Our life-changing mission

Mother Bear Sanctuary

Mother Bear Sanctuary was dreamed into being as a welcoming healing space where people can reconnect to themselves, each other, and the Earth

Through our nonprofit work, we offer free ecotherapy and trauma-healing retreats for veterans, human trafficking survivors, and other underserved populations. We understand that nature and animals are not simply a pleasant backdrop to healing; they are active participants in the process. Research in both trauma scholarship and ecopsychology demonstrates that the natural world can help regulate the nervous system, foster presence, and support healing in safe and gentle ways. Our ecotherapy retreats are grounded in both science and lived experience and are led by Barbra White.

Mother Bear Sanctuary is also home to the unique offerings of Dave and Barbra White each bringing more than 30 years of experience in their respective fields.

Dave Tuscany, founder of Through the Fire Institute, offers Men’s Deep Reset Retreats, fire walks, professional coaching, business therapy coaching, and transformational experiences designed to help men reconnect with purpose, accountability, integrity, and self-love. Dave often says that his mission is to help make the world safer “one man at a time.” His work shows men how to consciously connect, release sabotaging habits, and ignite change in one’s life.

Barbra WhiteCrow M.A, Di.hom, Ph.D candidate- offers Nature Mysticism Training-Retreats, the Self-Acceptance Process Certification, ecotherapy, transpersonal education, spiritual teaching, and individual healing sessions. Her work integrates transpersonal psychology, ecopsychology, metaphysics, and body based nervous system healing. She helps people become students to their own divinity, nature and lives. Her six books are gathered wisdom from over 40,000 session hours and trainings.

Together we honor the wholeness and dignity of all people. We welcome all faiths, nationalities, gender expressions, and sexual orientations. We honor each person’s understanding of the Sacred. We recognize the sovereignty and inherent worth of both human and more-than-human life. We acknowledge the ongoing impacts of colonialism, systemic racism, big agriculture, and the historical genocide of Indigenous peoples. We strive to create spaces rooted in respect, reciprocity with nature, inclusion, and safety.

We believe in the power of community. When people remember their innate worth and reconnect with themselves, each other, and the living Earth, they heal intergenerational trauma, reconnect back to purpose and organiclly begin serving from a place of abundance, compassion, and authenticity.

All of our work is deeply trauma-informed, respecting agency, consent, individual needs, and nervous system pacing. Dave and Barbra have extensive training in trauma-informed care, equity, inclusion, polyvagal-informed practices, and co-regulation.

With love, service, and respect,

Barbra White
Founder, Mother Bear Sanctuary

Dave Tuscany
Through the Fire Institute

We provide free day retreats for survivors of domestic abuse, human trafficking, and veterans living with PTSD and complex trauma. Every donation directly supports these healing programs and the care of the animals who serve as co-facilitators in the healing process.

In addition to our free survivor programs, we offer paid retreats, workshops, and community events focused on:

• Radical Self-Love
• Deep Ecology and Ecopsychology
• Women’s Empowerment
• Men’s Healing and Personal Growth
• Trauma-Sensitive Yoga
• Chi Gong
• Equine-Assisted Healing
• Nervous System Regulation and Polyvagal-Informed Practices
• Nature-Based Healing and Ecotherapy

At Mother Bear Sanctuary, we believe healing happens through connection—to self, community, animals, and the living Earth. Our mission is simple: we rescue animals that help rescue people. 💚🐻

All donations support free survivor retreats and the ongoing care of our animal family.

Mother Bear Retreat Center

Our for-profit arm, Mother Bear Retreat Center, works to accomplish our mission though sessions and retreats that focus on radical self acceptance, empowerment, conscious communication, embodiment, inner peace and having nourishing relationships with the human and natural world.

_{Barbra White, Express Joy LLC, Dave Tuscany, Into Through Fire LLC, and Mother Bear Sanctuary do not diagnose or treat disease. Barbra J. White or Dave Tuscany are not medical doctors, psychologists, chiropractors. Sessions are not intended to replace current medical treatment, therapy, or religious practice. Barbra White and Dave Tuscany field is Personal Empowerment, Self-Awareness and Self Love. The nature of the work is Spirituality/Transpersonal/Deep Ecology based. Please do not substitute any mental health care, with these services. These sessions, workshops, and retreats will be treated as Personal Development, Self-Love, Ecological Well-Being and Spiritual Evolution only.}