For Mind, Body and Soul

We’re pleased to announce the return of Meggan Riley and Mike McGuigan to Blue Ox this August. In past years they brought morning yoga and sound meditation to our festival and now, with the help of Star Sangha, they will be expanding their offerings to present the Soul Sanctuary (new for 2021).

The Soul Sanctuary is a wellness tent where you can find balance, recharge, restore and connect consciously with the festival community. Highly vibrational offerings that compliment festival culture will include yoga, sonic ceremony, sound healing, meditation, breathwork, reiki and more! Bring your own yoga mats, blankets and other needed props for comfort. All are welcome! (Schedule and full class description below) *Schedule subject to change

Open Friday & Saturday: 9am-5pm

Location:  In the campground, just past Quiet Unreserved GA 

Friday, August 20

9:00am – Yoga & Sound Healing with Meggan Riley,  Mike McGuigan & Maja Videnovik

10:30am – Sonic Ceremony with Star Sangha

12:00pm – Music+Medicine+Movement with Bri Adrias

2:00pm – Breathwork,  Meditation & Akashic Wisdom with Michelle Anthony

3:30pm – Crystal Bowl Sound Healing with Mike McGuigan 

Saturday, August 21

9:00am – Yoga & Sound Healing with Meggan Riley, Mike McGuigan & Katie Kuykendall

10:30am  – Sonic Ceremony with Star Sangha

12:00pm – Group Reiki Healing with Stephanie Martin

2:00pm –  Venus Gong Meditation with Karen Tlusty

3:30pm – Shamanic Drumming and Healing Ceremony with Meaghan Richmond

Friday August 20th

9:00AM – Yoga & Sound Healing

Meggan & Mike return to Blue Ox, offering morning yoga, sound healing and meditation.  Students will move and breath through an all levels practice, designed to purify and awaken the body, mind and soul for a day of festival!   Meggan, Mike & Maja will inspire students to connect to self and community through a healing practice.  Please bring your own yoga mat and props.

10:30AM – Sonic Ceremony with Star Sangha

Star Sangha invites you to join in Sonic Ceremony as they resurrect the ancient medicine of communal song.  Star Sangha offers a healing vibration for the greater good in which you are invited to open your heart, offer your voice and participate with the band in uplifting the human spirit!  Band members Karen Tlusty-Rissman, John Rissman, Shelli Mullins, Brianne Adrias, Becky Ficarella, Michael Willuweit, Maja Videnovik, Matthew Bade and Meggan Riley, began singing together through their community gatherings and seasonal celebrations.  They are devoted to holding sacred space, tuning in to the highest frequency and leading ceremony that transforms all who participate!   Join voices with them in the Soul Sanctuary Friday and Saturday morning at 10:30am!

12:00PM – Music+Medicine+Movement with Bri Adrias

Join Brianne for early morning music, medicine and movement. Gently wake up your body and soul  to the day,  and all the beautiful vibrations Blue Ox Festival has to offer.  Brianne combines plant medicines, oils and smoking herbs, gentle yoga, pranayama, and chanting; co-creating an engaging conscious space for you to find home and healing.  Participants must be 18 years of age or above.  Please bring mats, blankets, pillows, and other needed props for comfort.

Brianne is a member of Star Sangha and licensed social worker, currently working as a medical cannabis social worker in an Illinois dispensary. She received her masters degree in social work from Dominican university. In addition to social work, She is a certified yoga teacher, and holistic birth and bereavement doula. Brianne prides herself on her ability to nurture and hold space for others.

2:00PM – Breathwork, Meditation & Akashic Wisdom with Michelle Anthony

You are limitless. In the quantum field, all possibilities exist simultaneously. Tap into your potential with a guided journey using your body, breath, and wisdom from the akashic records. Michelle Anthony of BlissTonic will be taking you through a breathwork and meditation practice to help raise your energy and your consciousness so you can remember the magic that surrounds you at all times.  Please bring mats, blankets, pillows, and other needed props for comfort. 

Michelle is a 500 hour trained yoga teacher, CE provider, Reiki master, intuitive & akashic reader, and entrepreneur. She has been studying & teaching yoga for over 10 years. It was during her first yoga training in Canada that she had her first “spiritual awakening”, forcing her to face her fears and step into her gifts.  Her mission is to guide you through your human experience by offering the tools, support, and systems that help reduce your suffering and bring more joy into your life.  Michelle is also an advocate of play and has trained in several movement modalities including aerial yoga, acro, and pole. She is the current owner & co-founder of Moonrise Aerials in Eau Claire.

3:30PM – Crystal Bowl Sound Meditation with Mike McGuigan

Join us in the Soul Sanctuary for a unique experience of Sound Vibration Immersion.  In this session, Sound Healer,  Mike McGuigan will use the powerful vibrations from Crystal Quartz Singing Bowls to help restore, refresh, and rejuvenate your body, mind, and soul.  Please bring mats, blankets, pillows, and other needed props for comfort. 

Mike McGuigan brings over 20 years of experience as a multi-instrumentalist, playing music professionally both as a live performer and a recording studio artist. Mike and music have been synonymous since a very young age. An outstanding Music Program at Batavia (IL) High School helped earn Mike a music scholarship to Western Illinois University. After college, Mike continued performing professionally in various Jazz Ensembles and Rock & Roll bands in suburban Chicago. In 2014, Mike completed training with the Vibrational Sound Association, and began his career as Sound Therapist and Sound Healer. Mike now owns a Holistic Health Company, Emphasizing on Sound Therapy, Crystal Singing Bowls, Sound Healing, and Reiki. Mike is a Reiki Professional, for both humans and animals, and has built and grown a successful practice as Reiki Professional for Vitality Animal Chiropractic Center in Aurora, IL

Saturday, August 21st

9:00AM – Yoga & Sound Healing

Meggan & Mike return to Blue Ox, offering morning yoga, sound healing and meditation.  Students will move and breath through an all levels practice, designed to purify and awaken the body, mind and soul for a day of festival!   Meggan, Mike & Maja will inspire students to connect to self and community through a healing practice.  Please bring your own yoga mat and props.

10:30AM – Sonic Ceremony with Star Sangha

Star Sangha invites you to join in Sonic Ceremony as they resurrect the ancient medicine of communal song.  Star Sangha offers a healing vibration for the greater good in which you are invited to open your heart, offer your voice and participate with the band in uplifting the human spirit!  Band members Karen Tlusty-Rissman, John Rissman, Shelli Mullins, Brianne Adrias, Becky Ficarella, Michael Willuweit, Maja Videnovik, Matthew Bade and Meggan Riley, began singing together through their community gatherings and seasonal celebrations.  They are devoted to holding sacred space, tuning in to the highest frequency and leading ceremony that transforms all who participate!   Join voices with them in the Soul Sanctuary Friday and Saturday morning at 10:30am!

12:00PM – Group Reiki Healing with Stephanie Martin

Kick off your last day at Blue Ox off with an energetic bang that will leave you feeling aligned, blissful, and refreshed!  Join Stephanie Martin, Reiki Master Teacher and Owner of Om Sweet Om, as she guides you on a magical energetic journey filled with wisdom and healing!  In this workshop, we will dive into mystical energetic waters of Reiki and explore our own healing potential! We will learn about the basics of Energetic Vibrational Healing, participate in a tranquil Guided Healing Practice, and conclude with a revitalizing Group Reiki Healing facilitated by Stephanie and her team of talented and experienced Reiki healers!  Please bring mats, blankets, pillows, and other needed props for comfort.

Stephanie Martin is an Intuitive Reiki Master Teacher, Licensed Massage Therapist, and Birth Doula. Stephanie owns Om Sweet Om Wellness and brings deep wisdom, compassion, and over a decade worth of devoted experience to her work. She weaves the web of Community and Holistic Energy Healing through facilitating individual healing sessions, workshops, training, and group events. Her passion is her purpose, as she holds space for others to discover and step onto their own paths. Stephanie is thrilled and honored to bring Reiki and Energy Healing to her favorite festival, and can’t wait to kick off her sixth year at Blue Ox with some energetic magic!  

2:00PM – Venus Gong Meditation with Karen Tlusty-Rissman

Join Star Sangha member, Karen Tlusty-Rissman for an hour of exquisite vibrations!  Sounds of the Venus gong, Native American style flute, Tibetan bowls and other instruments create a heightened meditation space that supports us in directly connecting to our deepest source of wisdom. Current astrological influences will be discussed, helping us align with celestial energies that assist our evolutionary growth and empower our intentions. Please bring a yoga mat, blanket, pillow or anything else you may need to lie still on the floor, as lying down is the most effective position to work with the energy of the gong.

Karen Tlusty-Rissman is a musician, astrologer, meditation facilitator and ceremonialist.  She plays the Venus gong, Native American flute, concert flute, bass guitar, Tibetan singing bowls and more.  She leads a variety of classes that involve sound, shamanism, visual art, aromatherapy, crystals and guided meditation.

3:30PM – Shamanic Drumming & Healing Ceremony

Join Sahamanic Priestess, Meaghan Richmond as she leads the Closing Ceremony for the inaugural year of the Soul Sanctuary at Blue Ox.  Participants will be invited into group healing, shamanic drumming and ceremonial expression with the intention of sealing our connection for the weekend. She will bridge the space between our sacred festival community and re-entry into the real world with a gathering designed to inspire your continued wellness. 

Meaghan’s passions are being a bridge to other realms and cultivating connection. Focusing on building Tribe & understanding Mysticism, she has studied with multiple Healers in Peru, Brazil, Europe, and Australia. Journeying to Holistic Health began with a near death experience/flight-for-life in 2015. Meaghan attributes her healing to Plant Medicines which guided her to and through intuitive healing.  As a blessed Medicine Carrier and Master Reiki Teacher & Practitioner, Meaghan incorporates both Amazonian and Celtic teachings with clients, in Ceremony Circles, and Gatherings. Resonating with a calling as a Shamanic Priestess, she calls upon Divine guidance to offer Intuitive Healing. Her sessions are individually tailored include Plant Medicines, Crystals, Sound Healing, Reiki, Chakra Balancing, Space Clearing, Tarot, & Astrology.