January 5, 2006 This page is dedicated to the memory of Ken Windwalker, one of the WRCF's founding members. In the coming months, we (the members of the WRCF) hope to fill this page with pictures and memories of Ken. As a member of the WRCF and it's current President, I am forever grateful to Ken Windwalker for all the work he did in creating this beloved community. I did not get to meet him before his death and hope that through this project, myself and the other members of the WRCF community can get to know more about the man whom we owe so much. Blessings Rev. Kymberly
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Remembering Ken Windwalker By Saira One Back in the days when Ken and I first started Crystal Moon, we were doing ritual one night. We wanted to do some chanting/singing (of course, Ken was always up for chanting and singing), but we couldn’t decide what we wanted to do. There were no fans, no A/C, no moving air, but right in the middle of our discussion a paper suddenly flew off a shelf in the room. We watched as it spiraled and turned in the air and it suddenly fell flat in the middle of our Circle. We looked at the paper and it was the words for Air Moves Us! Give you two guesses which song we started singing!! Two Ken had a real thing for Yoda, from Star Wars. He found him to be a metaphorical source for mystical insights and he frequently “talked” to him in meditation. Personally, I wasn’t that keen on Yoda – I was more of an Obi Wan fan, but I wasn’t in the practice of inviting Obi Wan into meditation. One evening, Ken and I went into meditation during Circle. We both suddenly came out of it with a look of surprise on our faces and quickly wrote down what we had seen. (We always did that first so we could compare notes later). Ken said, “I just had the weirdest experience – I went to my usual place and instead of seeing Yoda, Obi Wan was sitting there. I asked him where Yoda was and he said, “Oh, Yoda’s busy right now – he’s giving advice to your friend.” I couldn’t believe it! I went into meditation, went to my usual place and Yoda was sitting there. I said to him, “You know, if a Star Wars character is going to be in my meditation, I’m surprised that it isn’t Obi Wan.” Yoda replied, “Obi Wan is busy right now – he’s having a chat with your friend.” Three Everyone knows that Ken was a prankster. He LOVED to play jokes on people. One night Ken, Hank, my mother and I went out to dinner. Unfortunately, I always end up with something from the dinner on the front of my dress. Well, this night – even though I had pasta – I didn’t get so much as one drop on my clothing. Ken noticed and mentioned it when we left the restaurant. Now this needs a bit of explanation – I used to wear my watch on my right hand with the watch face on my inner wrist. This meant that I had to completely turn my wrist to look at the watch. Well, after dinner, we went back to Ken and Hank’s house and we were engaged in a pretty deep discussion. As I walked in the door, Ken asked me the time. I completely forgot that I was holding a can of Diet Coke, went to look at my watch and spilled the can of Coke down the front of my dress. I thought he was going to die laughing! I wish I could hear him laughing now. Four As everyone who knew him knows, Ken was a word person. He loved to learn new words – even in other languages – and interject them in conversation. The problem was, he didn’t always get the words exactly right. He and Hank went on a Yiddish colloquialisms kick so they could entertain my mother. It was during this time that I was packing up to move. I made a comment about having too much stuff and Ken said something to the effect of, “Yeah, you have katshkes all over the place!” What he meant was: I had chachkas (knickknacks) all over the place! A katshke is a duck!
Ken Windwalker met Saira at Spiral Circle many years ago. They were both Wiccan and dreamed of having a community with which to share their spirituality and devotion. In 1991, they put an ad in the paper and offered the first six-month class on Wicca, which they called 'Crystal Moon Circle'... classes included everything from history to traditions, herbalism, divination, meditation, chanting, how to throw a great sabbat (smile), etc. A group of dedicated pagans drove over from Melbourne every week for half a year. I was in the second of those six-month classes, and by September of 1992 - Ken, Saira, and other members of the small community submitted paperwork to form the Wiccan Religious Cooperative of Florida, Inc. This would provide a bit more security and opportunity for pagans to acquire meeting rooms and allow for an official sort of expansion of our community. One mundane memory about Ken is that he worked at the 7-11 on Mills, near Colonial. Friends of mine from the Unitarian Church called it the Gay 7-11, as they loved to pop in and visit with Ken... they always received such a warm welcome and greeting (they were gay too, so it is not as offensive as it sounds). Ken had a great sense of humor and whether telling a 'bad' joke or flirting with you (regardless of gender), he would always leave you smiling (or at least rolling your eyes - ha!). I also recall that when Ken came to class, he would bring his staff (more like a walking stick) which he carried in a sheath over his shoulder, and also over his shoulder was a sheath of sodas (one stacked upon another, so that it looked like he was carrying an insulated bow). He would always share. I remember Ken as a warm and loving human being. He loved sharing his wisdom and experience. He especially loved to chant and we always had song practice, especially before a Sabbat. It didn't matter that he was tone deaf... I would give anything to hear him sing today. In the beginning, I struggled with meditation. When I closed my eyes I saw nothing but my own mundane memories/thoughts (like reconciling my checkbook). I was discouraged to hear of the visions my classmates enjoyed. Not only did Ken offer great advice on finding the vision... he would periodically call me at home to offer one on one sessions at his home, which he shared with his partner Hank. Today, I enjoy closing my eyes and going to magickal places in my mind... and I know that it is the spirit of Ken Windwalker that guides me. Ken passed into the Summerland (or Valhalla - he followed the Nordic path) on August 26, 1996, at the young age of 32. I left his bedside only hours before he passed. It was such a sad day. His memorial was a lovely service that brought together a large portion of the pagan community for mourning, and there was lots of chanting, personal letters and poems that were written just for Ken were shared, and we cried to the tune of Amazing Grace on the bagpipes. Ten years have passed, but I swear I can still hear his voice on the wind on those days when it seems to blow through you. I hope this helps paint even a vague picture of a wacky, wonderful, loving guy who continues to bless our community. Bright blessings, Branwyn of Artemis
