STORY AND PHOTOS BY KAREN BOSSICK

The hundred-plus guests had no sooner sat down to lunch than the squeeze was on.

Paige Redman looked across the room at the Limelight Hotel and coaxed the crowd of mostly women to release everything they’d been holding.

“Maybe you just yelled at your spouse. Take this moment to squeeze and squeeze, then release, she said, showing them how to tense their body from head to foot.

“Ahhh,” she added, as everyone relaxed.

It wasn’t an absent-minded exercise. It’s an exercise that Flourish Foundation facilitators do with 1,500 students as they teach them ways to manage stress and establish calmness.

 “We’re so grateful for the opportunity to support kids this way,” said Redman, noting that the mindful awareness program is not funded by schools but, rather, by foundations and individuals.

Paige’s husband Ryan Redman founded Flourish Foundation nine years ago to help students cultivate kindness, compassion and generosity while building positive relationships and seeking academic success. Facilitators teach meditation and talk about ethics and values through collaborative games, respectful dialogue and activities.

Among those who has benefited is Aiden Burchmore, a young high school student who just returned from India where he and other Compassionate Leaders from Flourish Foundation took part in service projects.

 Burchmore recounted how he meditates more and procrastinates less since utilizing the tools that Flourish Foundation teaches. He also is working on sharing gratitude.

“Whenever I’m feeling down, I look at what I’m grateful for. I allow myself to be more vulnerable and I try to stimulate vulnerability in others. And I’ve learned to embrace change. Change is the best part of my life. Without it I would still be sitting in a hospital room where I was born,” he said.

Katie Corkery noted that meditation, or reflection, is the most important single skill she’s learned in nine years of Flourish Foundation.

Before, she said, her now 13-year-old daughter said the smallest thing would set her off.

“But you’re not like that, anymore,” the daughter added. “You’re patient, kind, you pause.”

“Meditation is the art of awareness., the process of exploring our inner landscape without judgment,” she said. “My experience is not unique—it’s the same with many others whom Flourish Foundation has touched. The state of our mind matters.”

Want to learn more about Flourish Foundation? Visit www.flourishfoundation.org or call 208-450-9309.

SPARE CHANGE?

Flourish Foundation offered those attending its annual luncheon a new way to help support the organization.

Just round up every purchase by credit or debit card to the nearest dollar, contributing the spare change to Flourish Foundation. A purchase of $12.57, for instance, would result in 43 cents being donated to Flourish Foundation.

Donors can receive monthly statements tracking their contributions, set a monthly limit on donations and pause donations at any time. Bank-grade security handles sensitive financial data.

Text “flourish” to the number “21000” for a link to set up the account.