"Wellstreams...for me the experience was all about birthing. My initial week-end in the class left me feeling pregnant - at 64! And throughout the almost three years there were many births into new levels of understanding. My inner development was God-directed as the mysteries of life were revealed in both micro and macro images. I became more at one with the universe and with myself, moving outward and inward almost simultaneously. Being a gardener and flower-lover, an image that I adopted for myself was the poppy. From the tiniest seed, to a hard-shell bud, self-protecting up to the moment when the flower emerges with petals that are exuberant in their wild, brilliant, frilly plentitude. Wellstreams watered me well during my fertility and development while leading me closer to the source of living water."

Kathie Houchens
Class of 2009

"I had no idea that listening to myself and walking through my own inner longings would be my journey with Wellstreams. I learned to know myself in relation to God's Grace and how to listen to others as they journey through life. I learned to put myself aside and be available for someone else. Wellstreams gave me my voice. I learned the "both/and" of things instead of "either/or" and to revel in that freedom. It was a blessing to grow in such a safe and graced community of staff and participants. This program has truly been life changing for me. It is wonderful to have the tools so freely given during Wellstreams to continue growing with God."

Sandy Oppermann Class of 2009

"I have always been particularly fascinated with and fond of kaleidoscopes: their colors, shapes, hues, designs, changeability, interest, connections, angles, light, shadows, movement. The Wellstreams journey for me is like living inside a kaleidoscope."

Katherine Murphy
Class of 2007

"There are so many ways that Wellstreams has touched and continues touching my life. This experience has been life changing for me in so many ways.... The learning is difficult, challenging, sometimes confusing, wonderful, creative, bringing clarity and always pushing out the boundaries of me, of discovering more about my true essence, of my relationship with God, others, and myself. I wonder sometimes what to do with Wellstreams and definitely wonder what I will do without it! And I know that this experience will continue to be a true gift in my life. Thanks be."

Sue Ulmer
Class of 2007

"Wellstreams has been my weekly 'oasis.' Regardless of the way the rest of my life was going, I looked forward to class time because I knew I would be welcomed, accepted, and surrounded by love. Wellstreams was the place where the personal relationships with God and myself were nurtured and encouraged to grow."

Jacquelyn Dean
Class of 2007

"The Wellstreams experience for me was one of deep, life long transformation that erupted in the midst of traumatic encounters of being human that I might learn to listen with others in search of the blessing of God in their lives. In Wellstreams I learned more than just the beginning skills of Spiritual Direction."

"I learned how to love again, 'love myself for the sake of God.'"

Dave Boling
Class of 2004

"Guide and Traveler(director and directee) embark on discovery of the journey together. As the discovery unfolds, the traveler may find...

     reflections of the life around them
     a new view point for what was thought to have already been seen
     kindred souls to share parts of the journey
     beauty in the ordinary
     greater meaning in the familiar
     the familiar in a new light
     patterns superimposed on patterns
     things from the past that need revisited on a new level
     things in the woods before unseen
     new meaning in life"

Dan Schleppi
Class of 2004

"I can honestly say that I never in my life felt as loved and affirmed for who I am as one of God's children, as I did in the Wellstreams Program. It truly was a safe place for each of us to discover more of the 'true self'. This is indeed, a gift beyond all imagining."

Martie Schoener
Class of 2002

"I entered the Wellstreams Program with great anticipation of the Spiritual knowledge I would gain. I am leaving the program with the stunned realization that spiritual growth, as well as the art of spiritual direction, is not accomplished as much by gain as by loss-and that these two and one-half years have been mostly about letting go and letting God."

Sharry Hoch
Class of 2002