SYRA SMITH
Insight Meditation & Mindfulness
Insight Meditation & Mindfulness
Fellow Travelers,
A friend and colleague shared the message below with me and I would like to share it with you. Check David's message below. If you have any thoughts or questions to share, please contact me!!
Always with love,
Syra
"A Bay-Area-BIPOC-led organizing effort called Seed the Vote is helping to extend the reach, and build the long-term power, of those swing state organizations by organizing volunteer phone banks where anyone, from the comfort of their own home, can call low propensity voters (i.e. don’t always vote), for those community organizations, to talk about the election and get them to vote. Seed the Vote set a goal of reaching 1,000,000 low propensity voters by election day, and are well on their way towards that goal.
I joined a “pod" of volunteers, organized by a friend, that is calling low propensity voters in AZ every Tuesday, on behalf of LUCHA, from 10:30 AM- 12:30 PM Pacific time. And there are regular phone banks at other times of the week, calling into FL and PA.
You only need the time, a computer, and a phone. Seed the Vote provides an awesome training at the beginning of your first session.
If you’d care to join us for the effort to call AZ voters on Tuesdays at 10:30 AM, click here.
If you’d like to explore volunteer phone banking at other times, on behalf of other BIPOC-led community organizations that may swing the elections, click here.
Please spread the word!"
A friend and colleague shared the message below with me and I would like to share it with you. Check David's message below. If you have any thoughts or questions to share, please contact me!!
Always with love,
Syra
"A Bay-Area-BIPOC-led organizing effort called Seed the Vote is helping to extend the reach, and build the long-term power, of those swing state organizations by organizing volunteer phone banks where anyone, from the comfort of their own home, can call low propensity voters (i.e. don’t always vote), for those community organizations, to talk about the election and get them to vote. Seed the Vote set a goal of reaching 1,000,000 low propensity voters by election day, and are well on their way towards that goal.
I joined a “pod" of volunteers, organized by a friend, that is calling low propensity voters in AZ every Tuesday, on behalf of LUCHA, from 10:30 AM- 12:30 PM Pacific time. And there are regular phone banks at other times of the week, calling into FL and PA.
You only need the time, a computer, and a phone. Seed the Vote provides an awesome training at the beginning of your first session.
If you’d care to join us for the effort to call AZ voters on Tuesdays at 10:30 AM, click here.
If you’d like to explore volunteer phone banking at other times, on behalf of other BIPOC-led community organizations that may swing the elections, click here.
Please spread the word!"
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Syra is Leading Online Meditation & Practice Groups Accessible via Zoom. Please join us! (see how to Zoom) These classes are being offered freely and are supported by the generosity of our community Mon 4/20 5:30-6:30pm San Francisco LGBT Sangha (Offered for members of the LGBTQI Community) https://www.sflgbtsangha.org/join-online.html Tue 4/21 7-8:30pm (Cancelled - Still offering a weekly sit) Napa Valley Insight Meditation https://us04web.zoom.us/j/9179652791 Fri 4/24 7-8:30pm MahaSangha - East Bay Meditation Center https://eastbaymeditation.org/programs/zoom-links/ Sat 4/25 5:30-7pm QSangha - San Francisco Dharma Collective (Offered for members of the LGBTQI Community) https://bit.ly/qsangha Mon 4/27 7-8:30pm The Love and Liberation Sangha - Mills College (Offered for People of Color) https://www.eventbrite.com/e/online-poc-meditation-love-and-liberation-sangha-w-syra-smith-tickets-98283423365 Tue 4/28 7-8:30pm Alphabet Sangha - East Bay Meditation Center (Offered for members of the LGBTQI Community) https://eastbaymeditation.org/programs/zoom-links/ Fri 5/1 7-8:30pm MahaSangha - East Bay Meditation Center with Chinh Nguyen https://eastbaymeditation.org/programs/zoom-links/ Mon 5/18 5:30-6:30pm San Francisco LGBT Sangha (Offered for members of the LGBTQI Community) https://www.sflgbtsangha.org/join-online.html Fri 6/5 7-8:30pm MahaSangha - East Bay Meditation Center with Arisika Razak https://eastbaymeditation.org/programs/zoom-links/ Mon 6/15 5:30-6:30pm San Francisco LGBT Sangha (Offered for members of the LGBTQI Community) https://www.sflgbtsangha.org/join-online.html Thurs 7/16, 10am-12pm Spirit Rock Meditation Center Thursday Morning Women’s Group https://spirit-rock.secure.retreat.guru/program/thursday-morning-womens-group-online-only/?lang=en Mon 7/20, 5:30-6:30pm San Francisco LGBT Sangha (Offered for members of the LGBTQ+ Community) https://www.sflgbtsangha.org/join-online.html Wed 7/22, 7-8:30pm Stray Cat Dharma (formerly Oakland Against The Stream) https://us04web.zoom.us/j/218357749 Thurs 7/23, 10am-12pm Spirit Rock Meditation Center Thursday Morning Women’s Group https://spirit-rock.secure.retreat.guru/program/thursday-morning-womens-group-online-only/?lang=en Mon 8/17, 5:30-6:30pm San Francisco LGBT Sangha (Offered for members of the LGBTQ + Community) https://www.sflgbtsangha.org/join-online.html Fri 8/21, 7-8:30pm East Bay Meditation Center - MahaSangha https://eastbaymeditation.org/programs/zoom-links/ Tue 8/25, 7-8:30pm Napa Valley Insight Meditation http://www.napainsight.org Mon 9/21, 5:30-6:30pm San Francisco LGBT Sangha (Offered for members of the LGBTQ+ Community) https://www.sflgbtsangha.org/join-online.html Fri 10/2, 7-8:30pm East Bay Meditation Center - MahaSangha with Donald Rothberg https://eastbaymeditation.org/programs/zoom-links/ Mon 10/19, 5:30-6:30pm San Francisco LGBT Sangha (Offered for members of the LGBTQ+ Community) https://www.sflgbtsangha.org/join-online.html Tue 11/10 7pm-8:30pm Alphabet Sangha - East Bay Meditation Center (Offered for members of the LGBTQ+ Community) Zoom info: Please email “alphabetsangha at eastbaymeditation dot org” to request Zoom link. Mon 11/16, 5:30-6:30pm San Francisco LGBT Sangha (Offered for members of the LGBTQ+ Community) https://zoom.us/j/844085275 Meeting ID: 844 085 275 Password: (Check weekly email or write us to get it) |
Syra Smith is an artist, organizer and mindfulness educator interested in deep ecology and manifesting a culture where we can turn toward fearless abundance and generosity.
An SF Bay Area native and lifelong meditator, Syra began her personal meditation practice as a teen in 1988 and has been practicing in the Theravada Buddhist tradition since 2009. She graduated EBMC’s Commit to Dharma study program in 2011 and Spirit Rock Meditation Center's Community Dharma Leadership Training in 2017. Syra is a Community Teacher with the East Bay Meditation Center in Oakland California, where she is co-creating space with one of the most diverse communities of dharma practitioners in the US. Syra has served in many roles with EBMC over several years including the Center’s Fundraising Event Manager and Development Associate in earlier days. There, Syra helped to raise community and a robust generosity driven Center economy. Syra has been educating and working with young people for more than 20 years. She coordinated and co-facilitated EBMC’s weekly Teen Sangha and eventually established and served as Co-Guiding Teacher for the Center’s first peer-led Young Adult Deep Refuge Group. Syra has been committed to offering tools for resiliency to at-risk and incarcerated youth. In 2013 Syra Founded Oakland’s Dana Cafe, a monthly gathering offering transformational teachings at no cost to participants. One of 7 recipients nationwide, in 2014 Syra became a Sharing Cities Fellow and founded the East Bay ShareFest. After serving as lead organizer for 2 consecutive years, this decentralized open collaboration brought together over 80 local sharing projects and organizations in solidarity. Syra works with Resolve to Stop the Violence, an award winning program in the San Francisco County Jail System utilizing contemplative and restorative practices to impact violence and recidivism in our prison communities. Syra co-leads Spirit Rock Meditation Center's Monday night Community Welcome group for new practitioners and beginning meditators. She teaches Insight Meditation and mindfulness throughout the SF Bay Area and beyond and is a Core Teacher with the San Francisco LGBT Sangha. Syra currently resides in Lake County, California with her wife of 24 years and 5 precious felines! For more, please explore Recordings and Talks by Syra Contact Syra: syra@projectroot.org You may offer Dana (Donations/generosity practice) via Venmo to support Syra's teachings, if you are so inclined: @Syra-Smith |