Hello, folks!

I’m still giddy from the residual energetic currents of last Sunday’s amazing Greater Chicagoland Pagan Pride experience! I was blown away by the incredibly warm reception and feedback I received in response to Circle of Rodu’s opening ritual and on my talk on Slavic Native Faith. Additionally, I completely sold out of my entire case of copies of my Llewellyn book, Slava! Slavic Paganism and Dual-Faith Folk Ways!

Wow! Thank you all so, so much!

I was also very happy to have met some musical entertainers based in southeast Wisconsin. They expressed the hope that they can be included in upcoming in-person Circle of Rodu public events, as they’re a short drive from Lake County, Illinois. I hope they’re reading this! 🙂

If you’ve got a copy of Slava!, you’ll note that Part IV of the book includes a variety of seasonal rituals.

The one titled “Ancestor Devotional on Veles’ Night” is the one I want to host publicly. It’s a wintertime ritual, and Winter begins in November with the season of the ancestors rushing in in full force.

Hence I’m trying to gauge interest as hosting this ritual publicly, indoors in case of inclement weather, would require me to rent a venue in Lake County, about an hour’s drive north from downtown Chicago and accessible by Metra rail lines.

The date I’m thinking of is Sunday, November 8, 2026. That is actually the Feast of Mitrovdan, THE traditional date in the Serbian calendar held sacred as the Start of Winter. And on an important mundane note, Sundays are my day off at work!

Veles’ Night is November 11, so we would be gathering during that energetic current as it’s building. That is always my preference when it comes to thinking of timing my rituals!

One Pagan-friendly place owned by crafters that I toured today in downtown Antioch, Illinois, has a small event space available with the kind of long dining table I’d need. They said they could accommodate just 13 folks, max. I smiled to myself, thinking, traditional witches’ coven roll call? Nice touch!

And thus, this post: Are there a dozen folks who could commit to participating in this ritual and committing $5-10 dollars, sliding scale, to help me defray the rental costs?

I won’t book it if no one expresses an interest in joining me. After all, if it’s just me honoring my own dead, I go to the cemetery where my family is buried and honor / feed them there per Serbian custom.

But I wanted to have a true Pan-Slavic cultural experience as well as invite folks from all backgrounds and traditions who take ancestor reverence seriously, even if they’re not familiar with Slavic Deities such as Veles and Mara, Whom are chiefly honored in this rite.

I’m thinking the meal would be a potluck affair. I could contribute the vegetarian stew as our communal starter plus breads, for example. I would want to learn of anyone’s dietary restrictions or preferences beforehand.

We would have a separate table set up as a communal ancestor altar, and guests would be encouraged to bring photos or small mementoes of their beloved dead (pets included!).

A second possible venue I have in mind is a restaurant / banquet hall in Winthrop Harbor, Illinois, which is literally on the border with Kenosha County, Wisconsin, but is also easily accessible from downtown Chicago by the Metra commuter rail line (Winthrop Harbor’s Metra station is the tiniest and the cutest in all of Chicagoland!).

If we go with the banquet hall / private dining room, we could certainly accommodate more people, but it’s definitely going to cost more for a three-hour rental than the tiny zone at the crafting studio in Antioch, Illinois.

If you love this idea of this public ancestor devotional ritual and you want to help me make it happen, please RSVP by emailing me at annatheserbianwitch@circleofrodu.com.

I’d love to have your responses by October 20.

Then we can see which venue would be a better fit.

Hvala puno! / Thank you very much!

Happy start of October to you all!