Fall NE Gathering for Meher Baba
Friday evening Sept. 20 to Sunday afternoon Sept. 22, 2024
at the Warwick Center
62 Warwick Center Rd, Warwick, NY 10990Meher Baba is the embodiment of Love and the Avatar of this Age. The Northeast Gathering is an annual opportunity for His lovers to come together and share the joy of hearts filled with appreciation for the gift of His Presence, in a weekend filled with Light through music, conversation, activities, and heartfelt talks.
PARENTS: Children’s Baba Activities will be offered during most of the featured events!
Laurent Weichberger
will present in person 3 interactive sessions
with audience participation:
Friday, Sept. 20, 2024:
“Love with Beloved Baba”
Saturday, Sept. 21, 2024:
“My Life with Don Stevens”
and
“Forgiveness with Meher Baba”
About the Presenter: Laurent came to Meher Baba in 1986, at the young age of seventeen, in New York City. He spent his time since then deepening his connection with his beloved Baba. He had the good fortune of working with Don Stevens on various projects for Baba in England, France, India, and other locations from 2002 until Don’s passing in 2011. He has authored or co-authored 7 books about Baba, including, “Forgiveness with Meher Baba” and “An Almost Perfect Balance — The Authorized Biography of Don E. Stevens.”
Laurent facilitates no-cost seminars on a variety of Baba topics, such as “Forgiveness” and “Surrender.” He excels at enabling seminar attendees to feel engaged as true participants in a living process of discovery, inviting a deepening of one’s connection to Baba.
Laurent is employed as a Principal Customer Advisory Director specializing in Data Quality at a multinational software company. He lives with his wife and family in Asheville, North Carolina, where he remains deeply involved in the Meher Baba community.
Featured Musical Guests:
Julie and Rusty Rust
Julie and Rusty Rust have been together for over 30 years — in love, marriage, and music. Rusty introduced Julie to Meher Baba in 1989, and their love for each other, and for Baba, shines through every time they perform. They have have shared their original music at Meherabad and Meherazad in India, Meherabode in Australia, Meher Spiritual Center in South Carolina, Meher Mount in California, Meher Baba Center of Northern California, Heartland Center in Oklahoma, the Asheville Music Sahavas, and countless house concerts. Julie has recorded 6 albums, and Rusty has currently finished recording his first solo EP. They look forward to their first time at the Northeast Gathering!
A sample of their work can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QiZ1R0UxqWM and here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3cCwR50uoec
Additional Musical Guests:
Angela Lee Chen & Cliff Hackford
Angela Lee Chen only sings for Baba and His lovers. After years of learning and performing for Baba, she has expanded into writing her own music. She has encouraged others to write, too, with HeartSong Workshops both on Baba Zoom and in person. You can find her music available on Baba Zoom's YouTube channel as well as other platforms Here is a beautiful example of her work: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vaUeKITsDYE&t=16s
Angela is a healer, practicing acupuncture since 1998. She is also an artist, author, Baba community organizer, and the founder and coordinator of Baba Zoom.
Cliff came to Meher Baba in the mid-1970s. He has been playing percussion instruments professionally since the age of 15. He has studied with jazz great Elvin Jones and tabla master Samir Chatterjee. He brings a deep grooving feel to many musical projects. A small sampling of the many artists he has played/recorded with include Sam the Sham and the Pharaohs, Matt Guitar Murphy, AK-47, Cadillacmoon, Vicki Sue Robinson, Fullhand, the Drifters, the Shirelles, the Marvelettes , the Chiffons, and many, many more, covering many different styles of music. Cliff works as an in-demand music producer and session musician. He owns and operates Parkhillrecording.com, a full-service recording studio located in Myrtle Beach, SC.
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Plus on SATURDAY:
Songs and Dances by
The New Jersey Bhajan Group
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Plus on SUNDAY:
Sharing Mandali Stories with Jon Meyer
If you have a story of the mandali, please consider sharing it.
Baba’s men and women mandali were quite a varied lot, but they were all completely devoted to Him and, each in their own way, they learned to serve Him selflessly. When a pilgrim asked Eruch, one of Baba’s closest mandali, "What will we do when the mandali are gone?", he responded, "You will share with each other." I believe that it is important to share stories of the mandali while those who met them are still around. If you had the good fortune to meet any of the mandali, please consider sharing your experiences while they are still vivid in your memory, or experiences with the mandali that made a significant impact on your relationship with Baba. Please try to limit your contribution to 3 to 5 minutes in order to allow time for all to share.
(We can also share print or digital photos of the mandali. If you are able to bring a print photo, please label it with your name and the names of others in the photo, along with the place and year.)
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An Added Bonus:
Marvel at a highly impressive Baba bookstore at the NEG this year! The bookstore will accept cash, check, credit card, Venmo, or PayPal.
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