perfect people. They are made by ordinary people willing to practice self awareness, mutual accountability, loving presence, and courageous repair.

In this afternoon gathering, Lee Warren introduces the inner capacities and practical skills that carry a community toward resilience, depth, and coherence. We will explore four pillars together: stewarding ourselves, stewarding our relationships, stewarding culture, and stewarding the future. These are the capacities that move us from consumers of community into stewards of it, and into elders of it, at any age and any stage.

The afternoon unfolds as a guided conversation rather than a lecture. Come as you are, with your questions and your own experience of community, whatever shape it has taken.

About your Facilitator, Lee Warren

Lee Warren is a community builder, somatic guide, writer, and death educator whose work explores the relationship between embodiment, community, and the life, death, life cycle. Rooted in three decades of ecovillage living, she is devoted to regenerating the wisdom that allows us to return to the village, a relational and earth honoring way of living that restores belonging, meaning, and shared purpose. She is the author of Dying Together: The Art of Community Deathcare, forthcoming in 2026.

We gather in the Lighthouse, the education and gathering space on the Emberlight campus at 83 Sanctuary Rd in Swannanoa. 

This is a Pay What You Can event, and proceeds benefit Emberlight. We invite you to give what feels right for you, and we would love to welcome you into this circle whatever the amount.

Please note that all event tickets are non-refundable, except in the case that Emberlight cancels the event.

Please contact events@emberlightway.org with any questions.