MMI 2024 GRANTEE RENEWAL CONFERENCE
2024 GRC Renewal Activities
MMI offers Renewal Activities during Grantee RENEWAL Conferences as a way to refresh grantee leaders. We hope to renew your mind, body, and spirit and to deepen your commitment and resolve to continue to provide services to people living in poverty and on the margins of society. We've tried to offer you creative, fun, relaxing, and spiritually rewarding activities. Let us know how we did!
Please sign-up for renewal activities during on-site registration on Tuesday, July 30th from 1:00-4:00pm or on Wednesday, July 31st from 7:00-8:30am in the Gravier Foyer.
NOLA Giveback - Natchez (2nd Floor)
(open invitation to come-n-go anytime during renewal time)
Join attendees in organizing and packaging items to present to New Orleans based organizations serving people unhoused: Harry Tompson Center (day center), Ozanam Inn (men and women temporary and permanent housing), and Hotel Hope (women with children temporary housing). The following new supplies collected include: sports bras, razors, underwear (men's and women's), deodorant, body wash, small toothpaste tubes, bar soap (small or large), body lotion (small or large), and cocoa butter lotion. Help us help these NOLA organizations by working to organize and package items for distribution. Click here to see our request for help in gathering items for this renewal activity.
MMI Game Room - Creole Queen (2nd Floor)
(open invitation to come-n-go anytime during renewal time)
This room will be set up with cards, board games and other fun group activities. Join members of the MMI Committee and play a hand or two of cards, battle each other in mancala, or join a group game of Uno for fun and laughter. Feel free to join us after your massage or time in the Nola Giveback room.
Chair Massages by Balance Design - New Levee (2nd Floor)
(15-minute blocks, must reserve time)
We are excited to bring back the crowd favorite - Chair Massages! Reserve your 15 minutes of bliss with local therapists from Balance Design. Balance Design will bring 3 therapists and all the supplies needed, including massage chairs. We encourage you to join other renewal activities before or after your massage to get the full renewal experience.
Guided Canvas Painting with Elia Hernandez-Moreno - Fulton (2nd Floor)
(only offered on Wednesday - space is limited, must reserve time)
Join our opening day keynote speaker, Elia Hernandez-Moreno, on a journey of self-care. During this session, Elia will walk you through a canvas painting experience as she shares information from her second book, Permission to Rest, on the importance of self-care and strategies to avoid compassion fatigue, improve coping abilities, and find time to reenergize.
Guided Meditation with Verne Kemerer, MPH - Mississippi Queen (2nd Floor)
(space is limited, must reserve time)
Verne studied Buddhist chaplaincy and has received lay ordination in the Soto Zen lineage. Currently, Verne helps manage Swan River Yoga in New Orleans where he provides guided meditation to clients. To meditate is to concentrate on the breath. Mindfully aware of how we breathe, we are able to cultivate our concentration and insight. Through focused breathing, visualization, and gentle prompts, guided meditation helps participants release tension, quiet the mind, and connect with the present moment. Join Verne as he provides guidance toward reduced stress, enhanced self-awareness, and a deeper sense of well-being in both mind and body.
Beginner Level Yoga with Jenn Rogers - Julia (2nd Floor)
(space is limited, must reserve time)
Jenn’s been teaching for over 13 years and specializes in working therapeutically through the tools of yoga, Pilates, MFR, and strength training. With a therapeutic approach all forms of movement can be modified to work for an individual body’s needs rather than the one size fits all mentality. She has over 1000 hours of movement education and is an E-RYT500 certified instructor . Jenn will lead you through a series of poses (asanas) that stretch and tone muscles while also enhancing joint mobility. Yoga promotes better posture and alignment, reducing the risk of injury and alleviating chronic pain. Beyond the physical benefits, yoga has profound effects on mental and emotional well-being. Through mindful movement and breath awareness, yoga cultivates a sense of inner calm, reducing stress, anxiety, and depression.