Take a walk through Healing Gardens July 8
Healing Gardens, a two-acre expanse of woodland and perennial gardens on Stone Hill Farm off Dean Street in St. Charles, will be open 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, July 8. The gardens are open to the public on set dates for the purpose of enjoying the natural wooded setting and perennial gardens. Admission is $5 per person and $10 per family; call for discounted group rates. In solidarity and to honor the journey, cancer survivors are always free.
Donations of time or money for upkeep are welcome. Healing Gardens is cultivated and hosted by Deborah Marqui, owner of Stone Hill Farm with her husband, Buzz Marqui.
Marqui, who is cancer-free from non-Hodgkin's lymphoma since 1996 and in remission from breast cancer since 2002, finds great restoration of spirit in her gardens and property and wants to share that with the public for their own rejuvenation.
"It's time to pick a summer bouquet of flowers at Healing Gardens. Flowers are food for the soul," Marqui said. For a small donation visitors can pick their own bouquet of flowers to take home, jars and scissors provided.
The July opening will offer Tai Chi in the Garden from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., weather permitting. Instructor Jarett Sanchez of Fox Valley Tai Chi will lead participants through a refreshing warm-up, a peaceful Standing Meditation Qi Gong session, and then an introduction to basic movements from the Yang Style of Tai Chi. No prior experience is necessary. To register, go to www.foxvalleytaichi.blogspot.com or email Jarett at foxvalleytaichi@gmail.com.
The July 8 opening also will offer an optional outdoor Yoga In The Garden class from 1 to 2 p.m. taught by Nancy May. Go to www.yogafromtheheart.org or call (815) 319-3500 to register.
Visiting individuals or small groups are welcome to do as they please. No activity is required or requested. People are welcome to read, nap, draw, meditate, journal, swing or simply do nothing. Stone Hill Farm is the home of Buzz and Deb Marqui where they have lived since 1972, raising four children.
Groups are welcome to schedule and reserve special days to visit the gardens all year round. Healing Gardens also are available to rent for the day or weekend along with an indoor meeting room. Healing Gardens is at 37W249 Dean Street, St. Charles. For more information, call (630) 740-2597 or visit www.healinggardensatstonehillfarm.com.