Directions to The Center at Westwoods:
- Rt.128/95 to Exit 16B Westwood/Rt.109.
- Follow Rt. 109 for about 1.5 miles.
- Take left at light after Fire Station onto Gay St. (at sign for Appleseeds).
- Pass sign for Islington then go about 1/4 to 1/2 mile watching street numbers on mailboxes.
- 590 driveway is on left across from G Farm Rd. See light by 590 mailbox.
(If you reach Buckboard Lane on your right you have gone too far.)
When driveway ends go left or right to park. - Meditation Hall is a separate building to the left as you face the main house. Walk up the ramp to enter.
To Pre-Register for an event
email Tonia at EastCoastChant[at]gmail.com. When you register, please include your full name, mailing address and phone number.
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About The Center at Westwoods
What is Westwoods?
Who built this place? Why? Where does the money come from? Is this someone's home?
We get many of these questions daily at the Center, even from our frequent visitors and program participants. Such an exquisite space, open to the public, is often met with curiosity, skepticism, and wonder. Hopefully in telling our story here, your questions will be answered and we can answer some of the questions we would like asked of us.
From growing crops to flooding the wetlands for a cranberry bog, the land upon which the Center is situated was a working farm owned by various families for generations. As small farms receded from the Boston area, the family that owned this property decided to sell. A philanthropic couple was made aware of the property going for sale, and to prevent development of the wetlands and fields, they bought the land to protect it. The Center at Westwoods sits in front of over 70 acres of wetland that reaches back to route 128 and to the sides of the Lowell Woods conservation area.
With a group of friends in tow, the couple came to the property to visit and walk around. The land, although visually beautiful, also held something else that was felt by the group walking on the property. A sense of peace and healing power was felt and the idea of an organization that could use this space for a healing, community center was seeded.
The Center at Westwoods is a registered 501(c)(3), non-profit organization that is the fortunate tenant of this space. Even though the building looks like a house, it is used expressly for the Center's day-use programs. Combining homey comfort, with group spaces, we distinguish ourselves from being a conference center negotiating with every incoming program to present the most comfortable space possible for the work to be done.
While begun in conjunction with the original funders of the conservation project, The Center at Westwoods' existence depends upon donations and the help of volunteers in order to continue serving the community. We encourage the community to enjoy the space, but we also encourage you to give back in support of this valuable resource. We accept donations and are also developing our volunteer program.
Our programs help to maintain the Center's daily operating costs, but in order to grow and develop with the needs of our community in mind, we rely upon donations for support. Donations are accepted at any time during the year and for information on giving please call or email us. To inquire about volunteer program, call Ellen at 781-329-0711 or email info@centeratwestwoods.com.
Service is the first step along the spiritual path.... service is [also] the highest spiritual discipline. Prayer and meditation, or knowledge of scripture and Vedanta (holy scriptures of India), cannot help you reach the goal as quickly as service can. Service has a double effect: it extinguishes the ego and gives bliss. -Sai Baba