Enrichment & Wellness

Botanical Blends: Make Your Own Scented Sachets

Explore the art of botanical blending in this hands-on workshop where you’ll create your own scented sachets using dried flowers and essential oils. Choose from a wide variety of scents, including Jasmine, Lavender, Eucalyptus, Lemongrass, Rose, and Chamomile, to create two (2) to three (3) personalized sachets. Along the way, you’ll learn how to choose scents to promote different outcomes, such as calmness, clarity, nervous-system regulation, and more. Completed muslin bag sachets are approximately 4 x 6 inches.

Community Instructor: Mariah Maddox

All About Essential Oils

Learn all you need to know to get started with essential oils safely and affordably. This class focuses on education, not sales, offering clear, practical guidance rooted in safety, science, and real-world application.

We’ll cover the most therapeutic ways to use essential oils, how to store, use, and dispose of them safely, how they work in the body, what a great starter set looks like, and how to work thoughtfully with vulnerable populations. You’ll leave with a stronger understanding of how to choose quality oils, avoid common pitfalls, and confidently incorporate essential oils into your daily life.

Community Instructor: Lily Kunning

Food as Medicine: Cooking with Medicinal Herbs

Let food be your medicine and learn to incorporate healthy herbs and mushrooms into your cooking! Learn tips to conveniently use herbal broths, syrups, vinegar, oil, and honey infusions in everyday cooking. Everyone will sample our creations and take home recipes.

Community Instructor: Lily Kunning

DIY Non-Toxic Cleaning Supplies

In honor of Earth Day, learn how to make your own non-toxic cleaning supplies to freshen up your home. Handmade cleaning supplies are easier to make than you think, cost-effective, and help reduce toxins in your home.

Each participant will make and take a quart-sized jar of dry, non-toxic laundry detergent, and a glass bottle of non-toxic disinfectant spray, along with several non-toxic cleaner recipes they can make and try at home.

Community Instructor: Isabel Carter

Cooking for Your Health: Sauté, Stir-Fry, & More

Join local family physician and certified culinary medicine specialist, Dr. Humaira Lateef, for a hands-on class rooted in Culinary Medicine—where health and healing meet the art and science of food. This vibrant field recognizes the profound impact of what we eat on our overall well-being.

In this session, we will explore several healthy cooking techniques as we learn how to sauté, stir-fry, simmer, and braise, with a focus on a whole food, plant-predominant diet. Together, we’ll cook and sample a vegetable stir fry with teriyaki sauce. Once these techniques are mastered, you will be able to put together quick meals made from any combination of vegetables, seasonings, protein-rich foods, and whole grains.

Class Notes: To help us honor 577’s commitment to sustainability, please bring a 4- to 6-oz. food container for your leftovers. We recommend bringing an apron and a hairnet or head covering. Some recipes may contain soybeans.

Community Instructor: Humaira Lateef, MD, FAAFP, CCMS, DipABLM

Morning Yoga for Your Health

Join us for a multi-week session of gentle Hatha Yoga and Meditation classes focused on mindful movement, breath, and personal well-being. Each session offers adaptable poses to meet your individual needs, with support from yoga mats, chairs, and walls to enhance your practice. 

Please bring your own yoga mat and enjoy a supportive, mindful practice together.

Community Instructor: Pam Bortz

Yoga & Mindfulness

Tuesdays, March 17, 24, & 31 ~ 6pm to 7pm

Wednesdays, April 22, 29 ~ 6pm to 7pm

Wednesdays, May 13, 20, & 27 ~ 6pm to 7pm

Spend an hour each week with us and learn to bring balance back to your body, mind, and spirit through yoga, breathwork, and mindfulness. Practice traditional yoga poses, breathing techniques, guided relaxation, and mindful meditation.

We will also explore ways to be mindful (aware without judgement) and how to bring your yoga and mindfulness practices into other parts of your life. All levels are welcome, with modifications being suggested, as needed.

Community Instructor: Jenn McCullough

Celebrate Earth Day: Evening Sound Bath in Dome

Friday, April 24 ~ 6:30pm to 7:30pm

Join us for a soothing sound bath experience as we celebrate Earth Day at 577.

Relax into your weekend with vibrational sound and meditation. Receive gentle guidance to unwind through focused breathing and meditation exercises. We’ll then relax onto yoga mats or chairs to experience the calming effects of listening to highly resonant, immersive sounds from various instruments, including crystal bowls. These sound vibrations, or sound “bathing,” promote a meditative state, allowing thoughts to quiet and the body to relax.

Class Note: Participants can choose to sit or lie down on their yoga mat (please bring your own), or can sit in one of 577’s chairs (please reserve a chair at registration). The Geodesic Biodome is temperature-controlled and set for comfort that evening, but we suggest everyone dress warmly in layers since bodies tend to cool as they relax.

Community Instructor: Pam Bortz

Herbal Remedies for Summer

Maximize your enjoyment of the great outdoors this summer with the power of herbal remedies. This practical and engaging class will teach you how to prepare and use effective herbal solutions for common seasonal needs, such as soothing bug bites and stings, easing sun exposure, preparing cooling herbal infusions for hydration, and more.

Everyone will make and take home their own sunburn cream, first aid salve, and the recipes, preparation techniques, and knowledge to confidently care for themselves and their family using nature’s pharmacy throughout the summer months.

Community Instructor: Lily Kunning

Riverwalk String Workshop Week (Grades 6 to 12)

Monday, July 20 through Friday, July 24 ~ 9am to 3pm

Young musicians in grades 6 to 12 are invited to join us for the Riverwalk String Workshop. This week-long immersive experience offers high-quality instruction in string playing from world-class musicians, paired with mindfulness and creativity sessions from the Toledo Mindfulness Institute, where students will learn techniques to enhance focus and self-expression.

Participants will build lifelong skills while working both in small groups and one-on-one with professional musicians. This workshop is open to students who play violin, viola, cello, or bass.

Students will also benefit from attending live performances on-site at 577, including Riverwalk’s Ensemble-In-Residence, the Orion Trio, and a concert by Riverwalk’s faculty. Participants will also take part in two nature-based art activities led by 577 staff.

The week concludes with a special concert showcasing our students’ talents on the final day of the workshop, Friday, July 24, from 2pm to 3pm. All performances take place on 577’s Outdoor Stage and are open to the public. A rain location will be announced if needed.

This is a unique opportunity for young student musicians to grow as performers, find inspiration, and build friendships in a holistic, supportive, and engaging environment. Join us and gain the courage to follow your dreams!

Important Notes: Young musicians must have at least 2 years of private instruction. Musicians will be asked to complete a Google Form from Riverwalk String Workshop. This includes an optional request to submit a one-minute video sample of their playing as an audio file, which can include a solo, etude, orchestra excerpt, etc. While optional, this submission is strongly recommended to assist with ensemble placement. Registration is subject to review. Participants who do not meet the requirements may not be accepted into the camp. Any musician who is not accepted will receive a full refund.

Registration opens Wednesday, April 1, at 9am for all sessions.

Community Instructors: Cole Habekost, Alex Munson, & Isabella Weik