Thank you for being a part of The Mountain

Mountain friends and family Thank you! Due to your kind and generous donations of time, treasure and talents, we’ve had another successful year at The Mountain! As we tie up loose ends, it is clear that 2019 presented some challenges, but our Mountain community again stood tall and guided us through a ninth year of continued success. As we dive into 2020 and beyond, I again ask for your support and guidance. At this time, I would like your opinion on building our future and how to best use the generous donations you give.

The Mountain is at a crossroad of sorts. During my tenure, we have spent a lot of time looking back and living in the present. Though we have taken steps to prepare for our future, there is much work to be done.

What I would like is for you to follow this link:

 Mountain Funding Priority Survey 

and take the survey to help improve The Mountain.

This survey is intended to gather information on how you would like your money allocated to repairs, improvements and enhancements to our physical plant. Your thoughts, ideas and opinions are very important to me and our Mountain community. Below are brief explanations / descriptions to help you with the survey. For your convenience, the survey link also appears at the end of the descriptions of the budget categories.

-Ted Wisniewski

What's on the Horizon?

MountainCamp! 

MountainCamp ended with a bang last year! MountainCamp 2019 saw  the largest MountainCamp attendance in decades!

Be sure to get your children registered for MountainCamp early this year. Camp is already 1/3 filled, and some sessions are almost at capacity.

Both elementary one-week sessions only have a few more spots available. Be sure to make the $200 deposit when registering to ensure a spot for your camper. We are looking forward to another full camp year!

Music at The Mountain "Mind, Body and Spirit in Harmony" April 12-17, 2020

Wherever you are in your musical journey - listener, beginner, confident performer or a reluctant one, first time songwriter or working on your best song yet - you can experience  the joy of musical creativity through the support of mentors and community. At Music at The Mountain, you will learn techniques to promote creativity, skills on an instrument and new ways of expression.

You will become a more active listener and a better musical communicator, in touch with your inner song.

Program highlights include; in depth workshops on songwriting, history, and creativity; one-on-one or small group clinics for voice, bass, guitar; ukulele, harmony singing; using music for health and well being; and more. We'll start each day with a morning reflection. There will also be concerts, opportunities to perform and jam sessions. And of course you'll have time to enjoy all The Mountain has to offer, including hiking, personal discovery, and deep community building.

A Glimpse of Vision 20|20

A Mountain New Year Celebration! 

This New Years The Mountain hosted a grand celebration! We danced, sang, spent time in nature and communed with one another. We tapped into our creativity, released old paradigms, set fresh intentions that serve our highest self ... and just generally had a great time. With over 80 participants over five days, The Mountain was humming with activity. Daily 5Rhythms with instructor Azi Amanzadeh, morning yoga with Shonali Banerjee, and breathwork kept our bodies feeling fluid. Forest bathing and labyrinth walks, along with discussions about practical permaculture and green burial, had us feeling connected to the land. We learned new skills, like raw chocolate creation, journal making, and at-home Ayurveda. Some highlights included the polar bear plunge on a very windy and cold New Year's Day morning when a dozen participants jumped into our Mountain lake to arise victorious and invigorated! Another was our fire releasing ceremony on NYE and The Mountain tradition of morning circle each day. The time leading up to the stroke of midnight New Years Eve was electric. The Treehouse was aglow with decoration and shining faces as the Flying Mystics took the stage, playing their dreamy rhythms late into the night. During intermission, the crowd was awed by the illuminated stylings of Radiance Aglow, a local fire dancer who performed using LED isis wings, hula hoops, fans, poi and more. So much can be said about the event, but the most important thing to know is that we're doing it again next year! Mark your calendars for VISION 2021, and spend next New Year's with us at The Mountain. 

What's Growing Down Below

We've been experiencing a warm snap this winter which has added fuel to our inner fire. So much so that we've gotten started on spring cleaning tasks. We are also carrying a lot of momentum from this year's phenomenal New Year's event. An honored guest from that event was Michael Judd, author of For the Love of Paw Paws and Edible Landscaping with a Permaculture Twist. He wandered our farm and food forest and provided us with valuable insight. Going forward, we've got a lot to be excited about this winter:

• Our farm manager Joey Kyle enrolled in Pickle School (Acidified Foods Safety Certification) which will allow us to sell a variety of pickled products this year.
• We'll be replacing the front and back sides of our hoop house, which will hopefully be a long-term investment that allows us to get a seasonal head start. 
• Thanks to a grant from the Wild Azalea Garden Club, we'll be purchasing several edible, pollinator-friendly plants for the Food Forest and field.

Stay connected with our projects through Facebook and Instagram.

The farm is looking for volunteer and  helpers for next year.

This is a unique opportunity to connect with a crew of caring permaculture enthusiasts in a protected and wild forest environment. Helping produce food for markets and guest alike. Helping tend a burgeoning food forest, educating campers, caring for animals, and finding a path to work and live in one of the most beautiful environments in Western North Carolina. Please share this opportunity with those you think would be passionate and interested.  

For more info, visit our page or

send an e-mail to farm@themountainrlc.org.  

Follow the adventures of the Many Hands Peace Farm on Facebook and Instagram

Kitchen Confidential

The excitement in the kitchen this last month was all about the New Year's program. We mixed things up with a two-meal day, starting with a full brunch, then serving up some new appetizers during social hour, and rounding off each day with a cozy winter meal. 

I was particularly excited about the Vision 2020 program, as I got to participate in a some of the events. This was a nurturing experience, not just through the breathwork, fire ceremonies and dancing, but getting a sense of the guests' experience at The Mountain. It was a lovely reminder that part of our mission is to nourish our guests in mind, body and soul. So that means delicious food that fills them up, lifts them up and complements our ethical and sustainable values.

We've been hard at work getting our kitchen ready for another year of brilliant programs with updates to kitchen equipment, menu revisions and a few other surprises!

This month we also said goodbye to a beloved member of the kitchen staff, Kofi. We're so grateful for his hard work and dedication to The Mountain but excited for him on his new adventures.

This means that we're hiring! If you or someone you know loves cooking, working in a team and supporting The Mountain's mission, please email me,

Jenn, at kitchen.manager@themountainrlc.org

Peace, Love and Chow!

Mountain Musings 

Growing with The Mountain

Before my first volunteer weekend in the spring of 2018, I had never been to The Mountain. I'd heard mention of it at my home church (UUCA) – mostly relating to youth cons and summer camp. I enjoyed my first experience and returned a year later for another volunteer work weekend. Since then, I've served as a volunteer host for this summer's Climate Justice Week, this fall's Road Scholar course, and the new year's Vision 20|20 program. I have been warmly welcomed, well oriented, put to work, fed well, and made to feel like part of the family. 

There's nothing pretentious about the Mountain's campus or its staff. Everyone is genuine and cares deeply about the mission, facilities, and guest experience. As a volunteer, I've learned how much work is involved in the daily routine, and it feels good to assist the staff who do the bulk of the heavy lifting day in and day out. I've changed light bulbs, driven guests in the golf cart, served as a hike sweeper, set up umpteen chairs, cleaned up spills, cleared brush, built fires, washed dishes, painted ceilings, prepared for social hour, and toted luggage. What's been most memorable, though, is the quality of the human connection. I've become close to multiple staff members and have joined them for weekend trips. I've made friends with conference guests and am planning a trip soon to visit several of them in Florida. Combine relationships, western N.C.'s natural beauty, and a tradition of hospitality, and you've got all you need for a perfect volunteer gig. I'm grateful to join the ranks of regular volunteers who offer themselves selflessly for the benefit of The Mountain. I can't wait to get back up there!

- Jon

Magnificent Mountain Members 

Clark Bird Olsen

Asheville - The Reverend Clark Bird Olsen, born June 22, 1933 in Boston Massachusetts, passed away at his home in Asheville, NC, January 21, 2019. 

The son of the late Arthur and Catherine Bird Olsen, he grew up in Massachusetts and Ohio. He is survived by his wife Anna Rogers, daughter Marika, son Todd, and his brother Lee. His sister Elaine, brothers Dexter and Tyler, and first wife Ludmilla predeceased him. 

Clark received a BA degree from Oberlin College, a Bachelor of Sacred Theology from Harvard Divinity School, and a Doctor of Sacred Theology degree from Starr King School for the Ministry. He served as Minister at Unitarian Universalist churches in Westboro, Massachusetts, Berkley, California and Morristown, New Jersey. In the late 1970 his work focused on consulting in areas of organization and individual effectiveness for UU Churches, corporations, and non-profits. 

Clark always considered his life to be a gift. Two bouts with rheumatic fever as a child left him with damaged heart valves and his doctors predicted a short life span. And, an incident in Selma, Alabama brought him inches away from serious if not fatal injury.

In 1965, and the midst of the civil rights struggle in the south, Clark's Berkley congregation answered the call of Dr. Martin Luther King for ministers to come to Selma in response to "Bloody Sunday", where civil rights marchers were brutally beaten while trying to cross the Edmund Pettus Bridge in a walk to Birmingham. Clark was ready to stand up for justice, but knew, "I was not going to a picnic."

His first night in Selma, while walking to Brown's Chapel to hear Dr. King speak, Clark and two other UU ministers, Orloff Miller and James Reeb, were accosted and beaten with clubs by four men. A blow directly to Rev. Reeb's head proved fatal. "I saw the man swing the club, I heard it hit Jim's head" Clark explained at the time. "Jim was walking on the curb, I was walking next to the building. Call it chance or happenstance, as I lived and he did not."

This incident proved the pivot point to the passing of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, and provided the moral compass for the rest of the Rev. Olsen's life. He has spoken world wide about civil rights, and took part for many years in the Sojourn Project which takes young people on a living history tour and introduces the places and people who forged the pathways of understanding and awareness to civic responsibility.

"Don't be a silent witness," Clark implored everyone he spoke to about his experience. "Whenever you see injustice, speak up, take a stand, be in solidarity, you never know what may be the outcome."  

 It is stories like these that are core to The Mountain experience of inspiring people of all ages, transforming lives, and building a more compassionate world. Thank for for being a part of it. If you have a Mountain Memory or story you wish to share with The Mountain community please share at: tanner.csonka@themountainrlc.org 

Bellow you can find more about how your congregation can connect with The Mountain. Under Media Resources you can find posters for upcoming programs, as well as text from events to copy and paste into your own newsletters or mailings. You'll also find presentations and social links. Let us know if you would like a visit from a Mountain representative to engage with your congregation.  

Our Instagram account is new, so follow us; @themountainrlc and tag your favorite Mountain memories with #themountainrlc! We'd love to see your pictures. 

We were looking for you!

To create an online talent roster, we would like to gather contact information, along with your talents, and availability. This resource would be available for groups or individuals coming to The Mountain to have a resource list to help fill in program offerings, further connecting members of the Mountain Community!

Take a Moment...

The Mountain is a Membership Organization, as such we value your contributions and inputs to keep our doors open to all. If the Mountain has enriched your life in any way, please express your appreciation in the form of a financial contribution. Give through our website—or the old-fashioned way, with a check. Thank you for your support. Please consider:

 Donating to The Mountain's Annual Fund

or becoming a Mountain Member.

Just over 25% of our budget comes from contributions. This enables us to help keep programming and camps affordable to all and better fulfill the mission of The Mountain. We thank you for your support! 

We wish you a jubilant January, and we look forward to seeing you on The Mountain.