By KATE POSS

Special to The Record

The public is invited to explore and learn about the Village by the Sea with a free scavenger hunt hosted by the Roots of Wellness program of Healing Circles in Langley. The April 26 event takes place between 1 to 3 p.m. at Healing Circles, 534 Camano Ave.

Healing Circles was founded by Diana Lindsay and her late husband Kelly Lindsay, each diagnosed with cancer. Discovering practices which helped them through their illness, they found one of the best approaches was talking with others in a circle. They opened the center in 2015, and it has since expanded its focus to include programs such as Village Prenatal Circle, Caregiver Support Circle and Roots of Wellness.

Roots of Wellness classes include Balance Gym with Sue Taves, Tai Chi with Stan Hiserman, Strength and Restoration with Sarah Birger, and Song Bath Sanctuary with Deborah Koff-Chapin. These classes are held at the Soundview Center at 432 Third Street.

Elin Waldal, director of Healing Circles, spoke about Roots of Wellness and Healing Circles in a recent phone call.

“I’m always asking what is ours to do,” Waldal said. “Create a sense of welcome in a time of crises. Someone to listen. An event bringing people together. Our Roots program serves the intergenerational aspect for our community. We have a few different community events we run through the year.”

This year Roots of Wellness is hosting its second annual Scavenger Hunt, collaborating with the South Whidbey Historical Society and Langley Main Street Association. The community is invited to pick up a map and enter a raffle for gift certificates donated by local businesses. The map leads sleuths to various Langley locations and asks them to find answers to questions regarding, for example, the Whale Museum, Langley Library and Moonraker Books.

Healing Circles is a nonprofit supported mainly by the community’s generosity and grants. Its webpage calendar offers a menu of what is offered as regular classes and as standalone programs.

“We have lots of circles,” Waldal said. “The home page has tabs across the top. We spotlight what’s going on. Langley happenings, highlights of what’s happening now. The best way to view it is to go to the month — the tab on right side of the calendar shows all the different happenings.”

Circles also include talks about perimenopause, women over 50, women in the middle, men’s circles and music.

“One of our most popular is ‘Coming Together Mondays’ from 10 to 11:30 a.m. — a great entry point to come in and experience something that doesn’t have an agenda,” Waldal said. “If you’re looking to try one, this is a good start.”

Have something on your mind? Visit Healing Circles Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. A volunteer inside will listen to what’s in your heart and on your mind.

“We’re not therapists,” Waldal said. “Someone with their own life experience skilled at listening volunteers during the week. We find people come in with a high level of anxiety. When they’re offered that their words will be held close to the vest, they talk and share stories. You can see the calm come over them. No one imposes advice or judgment. We work off a set of agreements, pillars that make Healing Circles really special.”

The pillars include treating one another with kindness and respect, listening with compassion and curiosity, not presuming to advise, fix, or save another — honoring someone’s perspective; holding what is said confidential, and relying on our inner wisdom and and the power of silence to access it.

The next community-wide event is planned Sept. 15, following Langley’s annual Soup Box Derby. Roots of Wellness hosts a “Soup-Nic” picnic at the Healing Circles campus. St. Hubert Catholic and Langley United Methodist churches will provide soup. Games include bubbles and cornhole games.

To learn more about Healing Circles and its Roots of Wellness offerings, visit healingcircleslangley.org/2024-calendar.