Michael Lerner is the president and co-founder of Commonweal, a nonprofit center in Bolinas, California. Commonweal works in health and healing, education and the arts, and environment and justice with more than 40 programs.
His principal work at Commonweal is with the Cancer Help Program, CancerChoices.org, the Omega Resilience Projects, the Collaborative on Health and the Environment, and The New School at Commonweal.
Michael received a MacArthur Prize Fellowship for contributions to public health in 1983. He is co-founder and president emeritus of the Smith Farm Center for Healing and the Arts in Washington, D.C. He is president of the Jenifer Altman Foundation. He is co-founder and chair emeritus of the Health and Environmental Funders Network. He lives with his wife and colleague Sharyle Patton in Bolinas and on Whidbey Island north of Seattle.
Photo: Stanley Wu
Please add me to the mailing list for this blog. Thank you.
Hi Deborah,
There is no mailing list for this blog, but I’ve added you to the mailing list for The New School–Michael’s program. And we usually post the blog articles in the newsletters for that program. So look for the New School newsletter coming soon.
Michael,
Greetings from Santa Cruz. I hope this finds you well. I’m writing today with a request for a poem. I had the pleasure of attending three silent retreats at Casa de Maria where you spoke and I know you understand the power of poetry and that you have an amazing collection of gems.
A dear friend of mine has lost her son. Only in 9th grade he killed himself. In front of a Paris train.
She has asked me to read something, a poem, at the service in a few weeks. Do you have a poem that describes the enduring nature of love in the face of pain? Or anything really, that might be appropriate to say in such a time?
Thanks in advance for any thoughts you have. -Claire
claire — sorry i just saw this. i almost never look at comments.
so sorry about your friend. i wish the right poem came to mind.
i can only say rilke’s love poems to god, rumi, hafiz, and mary oliver are among my favorites. mary oliver’s in blackwater woods would probably be best, the last few stanzas.
michael
bless your work
hope this finds you well. I’m writing today with a request for a poem
Amazing, may God bless and flourish this passionate work
I also would like to be alerted to this blog. thanks!
Thank you for this. Love Bolinas and look forward to visiting Whidbey Island. I felt these words shared by my friend from Big Sur. Blessed be.
Thanks for the great webinar this morning, Michael!
Thank you so much for your work. I’d like to register for this site but can only find a place to log in.
Please register me for the blog mailings–thank you,
Joan