Phoenix Project at Wintergreen

Jan 25, 2023

On the morning of December 29, the straw bale sleeping cabin at Wintergreen Studios, nicknamed the Beach House, burned to the ground.

The firefighters labeled the cause as "indeterminate."

Thankfully, no one was injured.

“We will hold dear the many memories associated with that special place,” Wintergreen posted on social media

Once the site is cleard, they plan to rebuild. The Beach House wasn't insured, so they are starting from the ground up.

Donations, in the form of cash and in-kind gifts, started coming in from supporters of the not-for profit Wintergreen Studios Retreat, as soon as word got out about the fire.

The Phoenix project, an apt name for the effort to rebuild the cabin, is a response to the outpouring of support that has come in.

Wintergreen staff have gone over the site carefully to find anything of value that can be re-used.

They found some broken pieces of granite that formed the windowsill that

And they also found a tiny tile of a salamander that was embedded in the cordwood in the corner of the building. “We find it extremely hopeful that the salamander symbolizes rebirth, passion, immortality, and the ability to withstand flames,” said Wintergreen staff in a post.

Through the Canada Helps web portal that helps raise funds for charitable corporations across Canada, a fundraising initiative for the Beach House rebuild has been launched. It can be accessed by pasting the following into web browser:

https://www.canadahelps.org/en/pages/phoenix-project/

All donations will receive a charitable tax receipt. For further information about Wintergreen Studios and the programming available on site and virtually, go to Wintergreenstudios.com