September Rolls Around.

We have quite a few events happening this month! Friday the 19th from 3-7 The Blair Farm and Bakery will be hosting a pop-up shop. They will have all kinds of goodies for sale. Stop in and pick up some homemade bread and beyond! Saturday the 20th we are hosting a meet and greet for House of Representatives candidate Cheri Koochel. Come in and ask questions and see if she is the Representative for you! The Ottawa County Arts and Humanities Council is having events all month. Check out their Facebook Page Here for their full schedule and signing up. It’s also our last Final Friday for the year. We are so happy we could share these events with the community. If you are interested in renting our venue for your event please check out our calendar and see if your date is open!

New Mural and Upcoming Events

We are so happy with how our new mural came out. It’s been titled “Western Night Lights”, It adds a new dimension to our patio space. We have really been grateful for how may days the weather has been nice enough for activities.

Our next upcoming Final Friday flyer

July Final Friday, Mural Unveiling!

This month for Final Friday we are introducing vendor tables to the mix. If you have produce or products to sell come set up shop for an evening in downtown Minneapolis. We are having a by donation hot dog feed, bring your own beverage this month! Karen has been working hard to get the mural on the patio finished and it will be ready for unveiling this month. Come out, play some games, listen to some music, do some local shopping and have a great evening!

Final Friday Announcement!

We are excited to announce Final Fridays! These events are open to everyone! What better way to create and get to know community than food, drinks, and fun! For this month we will be having Prairie Fire Catering with their food truck, Gypsy Pony Mobile Bar for drinks, Oak Grove Radio providing Vinyl Dj on the patio. We will have games and Art inside! We are looking forward to hosting these events every final Friday through September.

Busy with doing!

It’s been a busy April so far. We started the Sacred Women’s Circle and weekly meditation classes. Tux fittings for prom and rentals for graduation. But something fun that’s happening this weekend. The Ottawa County Arts & Humanities council is hosting Homegrown Voices: A poetry and music celebration! Saturday April 19th at 7:00 pm.

Where is the Village? Rediscovering the Power of Women’s Circles

There was a time when women naturally gathered—on porches, in kitchens, at quilting bees, and after church services. We showed up for each other, not because it was scheduled or organized, but because it was simply part of life. We listened, shared, laughed, and sometimes just sat together in the quiet, knowing we weren’t alone. Somewhere along the way, that kind of connection became harder to find. Life got busier, distractions multiplied, and little by little, the spaces where women once gathered began to disappear. But the need for them never did.

Women’s circle is a way to bring that back—not as something new, but as something deeply familiar. It’s a space where we can talk honestly, without judgment or the need to have it all figured out. It’s a place where wisdom is passed down through shared storytelling and experiences. In Sacred Circle we take time to take care of ourselves, we ground into moments of breathing and feeling. So often we are in charge of taking care of everyone else first and being too busy to check in with what we need or want. This group’s goal is to give that time and energy to ourselves. Where we can speak, without interruption. Be heard with open arms. A place where support is freely given, and no one has to carry their burdens alone.

Our main goal with Sacred Women’s Circle is for women to have time to take care of their inner space in the company of supportive women. We can learn from and lean into each other. We are going to be meeting on Wednesday evenings at 7:00 pm. If you would like to join send us a text or an email (our contact information is found in the Contact Us section) and we will make sure your spot is saved.

Two New Classes and Monthly Events

We are so excited to introduce two new opportunities.

Meditation & Mindfulness will be a weekly class featuring guided meditations. We will work through a variety of ways to meditate and bring mindfulness into your week. This is a great mid-week reset. We will provide floor cushions and chair options. This class will start March 26th at 5:45-6:30 pm every Wednesday. The cost is $5 per class. If you would like to attend but are unable to pay please contact us and ask about our scholarship options.

Sacred Circle for Women is a gathering where women come together in a supportive, intentional space to share, reflect, and connect on a deeper level. Imagine it as a blend between a supportive community meeting and a reflective, soulful retreat.

This circle group will focus on genuine connection, celebrate individual and collective strengths, and empower participants through shared wisdom and support. Utilizing guided meditations, storytelling, journaling, in a non-judgmental environment we can express freely, share personal experiences, and feel heard. Even if you haven’t participated in a spiritual or community gathering before, the circle is welcoming to all women who are curious about exploring their inner selves and building meaningful connections.

Details:
📅 Date: Starting April 2nd
🕖 Time:Wednesdays at 7:00 pm
📍 Location: 214 W 2nd St, Minneapolis KS

Bring your authentic self and come as you are. Let’s create a circle of love, empowerment, and transformation.
Spaces are limited – reserve your spot today! astoriacreativecommunity@gmail.com

Upcoming Classes & Events

I’m so excited to announce I have finally finished all the required course work to be able to start teaching meditation and mindfulness classes! This means once the weather gets a little warmer we can begin starting regular classes. These classes will be a way for all of us to connect deeper within ourselves and find time to slow down. I’ll be posting more information as spring gets closer.

We have also added a projector to our inventory and have some really fun community events planned for the spring and summer! We will be keeping everyone updated on our Facebook, flyers around town, and through here!

Upcoming Holiday Market

We are working on gathering artists, creators, makers, & crafters to participate in our 2nd annual Holiday Arts & Crafts Market. We love being able to connect our local creators with our local shoppers to give people a variety of shopping and gift options for the holidays. We are also participating in this years Gingerbread Festival. We will have children’s activities all day. From 10-12 Farm Bureau will be having Christmas Story and Craft Time. A free event for kids to come, listen to a story and make a fun craft. In the afternoon Choose Ottawa County is hosting Santa’s Workshop for kids to come and make a variety of Christmas crafts.

May Highlights and Upcoming Events!

I can’t express how cool May ended up being. Oak Grove Radio used the space for the first State Of Punk event. This show was so much fun. It was an open-to-the-public show that also served as a secondary live recording studio. These artists brought so much energy to the space. Their music wall all different kinds of punk and all kinds of fantastic! Oak Grove Radio is a wonderful addition to our little town and if you would like to hear more out of them tune your FM dial to 98.5 or listen online at www.oakgroveradio.com 

We had a little bit of downtime at the end of the month and took the opportunity to spruce up the inside a little bit. We know that our floors had a whole lot of character to them and as much as we wanted to refinish them into their original glory that is just not much of an option with the level of damage, they had to them in their last 110 years. We made the decision to go ahead and paint them as a temporary upgrade until we can have new flooring put in. It’s a great improvement! Our next project coming up is to finally get the front façade painted and getting some bigger signage. If you see me up on a ladder, give me a wave!

Upcoming Events-

June 7th Ottawa County Arts & Humanities Pinot and Pallet group painting event

June 10th Ottawa County Arts & Humanities Monthly Meeting 7pm

June 30th  Open Studio 2-5 pm

July 6th Electric Sandbox EDM Show

July 11th Start of the Youth Summer Art Progam. Visit their site for more information

July 20th The Ephinji’s Live Band- More Details to come