Create Karma, a community wellness initiative designed to inspire healthy living, will host its inaugural leadership training, a 200-hour program which will be held over eight weekends at the Southern Market Center, in Lancaster. The dates of the training weekends are: March 18 to 20; April 8 to 10; April 29 to May 1; May 20 to 22; June 17 to 19; July 15 to 17; August 5 to 7; and August 26 to 28.

The training is based on a pay-it-forward model, with the aim of empowering graduates to bring the lessons learned back to their communities. Create Karma is offering two scholarships to the training program, as well as the opportunity for community organizations to sponsor a trainee in part or in full.

“Leadership happens through taking action,” says Create Karma founder Sarah Gingrich, an internationally-known wellness teacher and community facilitator. “This program will first teach participants how to lead healthier, more self-aware lives and then enable them to teach the tools of self-inquiry, meditation and mindful movement.”

This training is geared toward empowering staff from local organizations, nursing homes, churches, shelters and those who serve at-risk populations to expand their skills to bring mindfulness and creative movement techniques to the populations they serve. Participants who complete the full training will also have the opportunity to become certified as a yoga teacher through the Yoga Alliance for a separate fee.

In addition to leadership trainings, Create Karma also hosts community play-oriented events in the Lancaster area, like the annual Playcation and Pop-Up Play-Ups in efforts to inspire healthy movement accessible to all ability levels and inclusive to all communities.

Cost: $1,008, with a commitment to serve at least 20 hours giving back to a community by initiating healthy living programs or leading movement or meditation classes. For more information on how to register or how to sponsor a scholarship, visit CreateKarma.today.