Four Springs: The Fire and Beyond

The Lodge at Four Springs burned to the ground on the evening of Memorial Day, May 30. We are struggling with shock and disbelief, as well as possible multiple levels of meaning. What could this mean for Four Springs? What could this mean for the Guild?

We are including here some photos, as well as statements from Tim Locke, the Executive Director of Four Springs Seminars.

You are welcome to go to Four Springs in order to see the burn area for yourselves.
Please call Tim Locke (888 428 5189) ahead of time to let him know when you will arrive.

 Letter from Tim Locke (June 6, 2011):

Dear Friends,

It has been a very sad week with a devastating fire at Four Springs.  I want to give you an update on what we know about what happened and where we are now.

I received a call from a young neighbor at about 9 p.m. last Monday night, who told me in tears that the lodge was in flames and the fire department was there in force.  When I arrived from Napa an hour later, firefighters from the Cal Fire station in Middletown were still putting out pockets of flame, and it was clear the lodge had been completely destroyed.  I met with a fire captain at 7 the following morning, and throughout the day was with her and an adjuster sent by the insurance company, as well as a restoration specialist that was called in.  On Wednesday I met with a representative from Fire Cause Analysis.

It was the opinion of the fire captain and the insurance adjuster, and independently confirmed by the fire cause analyst, that the fire began in the garbage cage under the rear deck.  Through interviews with the group who had been there for the Memorial Day weekend, it was determined that a guest had place ashes in the garbage container that were thought to be cool.  While everything appeared in order as the group left, it took several hours for the fire to ignite, long after everyone had gone.  By the time the fire was seen and the fire department was called at about 8:15, the building was completely engulfed in flames.  The fire crew was able to keep the fire from spreading to any other structures or to the woods, except for a few trees within about 15 feet of the lodge.  The great oak appears to be all right.  No one was hurt, and the two kittens who joined the staff in October are OK.

Needless to say, it is a tremendous shock to be present at the site, and it is a loss that in many ways cannot be measured. 

It appears that the insurance policy is a good one, though the claim is quite complex and will take several months to negotiate.  The Four Springs board met at the lodge on Saturday, and we were glad to be joined for a time by Hal Childs, who had called to visit the site.  We are planning to rebuild, though work cannot begin until the budget is established by the settlement with the insurance company.  In the meantime, we are looking into a mobile or temporary kitchen and a dining facility to serve those groups who are still planning to come, beginning in mid-July.

There are no words that feel adequate in the face of what has occurred.  There are two synchronicities I would like to share.  One is that during the night a firefighter found a small metal sculpture of the Fool among the ashes, and placed it on the dirt landing of the front steps going up to the deck.  It was a sculpture I hadn’t seen before, and didn’t know was in the basement.  I discovered it on the landing in the morning, and it seemed like there had been a visitation from the trickster.  Another is that Howard Lewis, whom I have not met, but who came to Four Springs over many years, sent a package to Four Springs with a lovely note and framed copies of three photos he keeps displayed in his home, one of each of the founders.  It was mailed on the day after the fire, obviously without his knowledge of what had occurred.  He sent a similar package to Steve Toby, the president of the Guild board.

I have been moved by the many messages of support that have come by phone, in person, by email and through Facebook.  It is clear that we are going to need help of many kinds as we move through the time of rebuilding and into the future that lies beyond that process.  It begins with practical items like getting power lines reconnected to the Founders Cabins and pool, getting sheets for the 30 beds that are in the cabins, and beginning to stock a kitchen.  At the meeting on Saturday, the board established the Four Springs Phoenix Fund to augment the help that will come from the insurance company. 

Several Guild members have called and asked to visit, and this is welcome, as would be a Guild gathering or a joint event of some kind.  It will likely be several weeks before the debris will be removed.  Calls, inquiries and prayers are welcome, too.  News will be posted at the Four Springs website, www.foursprings.org .  We were so enthused at the work weekend just a few weeks ago to renovate the spring near the hidden pool, and we were delighted to see fresh water flowing there.  It seems a terrible opening that this fire has created with its destruction, yet one that I hope will bring forth our best in ways we could not have imagined.

Best to each of  you --
Tim

Timothy Locke, Ph.D.
Four Springs
14598 Sheveland Road
Middletown, CA 95461
www.foursprings.org
888 428 5189

Article in  Lake County Record Bee (Lakeport, CA), June 3, 2011:

MIDDLETOWN -- A bit of Lake County history was brought down in ashes on Monday evening because of improper disposal of fire pit ashes. The fire destroyed the main lodge and kitchen facility at Four Springs Retreat, which has been known as a sacred place of retreat for many since the mid-50s.

According to CAL FIRE, mid-day on Monday, fire pit ashes were improperly disposed of by placing the ashes into a plastic bag, then placing the plastic bag into a cardboard box next to the structure.

 "It's a tremendous shame. It's a real loss, not just for us but for Lake County, too," Pastor Timothy Locke, PhD, Four Springs Seminars executive director, said. "It's been a well-known location for therapists, pastors and psychologists, especially in the 70s. People came from all over the world. It's been a significant place in Lake County for a long time." 

Locke commended the efforts of firefighters, who responded from Southlake County Fire Protection District and CAL FIRE in Middletown. "The firefighters were terrific," he said. "They were able to prevent the fire from spreading to neighboring buildings and the forest around the lodge. They were out there all night."

Originally built in the 1920s by the Sheveland family; the retreat, which is nestled in the hills south of Middletown on Sheveland Road, was purchased in 1955 by Elizabeth Boyden Howes. Howes purchased the property to support the work of the Guild for Psychological Studies in San Francisco, a group she founded with colleagues Sheila Moon and Luella Sibbald.

Locke said the women, working initially with psychologist Fritz Kunkel and later with C.G. Jung, combined their interest in depth psychology with their individual interests in the life and teachings of Jesus, religious studies, mythology and experiential learning.

 "The first guild seminars were held in 1956 and they are still being held. All the founders have passed away and now the retreat is operated by a nonprofit called Four Springs Seminars," Lock said. "We are still interested in the focus of the founders. We are still teaching religion and psychology. We focus primarily on the teachings of Jesus and other religious wisdom."

 Locke said between 1956 and 1985, 15 cabins were built and a library was added to the property's amenities. The library is dedicated to Claude Petty, who Locke said was a student of Henry Sharman. Sharman, he said, was a well-known scholar of the New Testament, who developed a method of group discussion guided by study questions designed to empower individual discovery. "This is a real historic place," he said.

 Locke said efforts are under way to begin the rebuilding process with a plan in place to accommodate guests in the interim. "We're not going to quit," he said. "We are putting up temporary kitchen and dining facilities for the groups that will be coming this summer and then we will be rebuilding the lodge."

 Locke expects the rebuild to result in significant expense. He said any and all donations to the Four Springs Seminars nonprofit would be greatly appreciated. For donation information, contact Locke at 246-1326; donations may also be made through the website at www.foursprings.org.