An instructor at my gym does annual retreats outside of the US in a different location each year. Over the years I’ve been a gym member, she has come to know me and my work. In the fall of 2019, she said, “Next year’s retreat is going to be at Mar de Jade in Nayarit, México. I think you’d really like what they are doing. Why don’t you check out their website?”

Until that year (and not since) have I seriously entertained, let alone followed through, on attending a retreat that involved international travel for a number of reasons. Yet something in the way she framed a connection between this place and my purpose intrigued me enough that I looked at the website.

As I read about Mar de Jade’s mission and role in the fishing village Chacala (which means “shrimp” in Nahuatl), I decided to sign up for her 2020 spring retreat. I began to imagine: perhaps this is a place I would hold a LJIST women’s leadership retreat for our 30th anniversary in 2024?💭

Not Your Average “Welcome” Presentation

When I arrived at Mar de Jade in March 2020, I attended the “bienvenide” or “welcome” presentation. As I learned again, in more detail, about their humble beginnings and social justice values, I saw the alignment between this place and LJIST’s vision even more clearly.

By chance, my retreat happened over International Women’s Day (IWD) (March 8). That year a national women’s strike had been organized and all women were encouraged to not do any paid or unpaid work that day.*

Instead of striking, the female leadership team at Mar de Jade did a teach in for their staff on violence against women in México. When I asked if I could sit in, I was graciously welcomed. I was inspired by the boldness of what these women leaders were doing and learned a lot about Mexican women’s organizing.

Over the week and the week that followed (I stayed on an extra week after all reservations were canceled and the world prepared for a global shutdown to minimize the spread of COVID-19), I met and befriended some of the key women managing this retreat center. The founder, Dr. Laura del Valle, was away but I was told, over and over again, “you would love each other.”

In a reply to a social media post I made about being at Mar de Jade and the powerful experience I was having, a friend wrote: “I’ve been to there, too! Lillian told me to go after the experience she had there.”

Wait. What?!

Lillian had been here?!

I called Lillian right away. She confirmed she had, in fact, been to Mar de Jade on multiple occasions, before she and I started working together. 🤯

“Tell me more about your time at Mar de Jade?” I asked her.

Lillian’s Legacy at Mar de Jade

Lillian and her husband, Mike, had vacationed at Mar de Jade in its earlier, more rustic years. Accommodations were simpler, the staff and guests prepared and shared meals together, and it definitely didn’t have the resort feel it has today. (Think: shared bathrooms, no pool nor gym nor AC!)

Dr. Laura founded Mar de Jade to fund the new community clinic she had started. She worked for 6 months as a doctor in San Francisco and then volunteered running the clinic in Chacala the other half of the year. She would invite interns from the US to volunteer alongside her, bring donated supplies, all while directing profits from Mar de Jade to cover other clinic expenses.

In those early years (and through today, I can personally attest!) Dr. Laura “interviewed” guests at meal times. She’d listen for any skills or talents guests could bring to the clinicians (that would support their patient care) and/or to the community itself. When Lillian shared about her work with Dr. Laura during one of these meal-time interviews, Dr. Laura immediately asked her to return to volunteer.

And Lillian did.

El Rancho, TAO de Jade, and El Jardín y La Selva Schools

In 2022 when I next visited Chacala, I met Dr. Laura del Valle. (And, yes, all predictions were correct: we do love each other!) She proceeded to tell me, in great detail, about the workshops Lillian had offered in the community and the ongoing impacts Lillian’s work all these many years later.

As the need in the community overwhelmed the available resources for the clinic, and Dr. Laura got clearer about the upstream impacts she wanted to have with a focus on eradicating poverty (can you find me in one of the photos in this article?), she closed the clinic and opened a pre-school in Chacala and bought a ranch in a neighboring pueblo, La Cuata.

Today, El Rancho is a 17-acre organic farm which teaches and supports regenerative agriculture and sustainable food production for local farmers with a focus on mothers. The food prepared and served at Mar de Jade’s three daily buffets is grown and harvested locally at El Rancho.

Also on that property, Dr. Laura established a trade school called TAO de Jade. This community project reaches middle-school age young people through 20s aged young adults to learn skills that will provide stable and economically viable employment that the local economy needs.

Last year, at their 20th anniversary, new meeting and workshop spaces as well as simpler housing accommodations were inaugurated at TAO de Jade. Reminiscent of the early days at Mar de Jade, there is now an easier way for those who want to volunteer their skills toward these micro-enterprises to do so.

Founded as a non-profit in 2012, El Jardín is a Montessori-Waldorf preschool. The school expanded to teach elementary and middle school age students through La Selva. These schools serve 80% of the children in Chacala, providing scholarships to low-income young people and their families for a quality education. I have personally witnessed how family and community life in Chacala are organized around El Jardín and La Selva.

Mar de Jade Today

Surrounded by tropical jungle on three sides, Mar de Jade is nestled at the south end of the shores of Playa Chacala. This small Mexican fishing village both retains a traditional way of life and offers contemporary recreational activities.

Unlike its early days, Mar de Jade has expanded its amenities to include:

• Large swimming pool, wading pool, and jacuzzi
• Fresh mostly-vegetarian meals using ingredients from Mar de Jade’s organic farm, El Rancho.
• Newly-built gym
• Guest lounge
• Beach areas with hammocks
• Free WIFI Internet in the main building
• Spa treatments (not included)
• Excursions and activities (not included)

Hosting LJIST’s 30th Anniversary Retreat

I am delighted partner with Mar de Jade to host LJIST’s 30th Anniversary Transforming Women’s Leadership Program where your stay directly supports Mar de Jade’s Community Projects: health and wellness, youth education, sustainability, and micro-industry programs.

*IWD 2020 was also the year “Cancion Sin Miedo” by Mexicana Vivir Quintana debuted and since has become an international anthem to end violence against women.