Justin Ferko
City: Camp Hill
State: PA
Languages: English, Spanish
Personalized Affiliation: Interspiritual
Spiritual Spheres: Buddhism, Christianity, Eco/Nature-based, Interfaith, Interspiritual, Spiritual but Not Religious, Spiritual Independent, Unitarian Universalist, Wicca/Neopaganism
Category: Spiritual Director, Spiritual Companion, Supervisor, Chaplain
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 7172205034
Website: http://www.wildspiritpaths.com
Focus Area: Corporate/Workplace, Creative Arts, Dreamworker, Dying/Sick/Hospice, Ecospirituality/Nature-based, Education, Elderly/Mature, European Cultures, Grief and Loss, Group Spiritual Direction, Health Care, Homeless/Low Income, LGBTQIA+, Mental Health/Depression, Mindfulness/Meditation, Non-Traditional Healing, Young Adults
Social Media:
Profile: Justin Ferko (he/they) is inspired to help folks explore and live into the gift of their soul purpose in a world of climactic devastation and injustice that needs our deep imagination, wisdom and transformation as elders. Here, spiritual practices of compassion, imagination, love and interconnection are healing balm and catalysts for change. Justin is an Interspiritual Counselor, Certified Forest Bathing Guide, and professional chaplain. He is a 2022 New Contemplative with Spiritual Directors International, and a graduate of Oasis Ministries for Spiritual Development (Harrisburg, PA) and chaplain residency at The Ohio State Wexner Medical Center. His educational background includes a Master’s in Education from Boston University, a Master’s in Theological Studies from Trinity Lutheran Seminary and a Master’s in Spanish from Simmons College. Justin celebrates the giftedness of the LGBTQIA+ community and facilitates soul friendship with Mother Earth. He honors and facilitates companionees' relationship with Earth and with each person's own beautiful embodiment including gender expression, gender identity and sexual orientation. Justin's practice of spiritual companioning is contemplative and interspiritual, drawing on Earth-honoring spiritual practices including poetry, forest bathing, Tibetan Buddhism in the Karma Kagyu Lineage and the desert tradition of the Eastern Christian Ammas and Abbas. He and his spouse Craig live on the banks of the Susquehanna River with their beloved rescue dogs Yeshe and Benny. Areas of focus include: -Earth Connection & Eco-Grief, Climate Anxiety -Supporting LGBTQIA+ folks of all ages with personal experience, communal wisdom, and research -Soul purpose, life transitions -Spiritual connection, Spiritual trauma -Wonder & Awe -Embodiment practices What this might look like: -Walking with you in discernment of your spiritual path and which practices nurture you -Facilitating your soul work (Bill Plotkin) and navigating your transitions from First Half of Life to Second Half of Life (Richard Rohr) -Inviting you to practices from Relational Forest Therapy to foster connection with Earth, Self, and your higher power -Companionship through grief and spiritual trauma -Fostering your contemplative posture in the world -Supervision for spiritual directors/companions In other curves of his spiral life path, Justin has been a professional Palliative Care chaplain and Spanish and English Language Learners teacher at the secondary and university levels. You can reach him for spiritual counseling, supervision of your spiritual counseling/companionship/direction practice and in-person/remotely guided forest bathing walks: [email protected] www.wildspiritpaths.com
