Cat and Wolf Retreat
Back to nature Yurt retreat where you can find peace with technology and the stressors in your life.
Project Description
What if there was a place where you could rest? We mean, really rest. The kind of rest where you forgot why you got stressed in the first place and stopped worrying about the notifications on your phone. And when you woke up, you could actually breathe in possibilities and purpose. What if that place helped you deeply and meaningfully connect with others . . . and yourself? Instead of rehashing the weather in circles, you discussed your life journeys and identities. Are you picturing it? Maybe feeling a little relaxed just dreaming of it?
That’s the kind of place we’re going to build. No really, we are. We’re on a mission to create a retreat where our visitors reconnect with themselves, while finding peace with technology and the stressors in their lives. The cat and wolf retreat is named with a purpose, to help preserve and honor your cat-like autonomy, while helping you find the place within a pack.
Our Story
In the summer of 2012, we were two young women interning for a large tech corporation in the middle of Texas (hello 100 degree weather). We spend the summer killing it as interns and becoming best friends. We learned to write macros in the day time and memorized bike trails on the weekends (hot tip: salmon is not a good bike ride snack). For the next 10 years we built careers in tech, upped our smartphone game, got married, got divorced, got married, became PowerPoint gurus and answered approximately 10 million emails.
Before we knew it, we were addicted to our phones, glued to our televisions (who can resist Legacies and Superstore?), texting no one and everyone, obsessing over social media, and abandoning those bike trails on the weekends. It wasn’t long before we wanted our lives back. It was harder than it sounded, taking much research, mental and physical exercises, dedication. But eventually, we found the path to peace, and we want to help share the map with everyone else too.
Our Vision
After finding the right property in Texas or North Carolina, we’ll be building 4 yurt homes to kick-start our rental properties. From there, we’ll expand and bring in mindfulness and tech detox experiences, including yoga (with pygmy goats), group/1x1 coaching, and workshops. We want our visitors to feel empowered with tools and strategies they will stay with them for years down the road.
Our Ethos
It’s not a radical statement to say technology has grown exponentially since the 90’s. We all (ok, maybe not you Gen Zers) saw us go from dial-up internet and the rudimentary beginnings of AIM to an explosion of apps and devices. With the growth of machine learning and irresistible product designs, it’s become almost impossible to resist the psychological allure of technology.
That said, we don’t believe in throwing away your phones, closing your Wi-Fi account or donating your TVs to Goodwill. We believe technology can serve a purpose, a good one. But it’s a tricky relationship to build. We believe in a selective relationship with technology, where we control if and how it enters our lives. Technology is not the issue, technological manipulation is. And we plan to guide our visitors to navigating this complex relationship.
Why We Need Your Help
As you know, we need yurts, and unfortunately yurts need land. We may be in a prime era of television and mobile apps, but it would appear we are in a prime era of real estate as well. Any contribution goes a long way to helping us fund the heart and soul of our retreat: a beautiful forest with plenty of trees to climb.
We’ve carefully curated a mix of meaningful and fun perks to welcome you as part of our dream. Did you have a different perk in mind? Maybe you were hoping we’d record and sing you a song, or you wanted to cuddle one of our resident cats during your stay… Well, just send us a message at [email protected] and we’ll look into your suggestion!
What’s Next in Our Adventure
We’re land-hopping across Texas and North Carolina, looking for the right place and hoping to get help from each of you to find the perfect forest. We’ll keep you updated as we journey through the woods and find the best trails and meditation spots for all of you <3
The Campaign FAQs
Will there be electricity, plumbing, and wifi at the yurts?
YES, YES, and MAYBE! We aren’t creating the river and leaves bathroom option, we plan to have fully modernized yurts, with our guests getting the choice to receive wifi if they’d like.
If I purchase a perk that includes a stay at a yurt, when will I be able to reserve my stay?
We’ve set a conservative date on the campaign, but we’ll be letting funders know as soon as we have the yurts ready to go to book on our site.
Where will you all be located?
Currently we are looking at Texas or North Carolina, and hopeful to find our future site soon. Stay tuned at our campaign for updates as we continue finding the right home for our retreat <3
Is there a website where I can learn more?
Coming soon! In the meantime feel free to contact us at [email protected] with any other questions you’ve got!
Any amount will go a long way.
We are a frugal bunch who understand the value of money, and anything you contribute will be used for the following things (in order of priority):
- Purchasing acreage for the property
- Building yurts
- Establishing utilities
- Construction for the venue / home / yurts
What you get
- A thank you email from us.
- For contributions over $1000 we’ll do a super special secret bonus perk to thank you for your generous contribution
- Access to behind the scenes development through Marco Polo app
“Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot,
Nothing is going to get better. It's not.”
― Dr. Seuss, "The Lorax"
Do you want to "speak for the trees"? This is your chance to do just that! Adopt a tree on our future property!
What you get:
- Photo of the tree from the property
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
With this reward, we will plant a bag of seeds from a native plant in your name (and try to do our best not to kill it, although if Erzhena's not-so-green-thumb is involved...)
But hey, that's why it's a bag and not a single seed ;)
What you'll get:
- Bag of seeds planted in your name
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
Do you like playful cats? Do you like lap cats? Do you like grumpy cats?
Whichever type of cat you like, or if you are more of a dog person, or a dragon person, this contribution will help us build a playful and fun cat house for our resident cats (Xena and Rey), so that they can greet and enjoy the outdoors and meet everyone who comes to visit us at the retreat!
What you get
- Virtual meet and greet with our resident cats, wolf-like huskies, and the co-founders (Jen and Erzhena) with a special appearance from Demi the dragon
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
Do you wish to get reminded of peace and nature every time you use your devices? Look no further, this is the perk for you! Make it your background image on your desktop, home screen, maybe even your smart TV :)
What you get
- Set of digital images of “Mongolia in Texas” - for mobile, desktop, and tablet
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
This project is only possible because of community support: you are our path. The path that led us here, and where we are going.
When you make this contribution, you become a part of this journey, and you will be able to see it on the property, and walk along every one else who helped!
What you get
-
Brick with your name or your loved ones' name as part of the brick path on the property
-
Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
If you're tired of wearing the same abercrombie outfit as everyone else, then this is the perk for you! We've partnered with our friend and local artist Michelle Fernandes to create a secret shirt funique for our FundWomen Campaign. It's sure to help you stand out in a crowd (yes, even if you're shorter than Jen's 5'2")
What you get
- Secret edition cat and wolf t-shirt in your desired size made by a local magical artist
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
This reward is sponsored by Krish - creator of Playne the Meditation Game.
I know this retreat will take a bit to build, but you don't have to wait to experience meditation in the wild! You can even do it at your computer!
(There is now a version of this game in VR, which is really cool!)
This reward will help us sponsor cool conscious technology (software and hardware) that can help you reconnect with your values instead of taking you away from them!
What you get
- Playne game key for desktop
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts
Do you love art? Do you love supporting female artists?
Well, with this perk you will not only be supporting our retreat, but also our resident artist and co-founder of Cat and Wolf retreat - Jennifer Meekel, who put her heart and soul into making the art for our campaign (yes, all the art you see in this campaign page was made by her).
What you get:
- Print of "Mongolia in Texas" painting signed and shipped to you by the artist and co-founder of the retreat Jennifer Meekel herself!
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime benefits and discounts
- A lifetime supply of sincere gratitude from both our co-founders
This perk is generously sponsored by our dear friend BreOutside (https://breoutside.com/)
Do you love practicing yoga when you get away on vacation, but find it annoying to not be able to bring all the equipment with you? Fear not, at Cat and Wolf retreat, we are building a yoga equipment library which will be outfitted with everything you will need: yoga mats, bolsters, blocks,and straps!
What you get:
- Sponsor yoga equipment library
- Get 45 minute virtual individual or group hatha or restorative yoga from BreOutside
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
Do you feel like technology takes you further away from your values? Do you wish that it helped you be the version of you that your grandmother or Beyonce or *insert someone you look up to* would admire?
Our resident slow tech coach and co-founder Erzhena will help you identify strategies to improve your relationship with technology.
What you get
- Virtual 2 hours coaching session that dives into 3-part slow tech ethos and strategies
- PDF of slow tech activity tracker
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
This perk is generously sponsored by our dear friend Yuri Grevtsev, qigong and tai chi teacher with over 30 years of experience in the industry.
Our retreat’s focus is to help you connect with nature. And while the gorgeous lands we are looking at are already providing us with both Wood and Earth elements, we need help to bring the other 3 elements into our retreat: FIRE (firepit), WATER (fountains, ponds and other water features on the property), METAL (singing bowls for sound bath).
What you get
- 1 hour QiGong group class by Qigong4Wellness
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
This perk is generously sponsored by our dear friend Aline Hanle, who is the visionary and founder behind the Cosmic Compass Board game.
Do you love board games? We do too! That's why we are working on a board game library!
This contribution is going to help us purchase games for the library, so that everyone who visits the retreat can enjoy the low tech entertainment!
What you get
- Copy of Cosmic Compass sent to you directly from Aline Handle - the creator
- Send us the name of your favorite board game, and we will make sure to include it in the board game collection
-
Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
This perk is generously sponsored by our dear friend Aline Hanle, who is the visionary and founder behind the Cosmic Compass Board game.
We at Cat and Wolf retreat are huge board game fans, and we would like to offer an extensive collection of board games at the retreat, ranging from euro-style and party games to games that focus on connecting with yourself and people in your life on a deeper level. Cosmic Compass is one of those games!
What you get
- Sponsor board game library
- Copy of the Cosmic Compass game
- Facilitated virtual session with the creator herself - Aline Hanle
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
If you have been on the journey of improving your relationship, this expedition will be just what you need: slow tech coach Erzhena will work with you over Marco Polo (asynchronous video based communication platform) over the course of 2 weeks to help work on, evaluate, and solidify strategies and help them integrate into your daily life.
What you get
- 1 hour virtual coaching session to develop a slow tech expedition plan tailored to your need
- 2 weeks unlimited slow tech coaching over Marco Polo
- PDF of slow tech activity tracker
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
We are a veteran-owned business and want to give back to this important community. What’s that, you do too? Well, perfect, this perk should be right up your alley.
What you get
- Enjoy a 1-night stay and we’ll donate 1 night to a disabled veteran
- Digital edition of Jen’s “Mongolia in Texas” image
This reward is generously brought to you from OwnTrail (https://owntrail.com/)!
Help us build walkable trails that will let you explore the land in all its wooded beauty! And build your own visual journey along the way to help you communicate your unique path in life!
What you get:
- Group journey mapping workshop by OwnTrail for everyone who contributes at this level
- Trail marker named after you or someone you love
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime benefits and discounts
We love yurts for their sustainability, efficient structure, and their ability to bring people together within its circular shape. It also allows us to bring Buryat and Mongolian cultures in an authentic way that can help educate people about sustainable living.
Interior design of the yurts will be curated by Erzhena (co-founder and a proud Buryat woman who wants to honor her ancestors’ traditions), which will be sustainably and ethically sourced from Buryat and Mongolian craftsmen.
What you get
- Sponsor a yurt build
- 3 night stay at the yurt / year (for 3 years) starting late 2023
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
One of our biggest expenses is the purchasing and preparing the land for building the yurts. We have a commitment to honoring the land we are building on, and this contribution will help us invest in purchasing, developing and maintaining the land.
What you get
- Sponsor 1 acre of land
- Brick with your name on it
- 1 weekend stay at the yurt (priority booking, released back to the public at the beginning of the month)
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
Besides the yurt construction, we are planning to build communal areas that will allow us to bring people together and develop the wolf pack mentality: from communal kitchen, pavilion for workshops, living spaces, this contribution will help us greatly to get to the grand vision for this retreat.
We would love for you to be a part of that, and get great rewards along the way!
What you get
- Sponsor construction on the land
- Brick with your name on it
- 1 weekend stay at the yurt (priority booking, released back to the public at the beginning of the month)
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
Think of this level as becoming the junior producer of our retreat. If you want to make a real dent in our mission, this perk’s got your name all over it.
What you get
- Enjoy 1 weekend stay at the yurt retreat (priority booking, released back to the public at the beginning of the month)
- Signed edition of Jen’s “Mongolia in Texas”
- Purple brick with your name on it, built into the path on the property
- Slow Tech Tour 2-hr coaching session with Erzhena
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
This is the highest level contribution that will provide you exclusive peaks behind the scene in addition to all the perks mentioned in this campaign.
What you get
- Enjoy 1 weekend stay at the yurt retreat (priority booking, released back to the public at the beginning of the month)
- Signed edition of Jen’s “Mongolia in Texas”
- Purple brick with your name on it, built into the path on the property
- Slow Tech Tour 2-week Marco Polo coaching session with Erzhena
- Exclusive video updates via private Marco Polo group
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
Rewards
Any amount will go a long way.
We are a frugal bunch who understand the value of money, and anything you contribute will be used for the following things (in order of priority):
- Purchasing acreage for the property
- Building yurts
- Establishing utilities
- Construction for the venue / home / yurts
What you get
- A thank you email from us.
- For contributions over $1000 we’ll do a super special secret bonus perk to thank you for your generous contribution
- Access to behind the scenes development through Marco Polo app
“Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot,
Nothing is going to get better. It's not.”
― Dr. Seuss, "The Lorax"
Do you want to "speak for the trees"? This is your chance to do just that! Adopt a tree on our future property!
What you get:
- Photo of the tree from the property
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
With this reward, we will plant a bag of seeds from a native plant in your name (and try to do our best not to kill it, although if Erzhena's not-so-green-thumb is involved...)
But hey, that's why it's a bag and not a single seed ;)
What you'll get:
- Bag of seeds planted in your name
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
Do you like playful cats? Do you like lap cats? Do you like grumpy cats?
Whichever type of cat you like, or if you are more of a dog person, or a dragon person, this contribution will help us build a playful and fun cat house for our resident cats (Xena and Rey), so that they can greet and enjoy the outdoors and meet everyone who comes to visit us at the retreat!
What you get
- Virtual meet and greet with our resident cats, wolf-like huskies, and the co-founders (Jen and Erzhena) with a special appearance from Demi the dragon
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
Do you wish to get reminded of peace and nature every time you use your devices? Look no further, this is the perk for you! Make it your background image on your desktop, home screen, maybe even your smart TV :)
What you get
- Set of digital images of “Mongolia in Texas” - for mobile, desktop, and tablet
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
This project is only possible because of community support: you are our path. The path that led us here, and where we are going.
When you make this contribution, you become a part of this journey, and you will be able to see it on the property, and walk along every one else who helped!
What you get
-
Brick with your name or your loved ones' name as part of the brick path on the property
-
Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
If you're tired of wearing the same abercrombie outfit as everyone else, then this is the perk for you! We've partnered with our friend and local artist Michelle Fernandes to create a secret shirt funique for our FundWomen Campaign. It's sure to help you stand out in a crowd (yes, even if you're shorter than Jen's 5'2")
What you get
- Secret edition cat and wolf t-shirt in your desired size made by a local magical artist
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
This reward is sponsored by Krish - creator of Playne the Meditation Game.
I know this retreat will take a bit to build, but you don't have to wait to experience meditation in the wild! You can even do it at your computer!
(There is now a version of this game in VR, which is really cool!)
This reward will help us sponsor cool conscious technology (software and hardware) that can help you reconnect with your values instead of taking you away from them!
What you get
- Playne game key for desktop
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts
Do you love art? Do you love supporting female artists?
Well, with this perk you will not only be supporting our retreat, but also our resident artist and co-founder of Cat and Wolf retreat - Jennifer Meekel, who put her heart and soul into making the art for our campaign (yes, all the art you see in this campaign page was made by her).
What you get:
- Print of "Mongolia in Texas" painting signed and shipped to you by the artist and co-founder of the retreat Jennifer Meekel herself!
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime benefits and discounts
- A lifetime supply of sincere gratitude from both our co-founders
This perk is generously sponsored by our dear friend BreOutside (https://breoutside.com/)
Do you love practicing yoga when you get away on vacation, but find it annoying to not be able to bring all the equipment with you? Fear not, at Cat and Wolf retreat, we are building a yoga equipment library which will be outfitted with everything you will need: yoga mats, bolsters, blocks,and straps!
What you get:
- Sponsor yoga equipment library
- Get 45 minute virtual individual or group hatha or restorative yoga from BreOutside
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
Do you feel like technology takes you further away from your values? Do you wish that it helped you be the version of you that your grandmother or Beyonce or *insert someone you look up to* would admire?
Our resident slow tech coach and co-founder Erzhena will help you identify strategies to improve your relationship with technology.
What you get
- Virtual 2 hours coaching session that dives into 3-part slow tech ethos and strategies
- PDF of slow tech activity tracker
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
This perk is generously sponsored by our dear friend Yuri Grevtsev, qigong and tai chi teacher with over 30 years of experience in the industry.
Our retreat’s focus is to help you connect with nature. And while the gorgeous lands we are looking at are already providing us with both Wood and Earth elements, we need help to bring the other 3 elements into our retreat: FIRE (firepit), WATER (fountains, ponds and other water features on the property), METAL (singing bowls for sound bath).
What you get
- 1 hour QiGong group class by Qigong4Wellness
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
This perk is generously sponsored by our dear friend Aline Hanle, who is the visionary and founder behind the Cosmic Compass Board game.
Do you love board games? We do too! That's why we are working on a board game library!
This contribution is going to help us purchase games for the library, so that everyone who visits the retreat can enjoy the low tech entertainment!
What you get
- Copy of Cosmic Compass sent to you directly from Aline Handle - the creator
- Send us the name of your favorite board game, and we will make sure to include it in the board game collection
-
Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
This perk is generously sponsored by our dear friend Aline Hanle, who is the visionary and founder behind the Cosmic Compass Board game.
We at Cat and Wolf retreat are huge board game fans, and we would like to offer an extensive collection of board games at the retreat, ranging from euro-style and party games to games that focus on connecting with yourself and people in your life on a deeper level. Cosmic Compass is one of those games!
What you get
- Sponsor board game library
- Copy of the Cosmic Compass game
- Facilitated virtual session with the creator herself - Aline Hanle
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
If you have been on the journey of improving your relationship, this expedition will be just what you need: slow tech coach Erzhena will work with you over Marco Polo (asynchronous video based communication platform) over the course of 2 weeks to help work on, evaluate, and solidify strategies and help them integrate into your daily life.
What you get
- 1 hour virtual coaching session to develop a slow tech expedition plan tailored to your need
- 2 weeks unlimited slow tech coaching over Marco Polo
- PDF of slow tech activity tracker
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
We are a veteran-owned business and want to give back to this important community. What’s that, you do too? Well, perfect, this perk should be right up your alley.
What you get
- Enjoy a 1-night stay and we’ll donate 1 night to a disabled veteran
- Digital edition of Jen’s “Mongolia in Texas” image
This reward is generously brought to you from OwnTrail (https://owntrail.com/)!
Help us build walkable trails that will let you explore the land in all its wooded beauty! And build your own visual journey along the way to help you communicate your unique path in life!
What you get:
- Group journey mapping workshop by OwnTrail for everyone who contributes at this level
- Trail marker named after you or someone you love
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime benefits and discounts
We love yurts for their sustainability, efficient structure, and their ability to bring people together within its circular shape. It also allows us to bring Buryat and Mongolian cultures in an authentic way that can help educate people about sustainable living.
Interior design of the yurts will be curated by Erzhena (co-founder and a proud Buryat woman who wants to honor her ancestors’ traditions), which will be sustainably and ethically sourced from Buryat and Mongolian craftsmen.
What you get
- Sponsor a yurt build
- 3 night stay at the yurt / year (for 3 years) starting late 2023
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
One of our biggest expenses is the purchasing and preparing the land for building the yurts. We have a commitment to honoring the land we are building on, and this contribution will help us invest in purchasing, developing and maintaining the land.
What you get
- Sponsor 1 acre of land
- Brick with your name on it
- 1 weekend stay at the yurt (priority booking, released back to the public at the beginning of the month)
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
Besides the yurt construction, we are planning to build communal areas that will allow us to bring people together and develop the wolf pack mentality: from communal kitchen, pavilion for workshops, living spaces, this contribution will help us greatly to get to the grand vision for this retreat.
We would love for you to be a part of that, and get great rewards along the way!
What you get
- Sponsor construction on the land
- Brick with your name on it
- 1 weekend stay at the yurt (priority booking, released back to the public at the beginning of the month)
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
Think of this level as becoming the junior producer of our retreat. If you want to make a real dent in our mission, this perk’s got your name all over it.
What you get
- Enjoy 1 weekend stay at the yurt retreat (priority booking, released back to the public at the beginning of the month)
- Signed edition of Jen’s “Mongolia in Texas”
- Purple brick with your name on it, built into the path on the property
- Slow Tech Tour 2-hr coaching session with Erzhena
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way
This is the highest level contribution that will provide you exclusive peaks behind the scene in addition to all the perks mentioned in this campaign.
What you get
- Enjoy 1 weekend stay at the yurt retreat (priority booking, released back to the public at the beginning of the month)
- Signed edition of Jen’s “Mongolia in Texas”
- Purple brick with your name on it, built into the path on the property
- Slow Tech Tour 2-week Marco Polo coaching session with Erzhena
- Exclusive video updates via private Marco Polo group
- Cat and Wolf loyalty card with lifetime discounts sent your way