OUR MISSION:
Our work is grounded in the empowerment of young folx through multi-generational community-building and healing centering the ethic of liberation through holistic health, trauma-conscious care, sharing BIPOC/QTBIPOC ancestral wisdom and building collective power for social change and racial, gender and sexual equity.
OUR VISION:
We believe that we heal in community and that our shared stories and liberative act of practicing our wellness are ways in which we create new futures for ourselves and each other. In the Ayni Healing Collective space we center trauma healing through multigenerational community engagement, holistic health practices, creative expressions and storytelling, as well as ancestral reclamation and the integration of the wisdoms of our peoples who came before us - centering the wisdoms of BIPOC/QTBIPOC lineages.
OUR NAME:
Ayni (eye-knee) is a Quechua word, coming from the Andean mountain cultural-spiritual lineages which means “today for you, tomorrow for me,” and is the core sacred principle of the tradition. It is a way of explaining the interconnectedness of all beings - including humans, nature and the spiritual relationship we share between us that asks us to give and receive in equal measure, to keep the balance in ourselves and the universe as a whole.
OUR THEORY OF CHANGE:
Our theory of change is grounding in the belief that through healing in community (through holistic healthcare, creative and expressive arts, multigenerational community engagement, and the integration of healing justice which connects the work of social change with (personal/collective wellness) we are able to empower ourselves and our communities and heal together. We believe the power for this healing is deeply rooted in our ancestral lineages - where we carry not just intergenerational trauma, but the keys to intergenerational resilience. We believe through creating community space for people to connect to the wisdoms of our past, our present, ourselves and our fellow community members we build more equitable community and become more empowered to be mobilizers for social change and deeper forms of collective liberation.
INSPIRED BY:
Healing Justice + Healing Justice Lineages
Resmaa Menakam + Embodied Anti-Racism/Somatic Abolitionism
Traditional + Ancestral Medicine from Across the Diasporas
Lineages of Integral + Complementary Energy Medicine
…among many others in the lineages of BIPOC/QTBIPOC healing and liberation movements.
Our Shared Community Ethos
Our Team
While we are a collective project of and with and in community with other healers and changemakers in our community, our work is in partnership with Kota Alliance and is organized by our Co-Coordinators who help to guide the programming and content we offer up to support our community in Harlem, the South Bronx & beyond.
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DeenaLynn Dockery-Collins, MAOM, LMT, RMT, CYT
PROJECT CO-COORDINATOR, she/her
DeenaLynn is a Graduate of The New York College of Health Professions Master of Science in Traditional Chinese Medicine; Acupuncturist, Herbalist, Licensed Massage Therapist, Certified Reiki Master/Teacher, Eastern Nutritionist, Certified Hatha Yoga Teacher, Qigong Practitioner and Spiritual Consultant. As a healer, her focus is on developing curricula and strong partnerships that support optimum health and well-being for individual and organizations. Her work is deeply centered around serving disenfranchised young adults and the BIPOC/LGBTQIA+ community. She builds relationships with her clients and patients to help them achieve their wellness goals and highest desires. She is a passionate, and dedicated health professional with more than 15 years of experience as a multidisciplinary healer, and trauma healing facilitator. She practices an integral, East/West approach to optimum wellness and believe joyful living depends bringing in to balance the 4 pillars of health: Body, Mind, Spirit, and Emotions. Learn more about DeenaLynn here. Contact DeenaLynn at aynihealingcollective@gmail.com
"After many years of my own personal inner examination, I arrived at a place of knowing that my purpose is grounded in healing myself, my family, and my community at large."
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Teresa Mateus, MSW, E-RYT 200
PROJECT CO-COORDINATOR, she/her/ella
Teresa brings her background as a Clinical Social Worker, with her Masters in Clinical Social Work from New York University into the work of the Ayni Healing Collective. She was trained in Sivananda Yoga in 2009 and has practiced integrative mental health care as a trauma therapist for nearly 20 years, integrating mind-body-spirit care including somatic practices, creative arts, equine-facilitated psychotherapy, and mindfulness for healing trauma. She has also studied for years in the Andean Indigenous healer tradition of the Q’eros tribes from the high mountains above Cusco, Peru.
She was awarded the Outstanding Recent Alumna Award from NYU in 2008 for Yoga & Creative Arts Therapies for Combat Veterans and Survivors of Military Sexual Trauma. She is also an author, speaker and teacher on a variety of topics at the intersections of spirituality, activism and healing as well as the creator of national training programs for healers and spiritual care providers that was both trauma-consteresa@kota-alliance.orgcious and BIPOC/QTBIPOC-centering.
Teresa was born in Bogota, Colombia and loves to return to the Andes whenever she can, back to her tierra sagrada (sacred land) of her birthplace. Learn more about Teresa at www.teresamateus.com. Contact Teresa at teresa@kota-alliance.org.
Our Fellows
Ayni Healing Collective is hosting our inaugural Fellowship Cohort this year which is a year-long program to support young/evolving BIPOC/QTBIPOC healers looking to serve their communities. This program offers holistic and BIPOC-centered training curriculum, practicum experience in the community, and peer community space and support - to empower our healers for our present and futures living in and caring for BIPOC communities. This year’s cohort centers Harlem & South Bronx area practitioners, but we are also working to build a distributed learning program to launch in 2025 to support healers throughout the USA.
Meet the 2024 Ayni Healing Collective Fellows
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Sadae "Dae" Williams
2024 FELLOW
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Rosemary Colinet
2024 FELLOW
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Leozard Simon
2024 FELLOW
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Jasmine Tucker
2024 FELLOW
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Yokasta Tineo, LMT
2024 FELLOW
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Wynesia Cortes
2024 FELLOW
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Abdoul Lee
2024 FELLOW
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Jahlisa Forcheney
2024 FELLOW
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Jax Duran
2024 FELLOW
Our Programs
Check back regularly for additions and expansion of our programming!
Monthly Community Celebration + Potluck Dinners
Join us at the Kota Alliance community space (43 St. Nicholas Place) in the historic neighborhood of Sugar Hill in West Harlem for our monthly celebrations on a theme that relates to the different seasons where we lift up the richness of our communities, centering wisdoms and voices from BIPOC community and the Harlem area. We will be joined by healers and creatives in the community to support the themes of the month and share in collective practices for healing as well as rituals from our various cultural traditions. Please feel free to bring a side dish, non-alcoholic beverage or dessert if you would like to share with the community. All are welcome to attend this free potluck offering in in the heart of Harlem every 3rd Wednesday of the month.
See upcoming event details below for any updates and changes.
Monthly Digital Reiki Circles
Join the Ayni Healing Collective at Kota Alliance for our monthly Digital Reiki Circles. This event will be offered on the first Wednesday of each month and is a space in the beginning of your month and the middle of your week to set time to take care of yourself. Each circle will be facilitated by a trained Reiki practitioner/facilitator and will center on a theme of the month. Energy medicine is a powerful tool of many cultures and traditions around the world, and for many Indigenous peoples throughout time. We offer this space for anyone who wants to join, as you are, from wherever you are - let's share in community space online together.
What is Reiki? Reiki is a gentle non-invasive, but powerful bio-field form of holistic healing. Reiki supports the body, mind, spirit and emotions in relieving stress, reducing pain, increasing immunity, and enhancing well-being. It is an alternative complimentary energy medicine that is safe for use with traditional medicine treatments.
“Sending you the magic n love I recvd from seeing n being with the Blue of the sky today and the healing vibes from last night's Reiki Circle sponsored by the Ayni Collective.” Rosemary Colinet
See upcoming event details below for any updates and changes.
Additional Events + Programs Upcoming:
In addition to our monthly events we will be offering some of the following gatherings during the upcoming 2024-2025 calendar year:
Gatherings in the community around special themes
Urban Day Retreats open to local community with a focus on BIPOC/QTBIPOC folks and will be facilitated by a variety of BIPOC healers, educators and creatives from the community.
Fellowship opportunities for local and distance healers opening again in Fall 2024/Winter 2025.
Partnership with local community events and community-based organizations to create specialized holistic health + wellness programming
See upcoming event details below for any updates and changes
Queer Harlem Renaissance Walk + Community Potluck Lunch, Saturday, March 9th, 11:00am-2:00 p.m.
Meeting at Kota Alliance, 43 St. Nicholas Place, New York, NY
Monthly Reiki Circle, Wednesday, March 6, 6:30 - 8:30 p.m.
Digital/Online Offering
Monthly Community Celebration + Potluck, Wednesday, March 20th, 6:00 - 8:00 p.m.
Kota Alliance Community Space, 43 St. Nicholas Place,
New York, NY
“It takes a village to raise a young human and it takes young humans to have full and robust multigenerational communities. We all need each other and the AYNI of our lives is all of us giving and receiving healing, support, and wisdom. We each play a part for a whole and healthy community.”
— a reflection from DeenaLynn Dockery-Collins + Teresa Mateus