Residency Program

One Earth Zen Monastery and Retreat Center
5004 Hope Rd, Winnsboro, SC 29180

Recognizing that the fractures of our world and of our spirits are the very same fractures, One Earth Zen Monastery and Retreat Center exists to help people outgrow the illusion of separateness—from one another, from other species, from the Earth itself—and grow into active kinship with the whole community of life.

Toward that end, we offer a residential program with two paths of study and practice, cultivating spiritual maturity—clarity, compassion, and wisdom—in communion with the living Earth:

• a Zen path of self- and world-understanding through meditation, instruction, and study guided by twenty-five centuries of evolving Zen Buddhist practice and insight; and
• a Transformative Conservation path of ecological understanding, multispecies solidarity, connection with nature, and commitment to cherishing and preserving species and ecosystems.

Residents may pursue either path, or both in roughly equal measure, under the guidance of our co-abbots.

THE CO-ABBOTS
The Zen Abbot is Rev. Dr. Meredith Hotetsu Garmon. Meredith has been practicing and studying Zen for over twenty-five years, most of which time he has been leading and teaching Zen practice groups. Formerly, he was an assistant professor of philosophy; then, a Unitarian Universalist minister.

The Conservation Abbot is Rev. Dr. LoraKim Joyner. LoraKim is an avian wildlife veterinarian and, as Co-Director of One Earth Conservation, has developed and facilitates parrot conservation efforts in Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Guyana, Suriname, and Paraguay. She has been certified as a Nonviolent Communication trainer, and is also a Unitarian Universalist Community Minister in affiliation with the UU Congregation of Columbia, SC.

THE RESIDENCY PROGRAM
Residents live at OEZM&RC, share meals, participate in the life of the household, and pursue an individualized balance of Zen practice, conservation and nature work, study, and personal responsibilities. The details vary according to each resident's plan, but all residents contribute to creating a community rooted in mindfulness, mutual support, and care for the living Earth.

Full-Time Practitioners-in-Residence follow the daily schedule of the monastery and the practice path of their residency plan for much of the day, six days a week (Mondays off).

Part-Time Practitioners-in-Residence are those who have outside employment, either in or near Fairfield County, or working remotely. They follow the early morning and evening monastery schedule as their commute may allow, and devote ten hours a week to the practice of their residency plan.

BECOMING A RESIDENT
Anyone is eligible to apply who supports the mission of OEZM&RC and is interested in pursuing one or both of our two paths while living at OEZM&RC. These are the steps:

1. Make an appointment to meet with the co-abbots to discuss your interests and how your residency would fit with the OEZM&RC mission and your own development.
2. Schedule a weekend “taste” to try out what it might be like for you here. These generally begin on a Friday evening and go until Sunday midday. The weekend experience provides exposure to both the Zen and the conservation practices.
3. Consult with the co-abbots about your interest in continuing and make plans for a ten-day “practice run.”
4. Allow at least an additional week during which the prospective resident and the co-abbots may each reflect on whether the residency is a good fit.
5. Develop a written plan for the residency. Once the plan is approved by the co-abbots, move in and begin!

COSTS
Costs include room and meals.
Weekend Taste: $100
Ten-Day Practice Run: $250
Full-Time Practitioner-in-Residence: $400/month
Part-Time Practitioner-in-Residence: $700/month
Because our full-time Practitioners-in-Residence contribute substantially more to the work and mission of OEZM&RC, their monthly residency rate is reduced.

CONTACT
For more information or to apply, email the co-abbots at:
garmonjoyner@uuma.org