FINAL LTMC - 20230728-2020

The Veteran Meditation Retreat Project aims to bring together and support veterans, including those with disabilities, Native Americans, and homeless settlers in New Mexico. The project offers a free annual retreat for veterans and accepts donations to support its efforts. Donations can be made online or by phone, and a donor list is available on the website. The project thanks its initial donors and welcomes photos of loved ones to be recognized during the retreat. For more information, visit lifetransition.com or call 505-982-4183. Hello and good day. Welcome to the Life Transition Meditation Center and Project Podcast. Today we will learn more about the Veteran Meditation Retreat Project created by LTMC founder, CEO, and meditation teacher Ralph Steele, who is a Vietnam veteran with experience as a Buddhist monastic. Please join me, Debbie Miraglio-Lynn, and my colleague Shonda Deonda to learn more about the project and Ralph Steele. Hello Ralph. Can you tell us what the Veteran Meditation Retreat Project is all about? The Veteran Meditation Retreat is about bringing a community together and, of course, veterans. Who are the veterans in New Mexico that can apply to the Veteran Meditation Retreat Project? All veterans. Walking veterans like myself and people who are working and not working, but they're able-bodied and disabled veterans. People when I say that, veterans that are in wheelchairs or need support, Native Americans and homeless settlers. The reason why it's Native Americans, one reason is we in the state of New Mexico, and we have a huge population here, and another reason is, honestly, when I was in the military during the Vietnam era, the Native Americans, they were there, but they didn't exist, meaning they weren't recognized. So there's a lot of stress in that area. It was broken up in those community of diversification there, but we do have a limit, and that limit is 100 in downtown Albuquerque, New Mexico. The 50 rooms we have reserved, two queen-sized beds in each room. I can't say nobody will be turned away, but there is a limit for the first one. It will be an annual. Something is happening every year. For the Veterans Meditation Retreat Project that is free to all veterans who attend, if people want to be involved or somehow contribute to the effort, what is the best way that they can do that? Well, the best way to be involved, remember, we live in America, and it's another way, a nice way of saying there is a dollar sign, and the amount doesn't matter. It's just the giving. From $11 on up, it doesn't matter. It's just the giving. That's very important, or the reason why I say $11, because if you give $1, $2, the only people that get that is the administration of, for example, the donor box of PayPal or the credit cards and so forth. That's why Ralph said $11. Lifetransition.com, you just go there, and right there on the home page, there's the Donate button, and you can click, and it's very simple and very straightforward. If because of some apprehension with regards to the Internet, you don't want to get involved with that, again, you can call my office, 505-982-4183, and we can do a credit card over the phone. If that's uncomfortable, you can, final piece, you can post a check, endorse it to Lifetransition Meditation Center, P.O. Box 9286, P.O. Box 9286, Santa Fe, New Mexico, 87504, 87504. Now, thank you, thank you, thank you so much for that question, and thank you for the interest in that. Thank you for that, Ralph. How can people find out more information? Lifetransition.com, probably the easiest way, take you to the website, that's the website name, Lifetransition.com, no S on the end of transition, Lifetransition.com. Or they can also call my telephone number, Lifetransition Meditation Center, 505-982-4183. So like they do on TV or the radio, they say it about two, three, four times, I'll just say it one more time, 505-982-4183. Thank you, Ralph. Is there anything else you would like to add, or anyone you'd like to thank, any closing comments? I was thanking the donors, definitely want to like the initial donors, I won't name all their names, you can just go to my website, Lifetransition.com, and we do have a donor list there, but Joseph Goldstein, the Lenz Foundation, Santa Fe Community Foundation, Jack Kornfield, and you should know that some of the donors are from, actually came, I'd like to thank the country of Germany, and Switzerland, so far. So many more precious people who have given $10, $100, people were just in tears. People have sent me, and you are welcome as well, if you would like to send a photo of someone you know, and you would like them to be recognized by us, by us veterans doing this process, because this will be happening every day, while we are there, acknowledge those who have gone on. Beautiful. Thank you, Ralph. So the Veteran Meditation Retreat Project is about connecting to silence. I wonder if we can end our session with 30 seconds of silence. Is that okay with you? Yes. Great. Let's begin. Okay. I can't wait. This was just a few seconds. Can you imagine a few days? Yes. Let's do this. Thank you for listening to this episode of Life Transition Meditation Center and Project Podcast, with your host, Shonda, and my colleague, Debbie. We'd also like to express our gratitude to our esteemed guest, veteran, meditation teacher, CEO, consultant, and so much more, Mr. Ralph Still. Thank you for sharing your time with us today. If you'd like more information about the Veterans Meditation Retreat, or feel moved to donate or sponsor this inaugural or future event, please visit lifetransition.com. That website, again, is lifetransition.com. Until our next episode, we wish you well.