Wild Guides at retreat house
wild week 2026: April 19-25
Our Wild Guides are caring companions for the journey—people who love the outdoors and believe that time in nature can shape us from the inside out. Throughout Wild Week, they will lead gentle, welcoming experiences designed for all comfort levels: mindful walks, simple observation practices, shared silence, and space for conversation and prayer.
Each guide brings a deep passion for growing in three directions at once: with self, with the Sacred, and with neighbor. They’ll help you notice what’s right in front of you, listen for the mystery in creation, and practice gratitude and curiosity together. More than “experts,” Wild Guides are fellow learners—ready to encourage, support, and invite everyone into a week of wonder, reflection, and connection.
Gretchen Martens - Author, Teacher, Buddhist, Shaman
Wild Invitation
Drawing on my early years as an archaeologist, I describe myself as an archaeologist of the Soul—tending inner and outer landscapes at the intersection of story, place, and becoming. I love accompanying women at thresholds—those moments of rupture, reckoning, and renewal—supporting them in reclaiming their Sovereign Self by giving voice to their deepest stories from a place of authenticity and personal power. My work roots itself in wild spaces and contemplative practices that reconnect us to the culture of place, the wisdom of the natural world, and the ancient origins of our shared humanity.
Wild Creds
Gretchen has completed advanced certifications as a shamanic healer, an ancient and innately human way of knowing the world and healing Self and Soul. This builds on her 2022 certification in eco-ministry with Seminary of the Wild and two decades of work as an ontological coach. She plans a summer 2026 launch of the Wild Canopy, a community for healing, exploration, and growing consciousness in the emerging tradition of wholistic spirituality.
Rev. dr. lil smith, dasd - spiritual guide, permaculture enthusiast, wild gardener, wild grandmother
Wild Invitation:
As a forever-student of spiritual companionship, gardening, and permaculture, Lil notices a connection (or disconnection) with the ways we tend our relationships with God, self, and neighbor. She enjoy connecting with nature in the wild garden, as a wild grandmother, and leading others to this practice of noticing, discovery, healing, and new growth. Jesus often went to the garden to pray.
Wild Creds:
Lil is a retired minister in the PCUSA, a trained spiritual director and supervisor. She incorporates the wild invitations in nature and body movement in her teaching and compassionate listening for a deeper sense of self love and welcome to the realness of being human. Lil has a certificate in permaculture design, gardens on a regular basis and often invites dialogue with nature and spirit animals.
Wild Invitation:
As a lifelong learner, Karen is passionate about nature as a primary teacher, no matter someone's age, stage or background. Combining her passions for creative expression, compassionate listening, writing and playing with nature. Each offering Karen leads oozes passion for deep inner connection and joy in the journey.
Wild Creds:
Karen participated in a year-long certification program to become a Certified Morning Altars Teacher, a seven-step practice that combines Ritual, Nature and Creativity. Karen is a published author and creator of the trademark Words that Matter® inspirational cards and associated workshops, helping people of all ages explore and live by values that matter most. In addition, Karen is a trained facilitator for the Institute for Jewish Spirituality's Wise Aging program, offering classes in aging with joy and resilience as well as Faith & Grief as a grief group facilitator. Karen is affiliated with Congregation Beth Torah, a Jewish synagogue in Richardson, Texas and has over 40 years of experience working in the nonprofit world, with a special passion for aging and grief work. Karen is a past member of the Retreat House Board and is currently a Covenant Partner and active participant and facilitator in RH programs.
rev. dr. clay brantley - wild mustang, wild guide
Wild Invitation:
For the last few years, Clay has been living out of an invitation to be a Wild Mustang. This includes an experience of deep holiness and deep grief at the White Place in Abiquiu, New Mexico when he placed his hands upon the white walls. The land calls and the wild invites into both holiness and grief. Out of many experiences and his time at the Seminary of the Wild, Clay is responding to the call to be Elder and to invite others into their own Wild Journeys. Clay had lived a pretty tame, safe, domesticated life but the wild within and around would not be quiet. Clay was called to let the wild live in the ways of edge-walking, grief-holding, and soul-dancing.
Wild Creds:
Clay has several degrees but most recently is a graduate of the Seminary of the Wild with two Wild Ordinations. He is a spiritual director and a wild guide, helping people to move towards becoming undomesticated, to listen more deeply to the whispering of the soul, and to lean into life with energy and purpose, all of this through a deep connection with the Earth.nnection and joy in the journey.
Tammy minuti - Spiritual Director, Eco-spiritual direction, ANFT Certified Forest Bathing Guide, (She/Her)
Wild Invitation:
“…take a good look at yourself on the inside…you have heaven and earth, and all creation. You are a world, and everything is hidden you.”
~St. Hildegard Von Bingen
Tammy loves to be on the land and share Forest Bathing, compassionate listening, and Labyrinth walking where ever she goes.
Wild Creds:
Tammy is an Association of Nature and Forest Therapy certified guide. https://www.anft.earth/
A trained spiritual director through the SMU Perkins School of Theology program in Dallas.
And a covenant partner of Retreat House.
Lavanga Schlette - holistic healer, intuitive, yogi, death doula
Wild Invitation:
For Lavanga, practicing wildly means re-connecting to that which we already are, but have forgotten. By tuning into the rhythms of the natural world, we can step into spaces where we can uncover and recognize this original self.
Wild Creds:
Lavanga is Texas native and lifelong seeker of holistic healing. From exploring vegetarianism and yoga as a teen to professionally reading tarot since 1987, her journey has been one of deep spiritual connection. Over the decades, she has mastered Reiki, massage therapy, Ayurveda, Astrology, aromatherapy, and Vedic wisdom traditions, becoming a practicing priestess and interfaith leader.
Most recently, Lavanga finished death doula training through Going with Grace - another arena where, Lavanga blends 35+ years of experience in healing arts, ancient wisdom, and intuitive guidance.
Dr. shazia anwar - degree in Islamic Sciences, with special interest in Islamic Psychology and Counseling, Licensed behavioral coach and Educator
Wild invitation:
One of the most enriching parts of my wild journey has been exploring different cultures, ethnicities, and faiths. This includes traveling to experience how people live their lives and learn about their culture and heritage.
It is fascinating to me how deeply the people of the past connected with nature. They were so much more knowledgeable about the universe and skilled in living than people of our current times.
My hope through the Retreat House wild invitation is to reconnect with the creation in a way that we experience life as nature intended.
Wild Creds:
I am a physician, researcher, hold a degree in Islamic sciences, author, educator, student of knowledge , behavior coach. I enjoy healthy cooking, gardening , singing and yoga.
My teaching and coaching style is predominantly based in connecting people with nature, within and around. Where there is room for everyone to grow and flourish. See you at the wild week!
REv. ruth winkler - wild baker, wild storyteller
karen hoffman - morning altars guide, wise aging facilitator, words that matter creator
Wild invitation:
‘The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.’
Ruth finds bread making an important part of her spiritual disciplines. Bread takes time. The process cannot be hurried. One must wait. What do we do while we wait? What are we waiting for? The Yeast does it work in the flour thoroughly filling it. The Holy Spirit does its work filling us. Flour symbolizes sustenance and God’s provision. We depend on it for our daily bread. Breadmaking symbolizes transformation and we are transformed through connecting with God. When the bread is done, that smell and taste is just a bit of heaven!
Wild Creds:
Ruth is a retired minister of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). She is a Trainer and Storyteller for the “Children Worship, Wonder and Welcome” program of Disciples Home Missions and is a Mentor for the “Education for Ministry” Program from the University of the South, Sewanee, Tennessee.
REv. sheron ward - Wild Photographer, RHBOD, Wild Guide, Wild REtreat Leader
Wild Invitation:‘
Sherry is a lifelong learner and enthusiast for Eco Spirituality. She embraces the contemplative life and, enjoys reading, nurturing plants and flowers, being in nature, writing, contemplative photography and playing with paint and color.
Wild Creds:
Sherry formerly served on the Retreat House Board of Directors and has been a Covenant Partner since the beginning. Retreat House is a place of nurture and spiritual growth as well as a place to minister to others. You often find her stirring a pot of homemade soup for Super Soul Lunch on Wednesdays.
Sherry is a trained Spiritual Director. It is her joy to accompany others seeking ways to connect with the Source of All Being and to walk that journey with them. She co-leads several Stillness Retreat Days each year. Sherry received her MDiv from Lexington Theological Seminary in Lexington, Kentucky in 1998 and has pastored churches in Kentucky, Tennessee, and Texas. She is a former missionary to Haiti.
REv. elise renee neal
Wild Invitation:
As a lifelong seeker of God’s presence — in sanctuaries, in silence, in sound, and in the unseen spaces between breath and body — Elise notices how often we live disconnected from our own sacred rhythm. She is drawn to the holy hum beneath creation, the frequency of love that restores what stress, striving, and survival have strained. Jesus often stepped away to quiet places to pray. In this experience, participants are invited to step away as well — to listen deeply, to realign, and to remember the sacred resonance already alive within them.
Wild Creds:
Elise is an ordained Presbyterian minister with over 16 years of pastoral leadership and spiritual care experience. She is the founder of Holy Vibration, integrating contemplative Christian practice, sound healing, breathwork, and chakra awareness into embodied spiritual formation. Her work bridges ancient faith and vibrational healing, offering grounded, theologically thoughtful spaces for restoration and renewal. Elise creates environments that are reverent, inclusive, and safe — where the nervous system can settle, the spirit can soften, and prayer becomes something felt as much as spoken. Elise has degrees from Marshall university and Union Presbyterian Seminary. She is a certified Sound Healer and mystic practitioner. Elise currently works at Presbyterian Village North as the Associate Director of Spiritual Life.
Sandy Hammond
Wild Invitation:
Did you know a teabag can become a fruitful art supply? The humble teabag will become a tool for creating beautiful paper and embellishments for the one-of-a-kind journal you will make. Journals will be made by repurposing, recycling and reusing shared materials. This is an invitation to give time to being artistic, because we all have a creative force that seeks expression. That sense of accomplishment and being in the creative flow that comes from making something with your own two hands is impossible to find on a store shelf. ‘
Wild Creds:
In this time of my life, I am grateful for the ability and opportunity to play with paper, glue, scissors, paint and teabags. I use my handmade journals to record the days of my life, the special and the mundane. As well as just being fun to make, the creation and use of handmade journals become a spiritual practice of noticing, listening, & being in the moment.
“Every minute of creativity is one less minute of worry and anxiety.” Natasa Marinkovic
karen Ebling: Forever Curious, Maximizer, Connector, Energizing Educator, and Naturalist
Wild Invitation:
Jesus spoke directly of the effortless growth and natural beauty of wildflowers to teach his followers about trusting in Holy Provision. My experience of the Divine Creator grows from observing the flora, fauna, and fertile fields of the North Texas Blackland Prairie that give life to our natural world. We have libraries and networks of rich information, yet we learn most vividly from simple observation. Come observe with me.
Wild Creds:
My family has been gently restoring the prairielands, building and nurturing wildlife habitat, and celebrating the sunsets in Northeast Texas for several decades. I’ve shared my wildflower journey with diverse groups of curious learners, inspiring others to wait patiently over the seasons and years. I am a Certified Texas Master Naturalist, a career transition coach, and a seminary-stamped lay pastor in the PCUSA. Other days, I present as a business operations wonk, having lived deeply in the technology industry and nonprofit operations world, and now serving on the Board of Retreat House. My right and left brain have lively internal conversations.
regina hunt - wild guide, wild watercolorist, wild potter
Wild Invitation:
Throughout my life I have felt a connection with nature, and in recent years I found myself more deeply connected to all things wild when I noticed my garden plants seemed to draw closer to me when I sat with them after receiving devastating news. I felt them lean in and whisper to me “we are here for you.” Connecting with nature each day is essential to my health as well as supporting my relationships especially with God. Moments among the trees, looking up into their branches listening to the windsong dancing around us. Can you feel that? It is peace.
Wild Creds:
Regina is a trained spiritual director, elder and lay pastor in the PCUSA and holds a certificate in Eco-Spirituality. She is a watercolorist and potter longing for more time to re-engage in both of these arts now that she is retired.
M. Autumn Collins - Wild tea somalier, spiritual director, sacred photographer
Wild Invitation:
You are invited to a serene and enriching Tea Meditation Circle, a unique experience.
serene: calm, peaceful, and untroubled; tranquil
enriching:improve or enhance the quality or value of
Experience the spiritual essence of tea in communinty.
Wild Creds:
Born in Tripoli, Libya to parents in the Diplomatic Corps, Autumn grew up in Europe and the Middle East
She graduated from Georgetown University in Arab Studies, attended Perkins School of Theology, M.T.S. (Summa Cum Laude) and returned to Perkins to complete the Certificate in Spiritual Direction. Now living in Dallas, Autumn focuses on the sacred tea experience and photography of sacred spaces. Her photographs have been used in books, articles, magazines and exhibited. Autumn is the publisher of Full Court Press, publications with theological focus. Her expertise as UK Tea Academy Certified Tea Sommelier will be a gift to the Tea Meditation Circle.
Nikki Trzeciak - Wild Chef, Wild Gardner & Wild Artist
Wild Invitation
Cheesemaking is the transformation of a simple, perishable, life giving product (milk) into a lasting product of continual sustenance. It also serves as a beautiful metaphor for community unity - many curds forming one. Join Nikki in the kitchen where we will make fresh ricotta, and hand-pulled fresh mozzarella. We will finish our time together with a small cheese and wine pairing where we will connect with creation through the invitation of tasting and the stillness of savoring.
Wild Creds:
As a professional chef the kitchen is not just where I work, but it is often also an altar where the raw elements of our planet are transformed into something beautiful, nourishing and transcendent. I believe that when you cook with freshly grown ingredients that you have tended to with love, you aren’t just cooking or following a recipe or process - you are participating in a sacred dialogue with the Creator and creation.
Nikki is a PCUSA Deacon in training. She is a professional chef by trade and an artist by soul. She loves to cook, paint and sculpt; creating is her passion and it is in those moments where she feels deeply connected with The Divine.
Richard Mickelson - WILD TEACHER, WILD GUIDE, WILD Grandparent
Wild Invitation
I stand as a vessel, hollowed of self to be filled by the Divine, a conduit for the Light that seeks to reach every corner of the earth. I recognize that Wisdom speaks in many tongues: it is written in the ancient, silent rhythms of nature; it is whispered in the pure, unfiltered joy of small children; it is carried by every soul who crosses my path, for each is a mirror of the Sacred. My purpose is simple and my passion is singular: to carry this flame into the world and share its warmth wherever a heart is open and receptive. where there is shadow, I will bring the Light; where there is Light, I will help it shine brighter.
Wild Creds:
Richard is a seeker, a loving grandparent, a priest in the Oriental Orthodox Order in the West a contemplative modern and ecumenical Christian community and a trained spiritual guide. He is a pastoral care minister through the Community of Hope International and a trained facilitator for Brother David Steindl Rast’s Gratefulness Gatherings. He is a lifelong learner and one who loves the teaching of nature.
All questions can be address to one of the Wild Guides on your Wild Week Planning Team:
Shazia Anwar
Clay Brantley
Gavin Cogburn
Karen Hoffman
Regina Hunt
Gretchen Martens
Tammy Minuti
Lavanga Schlette
Lil Smith
If you are not able to attend Wild Week 2026, consider a donation to cover the cost of the event. Wild Spirituality is a year-round focus for Retreat House. Your support provides spaces for healing and connecting with nature.
learn more about WILD spirituality
at Retreat House
