Heart of the Village Yoga

In 1950, China invaded the country of Tibet. Although the Dalai Lama, the  leader of the Tibetan people, tried to negotiate with the Chinese government, in 1959 he felt that in order to preserve the Tibetan culture he needed to escape and establish a government in exile. Since that time, many Tibetans have fled their homeland. Most families have settled in India and Nepal where their life is very hard. Although the Tibetan government in exile does their best to see that the children receive a good education, there is always a struggle to raise enough money.

In 1998, Dorset residents, Biff and Amy Mithoefer, heard the Dalai Lama speak in New York City. Touched, not only by the difficulties facing these families in exile, Biff and Amy saw the importance of the message of peace, kindness, and inter-connectedness that the Tibetan people bring to the world. Wanting to do what they could to help the people and their culture survive, they began to sponsor young Tibetan children and to support their families.

In 2006, the Mithoefers spent some time with the Dalai Lama in his home in India and he gave their sponsorship project the name Jamtse. Since that time, the project has continued to grow, and the first child the Jamtse Project sponsored just began her first year at Amherst College. She’s happy and is doing well.

Biff Mithoefer, an international Yin Yoga Teacher, is offering a Yin Yoga and Storytelling, May 6-8, 2016 at Heart of the Village Yoga in Manchester. Biff donates all his profits to the Jamtse Sponsorship Project. If you’re interested in finding out more about The Jamtse Project please visit biffmithoeferyoga.com. If you want to find out more about helping the Tibetan people visit The Tibet Fund website (www.tibetfund.org). For information about the weekend click here or call 802.362.9004.

©Heart of the Village Yoga 2016