25th Anniversary Benefit Retreat: Touching the Earth
With Erin Treat, Victoria Cary and Brian Lesage
August 15 - 19, 2025
In honor of our 25th year we are trying something we’ve never done before. Most non-profit organizations have fancy galas to raise much needed funds but at Vallecitos, as a Buddhist and ecological refuge, we do things differently.
We’re offering a unique practice opportunity to directly support one of our most essential initiatives – tending to and protecting the treasured ecosystem of Vallecitos.
This retreat will blend silence, community and celebration with additional special features, offering participants the opportunity to deepen their practice through silence and in-depth conversation with Erin, Victoria and Brian, all with a fully inclusive registration fee.
Join us in building community and stewarding care for this rare wetlands habitat that doubles as a beloved, off-grid retreat center. Learn about Vallecitos’ past while helping protect its future at this critical moment in our history:
- Led by guiding teachers Erin Treat, Victoria Cary and Brian Lesage on the theme of Touching the Earth
- Learn about and celebrate Vallecitos’ rich past while gaining an in-depth look into its future, including stewardship of, and relationship with the land
- Enjoy a mix of silence, sharing and reflection in community
- Take part in an intimate gathering with enhanced opportunities for teacher engagement with Erin, Victoria and Brian
- An all-inclusive experience (shuttle, dana, and comfort packs included)
- Everything you’ve come to love about a Vallecitos retreat with additional surprises!
- Your registration fee contributes directly to stewarding and protecting the land
If you’ve come to know and love Vallecitos and are invested in ensuring its continuation, this is an opportunity you won’t want to miss. To learn more about the retreat or explore joining the host committee as a sponsor, please contact us.
Cancellation Policy:
- 45 days prior to retreat: Full refund, minus a $150 nonrefundable fee
- 44-22 days prior to retreat: 50% refund
- 0-21 days prior to retreat: No refund
Teachers
Erin Treat lives in Durango, CO and has been practicing Buddhist meditation for nearly 30 years. In addition to serving as the Guiding Teacher of Vallecitos Mountain Retreat Center since 2013, she teaches regularly at Spirit Rock and the Insight Meditation Society. She served for 20 years in leadership on the Teaching Council of the Durango Dharma Center. Erin teaches the practical and the profound, from a heart grounded in respect for mystery and the many faces of awakening. Her approach to sharing the dharma is influenced by her ongoing experience as a student of the Diamond Approach by A.H. Almaas and by Thanissara…
Learn more about Erin Treat
Victoria Cary has been practicing Insight Meditation and studying the Dharma since 2006. In 2017 she completed Spirit Rock’s Community Dharma Leader program and went on to become a fully empowered Dharma Teacher. In 2016 she co-founded the San Francisco People of Color Insight Sangha and continues as one of the core teachers. She is a San Francisco Bay Area Native. She left her workplace of 20 years in 2017 to deepen into the Dharma. Since then she has spent time in and out of intensive silent meditation practice, including a 3-month retreat at IMS, 6-week amd 3-month retreats at…
Learn more about Victoria Cary
Brian has practiced Buddhist meditation since 1988 and has taught since 2000. He has studied in the Zen, Theravada, and Tibetan schools and was ordained in the Rinzai Zen tradition in 1996. His training in Vipassana Meditation includes doing extended meditation retreats in Myanmar (Burma), Nepal, and India as well as numerous retreats in the U.S. He leads retreats and teaches meditation courses nationwide. Brian also has a private practice in Somatic Experiencing, which is a naturalistic approach to healing trauma.
Learn more about Brian Lesage