Renee’s gift of raw food was literally a life saving experience. Sometimes in life things may seem so bleak and desperate that it’s hard to find hope or reason to go on. As grace would have it though, even at these darkest moments, there is an opportunity to surrender and find hope that can be so transformational that it can alter a person’s life and outlook forever. Renee Ainlay, the host of the April workshop in Missouri, is a living and thriving example of what can happen when this transformation takes place.

Renee, not long ago, was sent home by a team of medical experts to die. She was suffering from a long list of illnesses and diseases which left her so debilitated that there seemed to be no way out of her crisis. Over $1 Million dollars in medical bills and 14 years of treatment had bought her no relief or even solid explanations as to what was happening to her body. This was an extremely painful period in Renee’s life and to this day, it brings up a lot of emotion when she talks about it. She confides that when things were bad, they were really, really bad.

Fortunately, surrounding this wonderful woman was a family of support. Her husband, John, and their 6 children did everything they could to help Renee as she went through this period. By divine intervention they were introduced to the principles of a raw food diet and the more they learned about it, the more it all began to make perfect sense to them. John explains that when we get out of the way of polluting our bodies with additives, preservatives and give our systems raw living food in the right balance and proportions, our bodies can start doing what they are intended to do, which is to heal, release toxins, and to support a person to thrive. Once the body is receiving the nutrition that it is intended to receive, everything changes including one’s mental outlook and clarity.

Renee was so inspired by what she learned that she dedicated herself to changing her approach to food and began to see food as the healing medicine that it is. Her detoxification process was intense but by this point she was so filled with hope that she stuck with it and the results were miraculous. In short time she had energy again, was able to get out of bed, and start taking part in life in a way that she thought she never would again.

Renee attributes a large part of her health transformation to the amazing healing powers of raw coconut cream. This cream, which one ingests, acts as an internal cleanser, ridding the system of toxins while replenishing the body with vital vitamins and antioxidants. In the beginning of her healing when she had no extra energy, John would make coconut cream by hand for her.

As time went on and friends of theirs began to see the transformation in Renee’s health, word quickly spread of the healing powers of the raw coconut cream. Orders began trickling in at first but in short time they had to move from their converted garage manufacturing facility to a small warehouse and today, they are moving into a 10,000 square foot facility to keep up with the demand.

They are now co-packing the product in 4 different flavors through a company with the Brand Name “Coconut Secret” and it will be offered in over 2,000 stores, including Whole Foods sometime in late June. Until then you can go to www.originallivingcoconut.com to purchase the regular coconut cream product and have it shipped to your front door.

Renee has also become a master in the field of raw food preparation creating dozens of her own recipes ranging from breakfast to dessert and everything in between. She prepares raw food for clients and even ships full meals to most locations in the US for those that live a distance from their Missouri ranch. Renee shares that she feels amazing now. In the last 6 years she has spent at the very most $3,000 on her health. The physical healing she received was simply through the use of food as medicine and the raw coconut cream.

Today, John and Renee are living their dream. They have bought a 200 acre piece of land in Missouri and are full steam ahead creating a wellness center which will incorporate everything that Renee and John learned from her health struggles and triumphs over the last 14 years. They have just begun construction on their dairy parlor and have 30 cows that will provide the raw milk to create a wide array of dairy products. Their home will be completed around April 1^st. They are setting up a 35’ tall, 1,800 square foot dome with space to grow 70,000 plants vertically. This dome will also incorporate an aquaponic system which will yield about 10,000 pounds of tilapia per year. Their ranch is being modeled around permaculture principles under the guidance of a top permaculturist.

At the epicenter of their vision for the ranch is a wellness retreat center that will provide a full network of support for guests to come and learn how to heal their bodies through the use of food. This center will offer consulting services as well as an extensive array of classes, exercises and support to ensure the highest level of success as one makes the shift to eating optimally. There will be cabins (some straw bale and some domes) for guests to stay in during their time on the ranch. It will be a healing/learning center unlike any other.  I for one hope to be one of the very first people to get to go once they open up in Fall of 2012.

John and Renee are really excited about straw bale construction and in hosting the Missouri workshop. They feel like straw bale is a vital part of their vision for a wellness center that incorporates principles of permaculture and healing. John was a building contractor for the majority of his adult life but didn’t know about the existence of straw bale until a year ago. Now he’s sold on the concept and plans to have several straw bale structures on the ranch. The house we will be building during the workshop will be for one of their sons. To their absolute delight, all of their children have joined them in the creation of the wellness center and are in the process of building homes on the ranch.

When I asked John how he sees their lives now, John stated emphatically that he has no question that they are living the lives that they are intended to live. They feel completely guided and supported through this major process and endeavor. Anytime there is an obstacle, the solution shows up effortlessly. Their enthusiasm for life, their vision, and for everything they are creating is contagious. I so enjoyed my time speaking with them that I was ready to jump on a plane and go join them in their vision. This workshop is going to be a knock out one and it will be a privilege to help them.

For information about Renee and John’s products please visit:

http://www.originallivingcoconut.com/

p.s. Although the menu during the workshop will be comprised primarily of cooked foods, there will be the opportunity to try some of Renee’s delicious raw foods as well.

If you’re interested in really learning how to build with bales and you want to have perhaps one of the best weeks of your life in the process, then come to one of our workshops. We ALWAYS have a good time and you will gain the confidence to build your own house too. CLICK HERE to see what workshop locations and dates we have available this year!