Dear Purple Path Village,

Whether you are joining us as an attendee, speaker, panelist, workshop facilitator, vendor, supporter, sponsor, volunteer, or community partner, I want to personally thank you for saying YES to the Purple Path Annual Healing Retreat®, happening Saturday, October 24, 2026, from 10:00 AM–6:00 PM at the Tinley Park Convention Center. Oh! I suggest adding the date and time to your calendar. I know at my BIG age that if it is not on my calendar, it is not happening! Haha!

Our theme this year is: From Healing to Legacy: Activating the Village.

And with everything happening around us, those words feel even more urgent.

Over the last several days, our community has once again been forced to confront the reality of racism after Black students were subjected to racist taunts, slurs, and dehumanizing behavior at a local high school sporting event.

For some, this may feel like an isolated incident.

For many of us, it is not.

It is another reminder of why we cannot simply talk about trauma after something happens, issue statements, wait for the outrage to quiet down, and then return to business as usual.

We need deeper conversations. We need spaces where truth can be told. We need accountability. We need restoration. We need Radical Solidarity (thanks for sharing this term, Jamair C. Atkins). And we need a Village willing to move beyond reacting to harm toward creating the conditions where people can actually heal.

This is exactly why the Annual Healing Retreat exists.

FROM TRAUMA → HEALING → LEGACY

Trauma cannot be our final destination.

Neither can awareness.

Neither can outrage.

We have to be willing to ask harder questions about what happens after harm.

How do we care for those who were harmed?

How do we create spaces where Black children and other marginalized young people know they belong and are protected?

How do we move communities from performative responses toward measurable action?

How do we equip educators, parents, mental health professionals, community leaders, organizations, and everyday people with tools to respond differently?

And most importantly:

What are we building so the next generation inherits something different?

That is the conversation we are bringing into October 24.

Our retreat is intentionally intergenerational and multidisciplinary because healing cannot belong to one profession, one organization, one school, or one person.

We need all of us.

BEFORE OCTOBER 24 — JOIN THE VIRTUAL ACTIVATIONS

You do not have to wait until retreat day to enter the conversation.

Our remaining Pre-Retreat Virtual Activations are open to everyone, and I strongly encourage you to join us.

These gatherings give us an opportunity to begin building relationships, having restorative conversations, and preparing ourselves for the deeper work we will experience together in October.

Our remaining activation dates are:

September 17 | September 29 | October 6 | October 15 | October 20

All activations begin at 7:00 PM CT via Zoom.

YOUR RETREAT EXPERIENCE

October 24 is being intentionally designed as an experience—not simply another conference.

Throughout the day, you will have opportunities to learn, reflect, connect, shop, participate, breathe, and activate through experiences including the Restorative Trauma Walk, Village Marketplace, Family Wellness Village, Purple Pages Reading Nook, Purple Path Peace Place, Women’s Wellness Suite, workshops, panel conversations, community activations, and more.

Continental breakfast and lunch are included, and eligible participants will also have access to 6 CEUs/CPDUs.

We are bringing together people from different professions, generations, communities, and lived experiences because restoration requires all of us.

RETREAT T-SHIRTS

Our official retreat shirt carries the message:

“Healing Is Not the Destination. Legacy Is.”

If you want your shirt for retreat day, please place your order in advance. Adult and youth sizes are available through the Purple Path website.

TRAVELING (((((or not))))) TO JOIN US?

If you are coming from outside the immediate area—or simply want to make a weekend out of the experience—we have secured hotel accommodations at the EVEN Hotel Tinley Park, connected to the Tinley Park Convention Center.

All hotel booking information, including our booking code and reservation details, is available directly on the Annual Healing Retreat page of our website.

Please remember that the discounted hotel block has a October 2, 2026 cutoff, so I encourage you to make your arrangements early.

ONE VILLAGE. ONE PURPOSE.

To our speakers and panelists: thank you for trusting us with your wisdom, expertise, and lived experiences.

To our vendors: thank you for bringing your businesses, products, services, and creativity into our Village.

To our sponsors and supporters: thank you for investing in a vision that understands healing as community infrastructure—not a luxury.

And to every attendee: thank you for choosing to show up.

October 24 cannot solve racism.

One retreat cannot undo generations of trauma.

But we can create spaces where people stop pretending the harm does not exist.

We can tell the truth.

We can listen differently.

We can practice accountability.

We can build relationships across difference.

We can restore humanity.

And then we can take what we have learned back into our homes, schools, organizations, workplaces, and communities.

That is how healing becomes activation. That is how activation becomes legacy.

I cannot wait to experience this Village with you.

With Radical Love & Gratitude,

Dr. Shaniqua Jones Founder & CEO, Purple Path by Dr. J Restorative Justice Practitioner Expert Human Restoration Strategist™

A Journey Not Shared is a Soul Not Healed.

💜 ONE-STOP RETREAT LINKS

PURPLE PATH ANNUAL HEALING RETREAT® Registration, retreat information, agenda updates & hotel booking information: https://purplepathbydrj.com/annual-healing-retreat/

PRE-RETREAT VIRTUAL ACTIVATIONS Register once to join our remaining virtual conversations: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/ks71c3DMSiC8W0zsrnECuA

OFFICIAL 2026 RETREAT T-SHIRT “Healing Is Not the Destination. Legacy Is.” https://purplepathbydrj.com/shop/purple-path-healing-retreat-legacy-t-shirt-healing-is-not-the-destination-legacy-is/