New uploads to the Herbalista Toolkit!

Take a little spin through the mother apotheke at Herbalista HQ; download the new template for your very own script pad; and oh so much more ????

The Herbalista Toolkit is filled with the tools to help you realize your herbal project! And the Dublin Herb Bike is a perfect example of how well it can work! Many of the forms we used to build our apothecary and also for facilitating the clinics are in this Toolkit. These downloadable resources can then be customized for your needs.

Become a sustaining member and help us as we work to build community through herbalism!

Click here to learn more about the Herbalista Toolkit!

Join the Herbalista Crew!

We are now accepting apprenticeship applications for Fall of 2017.

Application Deadline – August 15th

Thank you for your interest in our work and helping us build community through herbalism! The link to the application form is at the bottom of this page.

APPRENTICESHIP HERBALISTA

This apprenticeship is a blend of educational opportunity, responsibility, and hard work! We are a small operation facilitating a large number of projects. Joining our crew will allow you to participate in the nuts ‘n bolts of grassroots community healthcare. Please note, this is NOT an academic clinical program but an experiential opportunity.

The Herbalista Health Network, hubbed in Atlanta, provides clinical and educational services in the Atlanta area, across the country, and even across the pond.

This current apprenticeship opening is to work at the Atlanta Herbalista HQ, which is the heart of our operation. From here we maintain the mother dispensary and facilitates all of our local programming such as the Herb Cart, the Herb Bus, the Grow a Row Program, the Herbalista Community Health Fair, and the Harriet Tubman Foot Care Clinic.

The main apprentice days of work are Monday afternoons, when we work the Harriet Tubman Foot Clinic, and Wednesday’s for the other Herbalista programming. There can also be other events scattered throughout the year, such as teaching events or fundraisers or plant processing work, that will require additional assistance.

Due to the large amount of responsibility our apprentices manage, a strong working knowledge of herbal medicine is required. You must have a foundation in medicine making, materia medica, and western medical herbalism. A familiarity with TCM and/or Ayurved is also helpful.

FULL DISCLOSURE:

Dedicating yourself to free community herbal healthcare is not an easy task! Basically, it’s not always a rose-scented-cauldron-stirring kinda situation.

The hours we spend in actual clinic are minor in comparison to all of the behind the scenes work we must do to keep a project like this going! There is bottle washing. There is schlepping. There is paperwork. There is medicine making. There is kit maintenance. There is organizing… and reorganizing. There is scheduling. There is fundraising. And yes, there is laundry and dishes.

We are the underbelly of healthcare and we take on what others won’t or can’t. We make the best of often shitty situations. We navigate difficult personalities and bear witness to injustice at all levels of society. We do a lot with a little and a little with next to nothing. We make a difference… sometimes. We are cultivating community day by day, planting seeds and pulling weeds (which we then turn into medicine, of course.)

We self-reflect. We acknowledge our privilege and our trauma. We acknowledge those things in the world. We meet people where they are at. We hold safe space. We do our best and we make mistakes. We learn and we give it another shot. We are works in progress.

Community herbalism inspires creativity and promotes agility. It is empowering and humbling. It illuminates your mind, nurtures your capacity for love, but can also break your heart. For me the important thing is that we are in this together. We have each other and we have the plants.

We are lucky to be community herbalists indeed!

This apprenticeship requires a 1 year commitment. There is no tuition fee for this program. We have between 2 and 3 apprentices on a rolling basis. Most apprentices join the crew after becoming involved in other aspects of our health network, either volunteering for our Herbalista Community Health Fair, the Harriet Tubman Foot Care Clinic, or joining the Herb Cart Program.

If you have passion for supporting and serving your neighbors (both people and plants), if you have a basic knowledge of herbal medicine, if you can dedicate the time to our mission, and you are ready to make a commitment to our crew, please complete the application form from the link below, and return via email to Lorna@Herbalista.org

Thank you for your commitment to building a more vital and verdant community through herbalism. Viva la Herb Bus!

~Lorna Mauney-Brodek, Herbalista

Herbalista Apprenticeship Application

HERBALISTA HEALTH NETWORK

2015 Service Report

Building Community Through Herbalism!

This past year the Herbalista Free Clinic expanded services by adding a new member to our fleet. In January 2015, the Herb Cart hit the pavement to join the Herb Bus providing free herbal healthcare around the Atlanta area.

Together these herb-stations-on-wheels facilitated 38 clinics in 2015, serving hundreds in our local community!

Duane pushes the Herb Cart towards Woodruff Park for a Sunday Clinic alongside the Food Not Bombs Crew. May 2015

We continued to pour sweet, sweet herbal medicine, custom compounding all sorts of remedies for our patients, from teas to tinctures to oils and more! And though we are mobile, we provide regular opportunities for refills so that we can be a service folks can depend on! Over the course of 2015 we poured over 6 gallons of extract blends, 8 pounds of loose herbal blends, 1500 capsules blends, a quart of fixed oil preparations, dozens of aromatic inhalers, salves, spritzers and more!

We served at herbal first aid stations around the country. At these stations, herbalists and conventional practitioners (nurses, EMT’s, ect.) work together, providing patient focused healthcare.

The First Aid Station at the Florida Earthskills Gathering. February 2015

Joining 7Song’s Northeast School of Botanical Medicine to serve at the CALM First Aid Station at the Rainbow Gathering in Manistee National Forest, Michigan. July 2015.

The First Aid Station at the Southeast Women’s Herbal Conference in Lake Eden, North Carolina. October 2015.

This year the Bus drove nearly 10,000 miles delivering healthcare and herbal education in Atlanta and around the country. The 2015 Herbalista Expedition was the Herb Bus’ most ambitious trip yet, clocking 8,000 miles and covering over 20 states during her 2 month voyage.

Viva la Herb Bus!

At well over 200,000 miles, this little bus just keeps on going! The Catholic Worker’s Hippy Kitchen on Skid Row, Los Angeles, CA. August 2015

And while we do rely on donations from the greater community, we are always striving to create more of a self-supporting system, from seed to remedy! This past year we watched Herbalista evolve from a “free clinic” into a “health network.”

( And we’re not done yet. Stay tuned for this year’s Seed Library!)

And as usual, our programming combined service with education!

Processing Tulsi Basil, donated through the Grow A Row Program

Pay-It-Forward Medicine Making Workshop. March 22, 2015 — Creating teabag blends that will stock the free clinic at a Pay-It-Forward Medicine Making Workshops.

The Herb Cart Service Project. Woodruff Park, ATL, GA. January 2015 — Apprentices training through the Herb Cart Service Project.

Health education at the Herbalista Community Health Fair. Big House, Atlanta, GA. March 2015.

It’s hard work I tell ya! Herbalista Community Health Fair at the Big House, Atlanta, GA. June 2015

We made new friends and reconnected with old ones!

Serving alongside the Foot Not Bombs Crew at Woodruff Park. Atl, GA November 2015 — Serving alongside the Foot Not Bombs Crew at Woodruff Park. Atl, GA. November 2015

Atlanta Beltline Fruit Forage and Herb Ramble with Concrete Jungle. September 2015.

The Radical Herbalism Gathering, Shropshire, England. June 2015.

Botanizing in Michigan with 7Song's Northeast School of Botanical Medicine. — Botanizing and wildcrafting in Michigan with 7Song’s Northeast School of Botanical Medicine.

Picking Monarda in Montana with the lovely Kris of Hill Botanicals. July 2015.

Visiting the Olympia Free Clinic in Olympia, Washington. — Visiting Herbalist Renee Davis and the Olympia Free Herbal Clinic in Washington State. July 2015.

Serving with Occupy Medical in Eugene Oregon. August 2015.

Learning and serving at the Gubbio Project for the Homeless in San Francisco with Nurse Roehrick. August 2015.

The California School of Studies. — All aboard! The Herb Bus visited the California School of Herbal Studies. Forrestville, CA. August 2015.

Once again, tending the feet of our friends on the street on Skid Row. Catholic Worker's Hippy Kitchen, Los Angeles, California. — Once again, tending the feet of our friends on the street on Skid Row. Foot Care Friday’s at the Catholic Worker’s Hippy Kitchen, Los Angeles, California. August 2015.

Sitting with white sage in the mountains of southern California. — Sitting with white sage in the Laguna mountains of southern California. August 2015.

Visiting Ponderosa High School in Flagstaff, AZ, where Terra Birds is empowering youth through gardening and permaculture skills. August 2015.

We look forward to a new year filled with herbalistic adventures in healthcare…

Won’t you join us? ~The Herbalista Crew

The Herb Cart is a service project of the Herbalista Free Clinic. We provide free, herbal first aid to communities in need around the Atlanta area, such as serving alongside the Food Not Bombs Crew, working with the Open Door Community, and supporting events such as the Herbalista Community Health Fair.

The Herb Cart Program also serves as a clinical training opportunity for new herbalists looking to expand their skills. If you have been looking for a way to put your herbal knowledge to work, if you are looking for a chance to serve your community, then here is a chance to do BOTH!!

We have scheduled two weekend training sessions for the Herb Cart in 2016. Please see the website for complete details:
www.Herbalista.org

March 25th, from 11am – 4pm

at the Big House on Ponce

368 Ponce de Leon, Atlanta, GA 30308

Please join us at the Big House each month for access to an array of health services, including Herbal Therapy, Yoga, Reflexology, and more. Services are on a first come, first serve basis, but while you wait your turn, please take part in the free health education classes we will have running throughout the day or take the opportunity to make new friends.

Receive what you need, give as you are able.

All Services from 11:00 am – 4:00 pm:

Herbal Aide

Reflexology

Endless pots of Herbal Tea

Referral and Resource Services

Bonfire Circle

Open Class Schedule:

11:00 – 11:45 – TBA

12:00 – 12:45 – Common Herbs with Gretchen

1:00 – 1:45 – TBA

2:00 – 2:45 – Kitchen Nutrition

3:00 – 3:30 – TBA

2014 Service Report

Another year of adventures in healthcare!

In Atlanta (our herbal hub) we continued regular services at our 2 Herb Bus Stations,

conducting 148 consultations over the course of 22 clinics.

At these monthly clinical rounds, we poured endless pots of seasonal tea, dispensed 6 1/2 gallons of customized tincture formulas (alcoholic and non-alcoholic), 14#’s of raw custom herbal and powder blends, and a variety of other remedies including aromatic inhalers, herbal capsules, and oil rubs.

We served at several herbal first aid stations including:

and the Southeast Women’s Herbal Conference in North Carolina

The Bus drove over 10,000 miles delivering healthcare and herbal education around the country.

The Five Flavors Crew, Lassen National Forest, California

We shared the Herb Bus model of healthcare with classes and communities from Atlanta to California. Some of our hosts included Ponderosa High School, the California School of Herbal Studies, Sacred Plant Traditions, Five Flavors Herbs, Homestead Atlanta, and the High Museum of Art.

We expanded our efforts to make community herbalism sustainable by initiating new programs that combine service with education:

Pay-it-Forward Medicine Making: Teaching medicine making skills while we stock the Herb Bus with needed remedies.

Screen Shot 2014-12-21 at 3.52.34 PM — Grow A Row: Supply locally and sustainably grown herbs to the Herb Bus by enlisting and supporting local farmers in the cultivation of medicinal herbs. A joint project with Funny Farm Atlanta.

Screen Shot 2015-01-02 at 12.31.46 PM — Herb Cart: An Herbalista service project providing herbal first aid while offering learning opportunities for herbalists and herb students.

We made many friends and memories:

Talking buses, gift economy, and tea in Long Beach with Guisepi of the Free Tea Party Bus

Being inspired at the Radical Herbalists Gathering in Shropshire, England.

Spending time with special plants in special places. Anemone on Mount Shasta, California.

Harvesting and preparing medicine to share with my community and those in need. Arnica and Osha, Utah.

Tending the feet of our friends on the street with the Catholic Workers at Friday Foot Care on Skid Row, Los Angeles, California.

For all this and so much more, we are grateful.

We feel fortunate to have this opportunity to serve our community

and thankful for your friendship and support on this journey.

~The Herbalista Crew

Herbalista Crew (Past and Present): Lorna, Corinne, Todd, Amanda, Kaitlin, Lynda, and Anna

We are now accepting applications for our Herb Cart Program. This service project of the Herbalista Free Clinic will provide free, earth-based care and health education beginning in 2015. The Herb Cart is a pop-up first aid station that sets up at soup kitchens and other communities in need around the Atlanta area.

We hope The Herb Cart will benefit all involved, by both get more healing herbs into the hands of the people and providing additional training opportunities for students of herbalism. If you have been looking for a way to put your herbal knowledge to work, if you are looking for a chance to serve your community, then here is a chance to do BOTH!

To volunteer with the Cart you must meet the following requirements:

CPR and First Aid Certified within the last 2 years. This can be through any number of organizations, such as the Red Cross, American Heart Association, etc. This must be completed prior to attending an Herb Cart Weekend Training Session.
Attend an Herb Cart Weekend Training Session (Herbal First Aid, Herb Cart Protocol, etc.) Each training session is limited to 8 participants. Contact Lorna to register and make payment arrangements.
Train at the Harriet Tubman Free Foot Clinic at least twice (Safety and Sanitation, Clinical Flow, Anti-Oppressive Practice, etc.) This clinic meets every Wednesday Night at the Open Door Community.
Demonstrate herbal competence, compassion & pragmatism as a healthcare worker. Please note, participation in the program is at the discretion of the Herbalista Crew.

We will schedule Herb Cart sessions on various Tuesday’s and Wednesday’s throughout the year.

To enroll in this project, please complete the Herb Cart Application.docx

Upcoming Herb Cart Trainings

January 9th – 11th, 2015

FRI 7pm – 9:30pm / SAT 10am – 5pm / SUN from 10am – 5pm

Location: Herbalista Headquarters, Atlanta, GA

Cost: $250

February 20th – 22nd, 2015

FRI 7pm – 9:30pm / SAT 10am – 5pm / SUN from 10am – 5pm

Location: Herbalista Headquarters, Atlanta, GA

Cost: $250

Posted by Lorna November 3, 2014 Clinics, Community, Education, Medicine Making, Projects No Comments

November Herbalista Happenings

Here at Herbalista Headquarters we are always striving to come up with creative ways to make our endeavors sustainable and effective. Being flexible, allowing projects to shift and change over time as new needs are identified and methods realized, encouraging broad participation, focusing on training up the next set of helping hands and new leaders— all of these things are vital ingredients. We borrow often from the principles of “permaculture,” working to minimize waste and valuing feedback and diversity. Being a grassroots healthcare project means not only are we born of the community but must consistently reaffirm our relationship with it. And what better way to weave that web than to encourage active involvement in the day-to-day needs of our clinic. In October we tried out a new workshop model. The theory was simple – combine learning with service. We spent the day learning to make the remedies we use the most on the Bus, with special attention towards wintertime remedies. The supplies fee went towards our herbal ingredients, and 7 hours later folks had acquired new skills and the Bus had new medicines!! A win-win! You can read more about this amazing day here. Thanks to everyone who participated!

For those of you who have been following the work of the Bus, you might have heard mention a service project that has been in development over this past year. After lots of dreaming and scheming, I am pleased to finally announce the start of Herb Cart. This pop-up herbal first aid station will set up at soup kitchens and other marginalized communities around the Atlanta area. This project will offer BOTH healthcare to those in need and an educational opportunity for those looking for more hands-on clinical training. If you are interested in learning more, please read about project details and upcoming Herb Cart Training Workshops.

In this month of Thanksgiving, let us balance giving thanks with taking action. There is a lot of need in our world. I give thanks that there is also a lot of opportunity to address that need. We have many bodies, many brains, many hands, and many hearts. Let’s do this my friends. Together.

~Herbalista Lorna

For the full monthly newsletter, click here.

WELCOME TO THE HERB CART

Coming in 2015, this service project of the Herbalista Free Clinic will provide free, earth-based care and health education. This pop-up first aid station will set up at soup kitchens and at other marginalized communities around the Atlanta area. We hope this project will not only place more healing herbs into the hands of the people, but also provide an educational opportunity for those looking for herbal, hands on, clinical training.

If you have been looking for a way to put your herbal knowledge to work, if you are looking for a chance to serve your community, then here is the chance to do BOTH!!

To volunteer with the Cart you must meet the following requirements:

CPR and First Aid Certified within the last 2 years. This can be through any number of organizations, such as the Red Cross, American Heart Association, etc. This must be completed prior to attending an Herb Cart Weekend Training Session.
Attend an Herb Cart Weekend Training Session (Herbal First Aid, Herb Cart Protocol, etc.) Each training session is limited to 8 participants. Contact Lorna to register and make payment arrangements.
Train at the Harriet Tubman Free Foot Clinic at least twice (Safety and Sanitation, Clinical Flow, Anti-Oppressive Practice, etc.) This clinic meets every Wednesday Night at the Open Door Community.
Demonstrate herbal competence, compassion & pragmatism as a health worker. Please note, participation in the program is at the discretion of the Herbalista Crew.

We will schedule Herb Cart Clinics on various Tuesday’s and Wednesday’s throughout the year.

To enroll in this project, please email Lorna@herbalista.org

Upcoming Herb Cart Trainings

January 9th – 11th, 2015

Friday evening 7pm – 9:30pm

Saturday from 10am – 5pm

Sunday from 10am – 5pm

Herbalista Headquarters, Atlanta, GA

Cost: $250

February 20th – 22nd, 2015

Friday evening 7pm – 9:30pm

Saturday from 10am – 5pm

Sunday from 10am – 5pm

Herbalista Headquarters, Atlanta, GA

Cost: $250

The Herbalista Free Clinic, aka the Herb Bus, is a mobile free clinic and classroom, providing earth-based care to underserved communities. In addition to offering clinical services, we spread the health by sharing our model of healthcare with the larger herbal community through workshops and publications.

Though the Herb Bus travels coast to coast, we are hubbed in the Atlanta area. We are currently looking for an apprentice to assist both on the Bus and at Herbalista Headquarters in East Atlanta on Wednesday’s from 8am – 6pm. This apprenticeship will begin October 22^nd, and requires a minimum 6-month commitment. We are accepting 2 apprentices for the current program. There is no tuition fee.

This apprenticeship is a blend of responsibility and educational opportunity. You will be trained on and practice a variety of skills, from apothecary maintenance to clinical concerns. We are a small operation, and joining our crew will allow you to observe and participate in the nuts ‘n bolts of how we keep this healthcare initiative rolling. As a significant portion of this apprenticeship revolves around our free clinic project, we are looking to share this opportunity with applicants who hold a similar philosophy and wish to eventually service their own communities.

If you have passion for supporting and serving your neighbors (both people and plants), if you have a basic knowledge of herbal medicine, if you can dedicate your Wednesday’s to our mission and you are ready to make a commitment to our crew, please download the application at www.Herbalista.org

We will be accepting applicants until September 15^th.=

Thank you for your commitment to building a more vital and verdant community through herbalism. Viva la Herb Bus!

~Lorna Mauney-Brodek, Herbalista

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Herbalista Blog: Education

Join the Herbalista Crew!

APPRENTICESHIP HERBALISTA

FULL DISCLOSURE:

HERBALISTA HEALTH NETWORK

2015 Service Report

Building Community Through Herbalism!

We look forward to a new year filled with herbalistic adventures in healthcare…

Won’t you join us? ~The Herbalista Crew

March 25th, from 11am – 4pm

at the Big House on Ponce

368 Ponce de Leon, Atlanta, GA 30308

Receive what you need, give as you are able.

2014 Service Report

Another year of adventures in healthcare!

For all this and so much more, we are grateful.

We feel fortunate to have this opportunity to serve our community

and thankful for your friendship and support on this journey.

Upcoming Herb Cart Trainings

November Herbalista Happenings