Wellness Wednesdays and the PYP Wellness Room
At Pave Your Path, we combine workshops on financial wellness, digital skill-building in our Learning Lab, and goal-oriented accountability partnering with trauma-sensitive yoga and mindfulness classes and group sessions about nervous-system regulation. Our wellness initiative is just as crucial for our participants—if not more—than building the hard skills needed for self-sufficiency. We aren’t interested in just inching people above the poverty line, we are about helping each person unlock their full potential. At PYP, we want to see our participants thrive—not just survive.
Wellness Wednesdays
Wednesday at Pave Your Path is undoubtedly our busiest day, but it’s also the most energizing part of the week. What started with weekly group mindfulness has evolved into “Wellness Wednesdays,” featuring a full itinerary of enriching, healing practice for our participants. We begin the day with a trauma-sensitive yoga session with our certified instructor Lesley Fairbanks. Yoga has proven to be a powerful means of healing from trauma, and we’ve witnessed remarkable progress since introducing it into PYP’s programming in 2023.
With a renewed sense of connection between mind and body, we transition from yoga into mindfulness practice guided by our experienced practitioner, Suzi Purcell. Mindfulness has long been a cornerstone of our program, providing an essential tool on the path to self-sufficiency for Pave Your Path participants.
Following mindfulness practice, we come together for Community Group, in which our Co-Founder and Executive Director, Gail, leads discussions and reflection exercises. We explore topics like personal boundaries, nervous system regulation, and strategies for challenging negative thoughts. Our choice of subjects often mirrors the challenges our participants are currently facing. With a wealth of original self-reflection worksheets covering an array of topics, we can readily tailor our discussions to address their unique needs.
After Community Group, our Learning Lab Director, Alex, holds open lab hours. Participants can craft resumes, compose cover letters, search for job opportunities, and even earn tech proficiency certificates, all with the support of our Learning Lab staff and volunteers.
While we center the wellbeing of our participants on Wellness Wednesdays, we wholeheartedly welcome volunteers and community members to join us. We strive to foster genuine connection and create an experience in which everyone at the table feels a sense of belonging, worth, and freedom to share personal stories and insight.
Wellness Wednesdays at Pave Your Path embody our dedication to providing not only practical skills, but also a supportive community and authentic relationships based on trust and respect. We are committed to journeying with participants on their path to self-sufficiency and healing.
If you are interested in attending a Wellness Wednesday, please reach out first!
Contact our Outreach Coordinator, Shannon, at soliver@paveyourpath.org.
OR fill out our Participant Interest Form here.
Wellness Room
In January 2024, we expanded our space to create a new Wellness Room. We are over the moon to be building this mindful, welcoming space for the Pave Your Path community to learn, grow, and heal—at no cost to our participants. We will continue to offer our trauma-sensitive yoga, mindfulness, and community group sessions, and expand our wellness programming with book studies, mindful art sessions, and more. Stay tuned!
Naming and sponsorship opportunities for our Wellness Room are always available!
Please reach out to Gail Mocklin at gmocklin@paveyourpath.org.