Early Sunday December 4, 2022, Bishop Gene Savoy Jr. and Reverend Canon Robert Petrovich will be traveling to Los Barriles, Mexico to attend a very important conference which they have been asked to attend. Reverend Deacon Humberto Garcia will be traveling across Mexico from his home in Chihuahua to join them at the conference.

The East Cape Futures Forum runs December 5-8, 2022 in Los Barriles, Mexico a short distance from the property recently acquired on the coast of the Gulf of California. The forum is an in-person gathering to catalyze discussion, connection, and co-learning about new, more regenerative and sustainable development models applicable to the East Cape region of Baja California Sur. Gene and Humberto will be attending as board members of the Mexican branch of Cosolargy International.

A general report will appear in the Communique following the return of Gene and Robert to the United States.

Click here to read or download a PDF brochure on the conference in English. 

Humberto Garcia takes an early morning dip this May in the Gulf of California.

The following interview took place on May 25, 2022.

Communique Editor: When did you and Humberto Garcia make your trip this year to Baja Sur, Mexico.

Gene: The dates we went are May 10-16, 2022.

Communique Editor: And when did you begin speaking with Humberto about residing on the property?

Gene: Well, we’ve been talking about that for many years really. But a few things got in the way. First of all, Covid set us back. Then we were waiting for Humberto to retire from his teaching position. And so it’s become possible now.

Communique Editor: When he came to visit for a month, that was part of the initial plan, to have him go down there with you and check the place out, and make arrangements with him. What things happened down there to help him get settled?

Gene: Well, remember that he went down with me when I first went down on my first trip. That was in 2015. So he joined me there at that time. But we didn’t have the property at that time. We were just checking the place out. So this has been quite a process actually.

Communique Editor: After those seven years had passed, we’ve owned the property now for –

Gene: – Five years.

Communique Editor: During this trip, did you introduce him to anyone in particular that would help him?

Andrew Tuck speaks with Humberto Garcia at the Earthblocks manufacturing site.

Gene: He met with everybody we work with down there. He met Andrew Tuck, who of course is our main person there; and he’s the earth block manufacturer. He’s also the designer and the engineer, and he has a vision for what we want to do. Andrew also has the connections with the Legacy group. That is important, because that is the environmental group that wants to do something very unique on that side of the Baja Peninsula.

Communique Editor: We have an article on what they are doing in the Communique already, which we will link to: 2019 Baja California Sur Impact Expedition.

Gene: And you might link to their website also (http://legacyworksgroup.com/) because they have a good writeup on what they are doing in Baja on their web site. And while we were there in Mexico, I found out that Humberto’s first degree was in environmental science.

Communique Editor: He has a PhD in environmental science as well.

Gene: I didn’t know this until we were there. And Andrew started talking with Humberto about the Legacy Group. So Andrew and Humberto were able to talk very technically about the science of it all. We are in a very unique position because we are, basically, at the center of the zone that they are trying to create as this environmentally protected area. So the place that we chose in El Cardonal is actually turning out to be something we didn’t even realize when we bought the place. It’s a pretty perfect location.

Humberto on the property in front of the Cardon.

Communique Editor: And the idea is for Humberto to move down there as soon as possible, possibly by the end of the year, I understand.

Gene: That would be great.

Communique Editor: And while he’s down there, … Let me put it this way, I guess the plan now for the property has been modified. It’s going to take certain stages.

Gene: Right. We are going to start with the first stage, which is building a residence for Humberto, which will also have a guest room and an office so that he can do the Cosolargy and the Jamilian University work. He’s going to be the perfect person to be there, not only because it’s his country but because of his background with environmental science. He’s going to be a perfect representative for us with the Legacy people and all of the scientists that are there, the environmentalists.

Communique Editor: And while he’s there on the property, I understand that he is going to be doing some developing of the property. I understand there is also talk of a garden and fruit trees and things like that.

Gene: Right.

Communique Editor: I understand that the initial plan for development includes the house for Humberto, but also the infrastructure for something more. Is that right?

Gene: Yes. We don’t really know exactly what that is at this point, but we are going to be putting in … Remember, we already have water and electricity to the property. So that’s already there. The first step is to put in the septic system, which we want to make sure can accommodate up to four structures. What those will be at this point in time we don’t know.

Communique Editor: And all of that probably will create an environment that we will then build within. And so the placement of all of these things will be –

Gene: We’ll know more next month when Andrew comes up with a new plan. And he needs about a month to do that. The other interesting thing is that when Humberto met with Andrew, I introduced him to Kevin O’Leary, who was our real estate person. He’s very well connected down there because he lives there. So that was a good connection for him to make. We are in the process of getting the beach concession.

Communique Editor: What is that?

Gene: In Mexico you cannot own the beach, but you can limit who can do things on the beach in front of your property with a beach concession. You have to own it, which means you get a license from the federal government so that other people can’t do certain things in front of your property. Kevin has been very adamant that we need to get that, and so it seems like a good time. Right now Humberto also met with our accountant, and he met Cal and Janice Abel, who sold us the property and who have offered to pay for the septic infrastructure.

Cal Abel points out the location of the first building development on the property.

Communique Editor: Wow! So we are getting help.

Gene: Yeah. We are getting help from the people who sold us the property. And they live in Cardonal.

Communique Editor: Oh?

Gene: So they are right there.

Communique Editor: We are going to be working with the property as a Center for Cosolargy in Latin America. Could it also work as a local center in relation to some aspect of the Legacy program?

Gene: Well, I think so. Again, I haven’t met with them. There is supposed to be a big conference in December in Los Barriles that we’re invited to attend. So we’ll be going to that. We’ll know more in December.

Communique Editor: Okay. I’ll look forward to hearing about that.

Gene: But I think they are looking for a place to put a learning center, which we might offer.

Communique Editor: Well, that sounds great.

Gary Buchanan and Gene Savoy Jr at Fortaleza Kuelap, March 3, 2020

The Community is getting involved again in Peru after a lapse of several years. Following extensive legal entanglements over the nature of the Andean Explorers Foundation, The Community regained control over the unique research and valuable archives in 2019. Then COVID hit. Three years ago, the editor of the Community Communique sat down with Bishop Gene Savoy Jr. to discuss his recent visits to Peru in January and November 2018 to explore possibilities for the future work of The Community there and his vision for the future.

The interview was recorded February 11, 2019. The ending commentary was written May 24, 2022.

ED: Let’s start our discussion with an explanation of the name “Gene Savoy Xplorations.”

GSJr: In June 2018 we formed a DBA [fictitious firm name] of the Church, which is “Gene Savoy Xplorations” with an “X.” This will be the beginning of recreating our work in Peru, as the Andean Explorers Foundation as an entity is no longer part of the Church. The formation of “Gene Savoy Xplorations” as a part of The Community will also ensure that we never have the kind of problem again that we have had with incorporating the Andean Explorers Foundation, because this entity will be part of the Church and not a separate corporation subject to outside manipulation, as the Andean Explorers Foundation proved to be.

ED: And you went down to Peru a few months ago?

GSJr: I went in January of 2018 and November of 2018.

ED: And you had a plan at that time?

GSJr: Yes. The plan in January was to see what the climate was for us getting involved, and what the interest was, and, also, to see how Chachapoyas had changed. We had heard that it has changed quite significantly. And I had gotten reports that the government is spending a lot of money in Amazonas because they are very concerned with the number of people visiting Machu Picchu, and so they want to limit the number of tourists there and expand into other areas.

Pedestrian walkway in Chachapoyas, Amazonas, Peru

That means they have to open up additional archaeological sites, which makes sense.

Restoration work underway at Kuelap Fortress

The next major site is Kuelap, and that’s why a magnificent cable car system going up there has been built.

New cable car tramway with old mule trail below

This is the area where we spent many, many decades working. The government is spending a great deal of money there, as I said, which interested me because we had thoughts back in the old days, in the 1990s, of how we could take advantage of the archaeological sites that my father had discovered, and how we could capitalize on that. We were letting the whole world know about these places – these archaeological sites – and where they were, but then other people were coming in and reaping the benefits of what we had discovered. And that’s fine, but we should also be a part of that. Maybe thirty years ago wasn’t the right time. But now definitely is. In the last twenty years, the Peruvian government has built national road systems that didn’t exist before. There are daily flights from Lima to Chachapoyas, which you didn’t have before. The townspeople have spent a lot of money in Chachapoyas itself, beautifying their city. It really is quite different from what it used to be when I was first there.

ED: Can you describe the way it was in the early 1990s, and the way it is now?

GSJr: Well, it was kind of like being in the old west in a way. There were horses and mules and the occasional pickup truck. People were coming in from the countryside, the campesinos [peasant farmers]. And in the best hotel in town, for example, you didn’t have private bathrooms. There was a communal bathroom. You didn’t have hot water. You showered in cold water. There was one TV in the whole town. That was a big deal. It belonged to a guy who owned a restaurant on the plaza. And everyone in town would come and watch through the doors and the windows what was on the TV because that was very novel. It’s totally different now. You have internet service. You have hotels that have private bathrooms. You have hot water. They’ve renovated a lot of the old homes with courtyards for restaurants, coffee shops and wine bars.

Ismael Seoane, Martin Chumbe and Eduardo Morocho at a coffee shop in Chachapyas, Amazonas, Peru

It’s just a totally different scenario. They actually have a fleet of taxis. It’s changed quite a bit. That cable car system is really phenomenal. I recommend it to anybody, if they are there. You have to take the cable car system up to Kuelap.

ED: What was it like to get from Chachapoyas to Kuelap before?

GSJr: From Chachapoyas you would take a truck to the town of Tingo, which was about an hour or an hour-and-a-half drive back in those days because they didn’t have paved roads. All of the roads are paved now.

New national road, Amazonas, Peru

Now it’s about forty-five minutes to get to Tingo by car. And then, in the old days, you would have to take mules up the mountain, which would take you half a day to get up to the fortress. Now you do the whole trip up the mountain in twenty minutes via the cable cars.

New cable car crossing the mountain valley below

ED: Where did the idea come from to do explorations in the corporate sense rather than going in to do archaeological work?

GSJr: We are not limiting ourselves with what we can do with Gene Savoy Xplorations. Really, the first thing in January 2018 was to just feel things out. I was able to go to Chachapoyas. I was very, very impressed with what I saw. There is a lot of opportunity there, and the tourism is increasing. It has been doubling every year, for pretty much the last few years. According to government projections and other projections, that is only going to increase . For the most part, though, people are still not going into Gran Vilaya. The importance of Kuelap is that it was the fortress of the cities that lie beyond.

Gene Savoy Jr. at Kuelap examining Chachapoyan frieze

Kuelap basically protected what we now know as Gran Vilaya and Gran Sapasoa, which my father discovered. These were all Chachapoyan civilizations. They were conquered by the Incas. Nobody is really going beyond Kuelap. But now it is very easy to get to, for instance, Gran Vilaya. But the tourist agencies are not taking people in there yet. We believe that we can start taking people into Gran Vilaya. And that is the basis for us to establish our own tourist agency in Chachapoyas.

ED: And who is helping to put this all together?

GSJr: Right now , the main person that I work with in Peru is Ismael Seoane.

Gene Savoy Jr. and Ismael Seoane in the Swiss Hotel Lobby, Lima, Peru

He’s the third son of Pancho Seaone. [Francisco “Pancho” Seoane was the logistics officer for the Andean Explorers Foundation and worked with Gene Savoy, Sr. on his expeditions from 1984 until Pancho’s death in 1997.] Ismael is also the brother of Francisco and Alfonso Seoane. Ismael has connections. He’s the one who has connections with attorneys. These attorneys have connections with high profile people in the government, with the media and public relations firms and things like that. We are starting out with something very small. Also, his eldest brother, Francisco, is also helping in various ways. Francisco is now our archaeologist. He teaches at the University of Trujillo. He had been on a few of the expeditions when we were first there with my father. Francisco has agreed to be our official map maker and the liaison between us and the Institute of Culture. If we do anything in the future, we have to go through the Institute of Culture. So it’s very important for us to have an archaeologist that is our “archaeologist in-residence,” so to speak.

ED: Is there anyone else you have been working with in Peru?

GSJr: The other person who is helping a great deal is Martin Chumbe.

Gene Savoy Sr. and Martin Chumbe at Gran Vilaya, c. 1989

He was on expeditions when we were there in 1989 and the early 1990s. He is familiar with Gran Vilaya. He has also become very familiar with Gran Saposoa. He has connections in Chachapoyas. He is really the key to our connections in Chachapoyas. Ismael and Francisco have connections in Lima and Trujillo, but Martin is equally important because he knows everybody in Chachapoyas.

ED: And he now makes his living as a guide?

GSJr: Martin always had made his living as a guide, and he has become very prominent as a guide. Everybody knows him. Tourists seek him out to be their guide.

Gene Savoy Jr. with Martin Chumbe in expedition gear at the entrance to Gocta Falls, Amazonas, Peru

He’s very good, and he wants to work with us. He reveres my father and has pictures of him, and his relatives have copies of magazines going all the way back. They are very excited that this is now happening.

ED: You put all of this together last January?

GSJr: The initial trip was in January 2018. Other things were taking place between January and November, when I went again. By that time, we actually had a few more things in place. We were able to meet with the law firm of GLB Abogados.

Gary Buchanan, Ismael Seoane Peyon, and Gene Savoy Jr in Lima, Peru , March 7, 2020

The law firm is two brothers, and they are helping us right now putting together the legal structure for what we are going to do in Peru. At this point, the idea is to have two corporations, one for-profit and one non-profit. The reality is that people will help us get things started, but they eventually will want to be compensated for their efforts; and quite honestly, I think, so do we. If we were to start the tourist agency, which we would like to do, the plan for 2019 is to do three things: First of all, and as we speak, Martin is in the field for 75 days. What he is doing is mapping, further mapping. We have maps that Gary Buchanan did back in the old days. Martin has his own set of maps, which he has shared with us. What he is doing now is going to these sites, and, with a GPS, taking the elevations and the distances from one point to another along the trails. The idea is to approach the Peruvian government to designate a specific official route, which will be called the “Route of Savoy” or “The Savoy Route” or, in Spanish, “La Ruta de Savoy,” similar to the Inca Trail in concept. The Inca Trail is down in Cusco and Machu Picchu. If you want to backpack you can take a few days going on the Inca Trail, and you can walk to Machu Picchu. This would be the same kind of concept. La Ruta de Savoy is going to be based on all or most of the sites that my father discovered in the 1960’s. So basically, everything that was talked about in his book Antisuyo is going to be part of “La Ruta de Savoy.”

ED: Including Gran Vilaya?

GSJr: Gran Vilaya and Gran Sapasoa are going to be two other separate things. So we have some big ideas. For right now, Martin is in the field for 75 days, mapping, getting coordinates, distances, elevations. The idea is that ,with the travel agency, we’ll be able to take backpackers and campers and people like that. He needs to know, for instance, how long it takes to get from Point A to Point B, and from Point B to Point C, and so on. It takes so many days to do the whole route, but you need to set up designated places for people to camp, and this is where we need the government’s assistance to help us with investments. The government has set up some very interesting investment programs so that they can start developing these sites and then recoup their expenses with, obviously, the tourist dollars. That’s the first thing that is happening. Second, we will have an expedition. It will be kind of a scouting expedition in the summer, probably in July or August [of 2019], where we will go into Gran Saposoa with Francisco and start mapping Gran Sapasoa. It’s the place that hasn’t really been mapped. Gran Vilaya has been mapped many times. Martin will also verify certain distances and things so we can update our main map.

ED: So you are actually talking about doing three different routes?

GSJr: Yes, we are talking about three things: The Savoy Route, Gran Vilaya, and Gran Sapasoa. That’s what we’re concentrating on.

Scenic overlook, Amazonas, Peru

After the scouting expedition this year, when we have better information about places and distances and where to visit, then the idea is in 2020 to have a true expedition where we actually have some media exposure, and we will announce Gene Savoy Xplorations as being active in Peru. We’ll have the travel agency set up. And we already have people who have donated space right off the main square for the offices and all of that. So I think this is actually quite exciting. The way that I look at it is, if The Community is going to expand its ministry and at some point and some day have a presence in Peru, which I believe it should, it again has to have some basis for financial survival. So we have to set up some things that are going to bring in revenue. And, obviously, the work that we have done at the ruins can be the revenue stream that initially supports The Community’s establishment there. You have to do the one thing before the other. Otherwise, it doesn’t make any sense, in my mind.

ED: And as far as the expedition in 2020, do you want to say anything more?

GSJr: Not this point. The only people who know about it at this time are Ismael, Francisco, Martin, and I, and also Alfonso [Alfonso Seoane, also the brother of Ismael] who is helping us in Reno. The idea is that all of this will be kept quiet until we actually do something, because we want to make a big splash. But working with Ismael is easy for me because he is a businessman, so he understands that you have to take things slowly, and you have to plan things and do things properly, and make sure that everything at the back end is set up before you do anything on the front end. We don’t want to rush into things, and then have everything fall apart or be unorganized and sloppy. Then people get upset.

ED: Anything else you would like to add?

GSJr: That’s basically the whole idea, and I think that is all we really need to say right now, except that this isn’t a new idea for me. I had been talking about these ideas years ago, but certain people involved in the Andean Explorers Foundation didn’t see things my way and went off on their own doing their own thing which didn’t have anything to do with the mission of the Church. Gene Savoy Xplorations is already a legal entity here in Nevada. The attorneys have already reserved the name “Gene Savoy” in Peru on our behalf, so the whole idea is that once this comes out, who knows what’s going to happen? That’s why we are doing everything very meticulously on the back end before we make our next move. The Community has its roots in Peru and Mexico. Those places are significant to us. We shouldn’t forget that.

* * *

During the three years since the February 2019 interview with Bishop Gene, much has transpired in the world. Covid-19 was a major factor everywhere, including Peru, and The Community’s plans had to be put on hold. The planned 2020 expedition never happened. However, Gene was able to make one final trip with Gary Buchanan in February/March 2020 before Peru was locked down due to Covid and before Gary’s passing in October of that year.

Gary Buchanan with statue of Chabuca Granda, Barranco, Lima, March 7, 2020. PHOTO: Gene Savoy Jr.

Since that time, Gene Savoy Xplorations (GSX) has developed and trademarked an official logo.

Newly trademarked logo for Gene Savoy Xplorations

The logo emphasizes the importance of the feathered, or plumed, serpent and its representation of Quetzalcoatl in Mexico, Kukulkan in Mesoamerica, and Viracocha in Peru. Readers will remember that Gene Savoy, Sr. named the three vessels he sailed Feathered Serpent I, Feathered Serpent II, and Feathered Serpent III. The first craft, which was the totora reed raft he sailed in 1969 from Peru to Panama, was also referred to as the Kuviqu, for Kukulkan, Viracocha, Quetzalcoatl.

Another positive development has been the collaboration of Gene, Jr. with Mr. Gabriel Urza. Mr. Urza, originally from Reno, Nevada, is a Fulbright Scholar and currently on the faculty of Portland State University in Portland, Oregon. (For a profile of Gabriel Urza click here.)

Mr. Urza contacted Gene in early 2021 about the possibility of writing a full biography of Gene Savoy, Sr. from his childhood and youth, to his service in the United States Navy during World War II and thereafter entering Catholic seminary to become a priest, to his explorations and life in Peru, including with The Child Jamil, the System of Cosolargy, the founding of The Community and its relocation to Reno, as well as its activities from 1957 to the present. Gene has been working with Gabriel on the project over the past year-and-a-half.

An exciting development of their working together is the opportunity for Gene to travel next month, June 2022, to the legendary site of Vilcabamba, which Gene’s father discovered in 1964. The discovery catapulted Gene Sr. on to the world stage. Gabriel invited Gene to accompany him to the famed ruins of the Inca resistance to the Spanish conquest, which Gene gladly accepted. The son of the guide who accompanied the elder Savoy in 1964 will guide the younger Savoy and Gabriel Urza on their trek next month. It is anticipated to be an exciting meeting spanning two generations of explorers!

In May 2019 Bishop Gene Savoy Jr. and Reno Community members Noriko and Robert Roy traveled to Japan to visit members of the staff at the Community Center in Kurume, Fukuoka and Bishop Yukinori Matsushita at his Tokyo office. In September a follow-up training seminar was held at the Center in Reno, Nevada. The seminar grew from being for Japan Community members only to a global training seminar. This interview tells how it happened.

Communique Editor: What prompted the May trip to Japan initially? Why did you go at this time?

Gene: Well, the regular schedule is to go every two years. A small group from Reno generally goes every other May. This trip was already planned. Yuki and I talked about it while he was here in Reno during the 2018 Convocation. It was just time for me to go again.

Communique Editor: What was different about the trip this year compared to previous years?

Gene: Well, Noriko, as our intermediary between us here in the United States and the Community in Japan, started finding out there were some organizational problems people were having in Japan, and it was based on her concern that the trip turned into something like a reorganizing visit to delve into what their procedures were. And for me to help with this, it was necessary for me to meet with each member of the core group individually, one on one, to get a better understanding of who they are and what their talents are.

Communique Editor: What became the real purpose of the trip? What was the theme of the presentations you delivered?

Gene: Well, the trip followed a scheduled agenda during the first week when we were at the Center in Kurume, Fukuoka. The main two components, basically, were, first, my one-on-one interviews with every single one of the core group (Keiko Inoue, Eriko Ueno, Shoko Ohba, Yaeno Sanada, Miyuki Okayama, Koshu Kawahara) plus a select number of other people (Junko Yamamori, Yukako Kawaii, and Hiroko Soejima). Then, second, was the workshop, which was going through all of the materials that I took with me that dealt with the inquiry and enrollment process. And we had a General conversation about precepting. The final thing was another set of private meetings with the group in Tokyo.

Communique Editor: Because you did these presentations, and all of this extensive activity, how did that affect the attendance for our convocation in September?

Gene: Oh, I think it increased the number of people coming because of the promise of an operations seminar. The trip to Japan was phase one. Phase two was the training, the actual training, in September, and then, possibly, a followup trip sometime within the next six months after September. So it may be that some of us will be going back again in the Spring.

Communique Editor: What was the focus of the seminar?

Gene: Having a seminar to actually train people to do what we do here at the Center in Reno is, I think, very significant. We have never before authorized preceptors outside of the Reno Center. We’ve got recorded, on video and in transcripts, all of the components from handling inquiries to precepting students. So we now have a template of how we do these things.

Communique Editor: And so what are the expectations after the training that will be given during the Convocation this year?

Gene: That the staff at the Center in Kurume will basically run Cosolargy International in Japan the way we run things here in Reno, the way we use our systems and procedures, for the most part. It also became very clear that because they do no precepting, they lose a lot of students at a pretty rapid rate. That affects finances, which means that they struggle, and the core people are putting extra money in to keep things afloat.

Communique Editor: Any other developments you are looking forward to?

Gene: The September training seminar during Convocation was originally planned to be just for our Japanese staff members. But we had Paul Young from Australia, and Humberto Garcia from Mexico, and Shawn Smith from Africa who took part in the seminar. They will each be acting as some of our representatives around the world. So it has really become a much grander concept, I think. Truly international. This operations seminar is a new thing. We have never done this before, and it grew out of the trip to Japan, and has now expanded into something different again. It could be the beginning of future training seminars.

Communique Editor: That sounds great. Has anything like this ever been done before?

Gene: The training seminar was the first of its kind in our history. It originated with the trip to Japan. It was going to be just for Japanese, but the idea for the Convocation, in my mind, just expanded. This is the largest convocation we have had, I would say, in a couple of decades. So the training seminar grew from just focusing on the community in Japan to include also Mexico, Australia, and Africa.

Communique Editor: Who took part in the training seminar?

Gene: We have had an established center in Japan for ten years, and that is where the majority of the attendees came from. We are also preparing to create a center that will be in Mexico in the near future. And so we also had in attendance Humberto Garcia, a recently retired professor of physics who has been translating the Academy materials into Spanish over the past couple of years. He hopes to relocate there to our property in Southern Baja within the year. The idea is eventually to have him living on the property in Baja. We did something very similar when we acquired the Sanctuary property. We’ve bought all of this property, and now we have to assign somebody to be there to put down roots. Paul Young is now our official representative of Cosolargy in Australia. And he too was present for training. So was Shawn Smith from Cameroon, Africa.

Communique Editor: How are Community members reacting to this special training seminar? Are they excited?

Gene: I am not even sure that many of the Community members here in the Reno saw this seminar as being significant. They’re not in the meetings where people are struggling in Japan. The Community members in Japan are going through the same thing that we are: How to retain students? How do we better interact with them? How do we answer their questions as they go through the changes that people go through as they apply the System?

Communique Editor: Also, a lot of the people in Reno expected that we would be starting churches. That was the original plan, and now it looks like it is going to be centers of a different kind, not outright churches.

Gene: At least for now. Who knows how those things will work in the future, and even how the Community in Japan is expanding. Because now there is a group in Tokyo.

The initial design phase of the proposed development of the healing center and mission at El Cardonal, Baja Sur is underway.

The plan includes site plot maps, floor plans, elevation drawings and various building schematics – all towards developing the master plan. The design team  – Designer Andrew Tuck, Contractor Antonio Rochin, and Gene Savoy Jr. – have included in the designs ten guest rooms, four suites, eight apartments with kitchenettes, a restaurant and cantina, in addition to the spa and therapies building, reception, swimming pool, chapel and Jamilian University classrooms and office spaces. This design plan is the first phase of this ambitious project. 

Below are some of the drawings of what the design team has envisioned.

CLICK ON IMAGES TO ENLARGE

El Cardonal Retreat 1

El Cardonal Retreat 2

El Cardonal Retreat 3

El Cardonal Retreat 4

El Cardonal Retreat 5

El Cardonal Retreat 6

El Cardonal 7
Restaurant

El Cardonal Retreat 8

El Cardonal Retreat 9

El Cardonal Retreat 10
Restaurant

El Cardonal Retreat 11
Restaurant Details

El Cardonal cactus on Baja property.

The Church has recently made arrangements to purchase 2.5 acres of beachfront property in Baja California Sur, Mexico to establish a Cosolargy Center there. It is hoped that this center will serve as the headquarters for Cosolargy International in the Spanish-speaking world. The proposed name for the center there is “The Retreat at El Cardonal: Health, Healing & Wellness Center.”

The property is located in the beautiful area of El Cardonal, a 25-minute drive north of Los Barriles on the east coast of the peninsula on the Gulf of California (Sea of Cortez). A parcel map of the property shows three elongated beachfront lots on the east, one back lot to the west, and an L-shaped access easement. The property has been purchased and the Charter and the documents for the Mexico corporation have already been completed. (Links are provided below.)

View PDF of Mexican Incorporation papers

View text of Apostolic Charter for Cosolargy Internacional, A.C. (Mexico)

During the last week of April Bishop Gene Savoy Jr visited the area again with several purposes in mind: to 1) close the property land purchase; 2) meet with property owners adjacent to us; 3) meet with local and state government officials; 4) talk to the contractor and architect about design plans for the project; 5) meet with doctors in the area who may be able to help us with the concept of a retirement facility. Gene’s nineteen-year-old daughter Sonya accompanied him to get her citizenship and see the scope of the project with an eye to helping out sometime in the future.

While visiting the property, Gene took a number of photos of the property and of the views from the property in different directions. We are sharing some of these in the gallery below so that those of you who have not yet visited the property can get a sense of its location and environs.

VIEWS OF THE PROPERTY

View from the property to the west

Western view of the property

Northern view of the property

Northern view of the property

View from the property to the north

Sunrise view to the east

Eastern view of property

View from the property to the south

Satellite image of proposed site for healing center in Baja, Mexico PHOTO: Google Maps

On March 16, 2017 Bishop Gene Savoy Jr sent out an appeal for financial aid to go ahead with the project of building a wellness center and a center for Cosolargy International in Mexico. We are reprinting it here in an edited and abridged form to make it available to a wider readership:

It is my great honor and privilege to announce at this special time in the life of The Church and the history of our Community the establishment of The Church and Cosolargy International in Mexico and Latin America. As you know, we have formed a Mexican corporation named Cosolargy Internacional, A.C. The Community has also recently made a deposit on 2.3 acres of beachfront property in an area north of Los Barriles called El Cardonal in Baja California Sur, about a 45-minute drive northeast of the international airport at San Jose del Cabo. It is a beautiful spot, one on which will be the beginnings of a Cosolargy Center and what we are naming “The Retreat at El Cardonal – Health, Healing and Wellness Center.”

Before getting into the details of the purchase, which we need your assistance with, let me tell you a little bit about the importance of Mexico, in my eyes. First, as you may know, I was born in Mexico City in 1971 after my father and mother fled Peru in 1970 when the military takeover of the government and other situations forced them to leave. It was a devastating time for my father because he really was in love with Peru; but destiny had another plan for him and The Community.

It is an important part of our mission as Cosolargists and representatives of the Second Advent to spread the Teachings of Light and the System of Cosolargy to as many people and nations as possible. We know that our Teachings need to be presented in other languages besides English; and we also know that we must establish branch Communities throughout the world in specific places, particularly those nations which once were home to the ancient solar orders and high priesthoods of times past. This has already been accomplished in Japan. We must initially look to places where we have an advantage. Because of our Japanese members, we were able to establish the Cosolargy Institute of Japan in 2010, and because of my Mexican nationality, the Church has been able to incorporate Cosolargy Internacional in Mexico. Other places on the agenda at this time are Ireland and New Zealand. Canada has always been on my mind but nothing has developed there yet.

For the past twenty years, I have been looking for a spot in Mexico knowing that my birthright there is an asset to the Community, which it definitely is. Mexico holds a very special place in my heart as it was there that not only I was born, but where I was baptized. My father immersed me in the waters of the Pacific Ocean outside of Acapulco and later took me to the top of the Pyramid of the Sun at Teotihuacan, placing me as an infant on the top stone and dedicating me to the service of God and the Light.

Over many years, I traveled around Mexico whenever I could visiting various parts of the country: the central region, the Yucatan peninsula, the Pacific coast until I finally was introduced to southern Baja and the Sea of Cortez (Gulf of California). I loved it immediately. I could feel an intense energy there. And, the sun is radiant, soothing, and beautiful.

Last month a company of Community members joined me on a visit to Los Barriles to see and experience the area with the idea of purchasing property for The Community and Cosolargy International. The particular piece of property we were looking at initially did not work out for various reasons. However, the next day we were taken by our realtor to a place 25 minutes north of Los Barriles at El Cardonal. It seemed to all of us that this must be the place! Negotiating with the owner, an 80-year old businessman out of southern California, I was able to secure a deal.

The parcel map of the property shows three elongated beachfront lots, one back lot, and an L-shaped access easement. The asking price was $500,000 for each of the beachfront lots and $300,000 for the back lot for a total sum of $1.8 million. Through our discussions, we were able to settle at a 50{1fa2ef75e2e78439128d99df03acfe1d8ee3047374abe3d4676fe3470ff8b909} reduction of the asking price of the entire property. We settled for a total price of $900,000. The seller, expressly saying he wanted to help our Community, not only dropped his price significantly but also said he would carry the note for 15 years. This was an offer we could not refuse, as Mexican banks generally do not lend on raw land.

As I mentioned earlier, the Church made a $10,000 deposit on the land which took it off the market and began the due diligence period of 45 days. We had until April 6 to change our mind for a full refund. The additional down payment, due 60 days after the due diligence period ends, is $140,000. This is what I need your help with. Several members of The Community have already made pledges to support this project.

So let me tell you a little bit of what I envision. First and foremost, this is to be Cosolargy’s center for Latin America, at least for now. Many years have been spent diligently translating the Cosolargy Papers into Spanish, so that material is now ready to be presented to the Spanish-speaking world. Second, the definition of Cosolargy is basically healing and therapy. Our System is based on the healing of body, mind, and Spirit by the use of solar, color, light, imaging, and symbolic therapeutics, among others. Therefore, the building of healing centers around the world fits into the mission of the Church, which is to heal people, the world, and the Cosmos and to spread our New Advent Teaching.

The Cosolargy Center in Mexico will be a multi-purpose and multi-use facility. It will encompass not only a teaching center for Cosolargy but also a spa and wellness center that will employ various types of energetic and other therapies. There will be accommodations for guests, as well as a restaurant and other facilities as we progress with the plan. Another very important aspect of this opportunity is the possibility of a retirement facility for members of The Community in their later years. Such a project has been discussed for many years here in Reno, but quite honestly, with our limited resources and government regulations, it will be a much easier undertaking in Mexico.

Our first task is to raise the money for the deposit already made ($10,000), the upcoming down payment ($140,000), closing costs ($35,000) and title insurance ($10,000) for a total up-front expense of $195,000. A significant amount has already been pledged, but we have not yet reached our goal. We need your help. What we can offer you for your donation is a membership package which will include use of the accommodations at the Retreat Center in Mexico and discounts on therapies and other services. Some details are included on the enclosed pledge form. Other information will soon be forthcoming. And you can visit our web page at www.cosolargy.net/mexico.

I thank you for your consideration of this great opportunity to expand The Community and to reach other people throughout the Americas. Hopefully, the Center and Retreat will also serve as a catalyst for others to study Cosolargy and help in The Great Work. I welcome and need your support. Please feel free to call me personally at 775-741-8051 or email me at gsavoyjr@communityofchrist.org. I send you my warmest regards and blessings.

Sincerely yours in Light+,

Gene Savoy Jr.

* * *

The editors of the Community Communique hope that you realize the importance of The Community expanding into Mexico and Latin America to further the goals and objectives of Cosolargy by reaching people in the Spanish-speaking world in fulfillment of The Church’s teaching mission. And we hope you will donate towards this important cause, which begins with the purchase of 2.3 acres of beachfront property in southern Baja California, Mexico. Contributions of $5000 or above comes with certain Membership Benefits to the Retreat at El Cardonal – Health, Healing and Wellness Center. We hope to bring you additional information on the project in the near future. And remember: All contributions to the 2017 Mexico Cosolargy Center Property Purchase are 100{1fa2ef75e2e78439128d99df03acfe1d8ee3047374abe3d4676fe3470ff8b909} tax deductible.

HEAD OVERSEER’S WEEKLY MESSAGE

Monday, May 1, 2017

VISIT COSOLARGY.ORG

HEAD OVERSEER’S WEEKLY MESSAGE

Monday, April 24, 2017

My message for you this week is brief. First, let me thank those of you who have sent me positive feedback to these short communiques. I’m glad they are of some use to you.

As you know, our Community has been working on establishing itself in Mexico. Our plan there is to build a health and wellness retreat, as well as a Cosolargy center for the Latin American world. In February of this year, several members of The Community joined me on a visit to Los Barriles in southern Baja California to look at property. Initially we went to visit a particular piece of land which, quite honestly, did not appeal to any of us. Besides that, the owner was not very accommodating in our negotiations with him, which fell through. A little while later in the trip, we became aware of another piece of property north of Los Barriles in a town called El Cardonal (named after a regional cactus). We all liked it very much. The Google Earth link will show you the property itself.

El Cardonal cactus on Baja property.

After meeting with the owner, we were able to arrive at an agreeable arrangement. The last sixty days has been a period of due diligence, and we have been able to verify through The Community’s attorney and real estate agent in Mexico, as well as our business attorney here in Reno that everything is in order for the acquisition. The title is clear, and hydrological studies and topographical surveys have been completed. In addition, we are working on getting the concession from the federal government on the 710 feet of beach in front of us on the Sea of Cortez. I urge you, if you have not already done so, to please look at my letter of 3/16/17 and make a pledge and send in your much needed donation for this important project. We are still short of the amount needed for the down payment and closing costs.

I left yesterday for Mexico to close our land purchase and will be in talks with architects and contractors for the first design phase of the project, which is explained in my letter. My daughter, Sonya, who is now 19, is also with me to see the scope of what we will be doing there. This is a very exciting time for our Community! I will give a further update to you when I return and have more news.

Our Community – the Community of Cosolargy, the Community of Christ, the Community of Light – is charged to bring the Teachings of Light to the peoples of the Earth, who labor under great tribulation, that God has caused His Divine Light to appear for a blessing of Peace and Joy.

“There is forgiveness, mercy and redemption in the Spirit of God’s Appearance in the Sun of Righteousness. Eternal Truth and the beginning of infinite Knowledge in the Image and the Word is granted to those who follow The Way, walk the Path of Righteousness, live according to Divine Law, and partake of the Bread of Life and the Living Waters. That which was longed for by the Righteous of olden times and which is longed for by the present generation of the Righteous – those who possessed the world when it was young and those who possess a world grown old – has come. The Day of their Salvation has come. The sun of the world has been lit with the Light of my Spirit, and by that Light I shall light the Spirits of the Righteous who shall shine as the sun, and all the Righteous who dwell on the Earth and all the Righteous who dwell in Heaven shall be as One Light, and no more shall there be Darkness in My Creation.”
The Book of God’s Revelation (Emphasis added)

This is something we must tell every nation and every people everywhere. We have begun in America. We have planted a tree in Japan. And we are now planting a seed in Mexico. Other seeds will also spread to other places.

OPEN ATTACHED LETTER

OPEN PLEDGE FORM

VISIT MEXICO PAGE ON COSOLARGY.ORG

Satellite image of the property.

Satellite image of proposed site for healing center in Baja, Mexico PHOTO: Google Maps

The Church recently made arrangements to purchase 9223 square meters of beachfront property in Baja California Sur, Mexico to establish a Cosolargy Center there to serve as the headquarters for Cosolargy International in the Spanish-speaking world. Plans and photos will be forthcoming.

The property is located in the beautiful area of El Cardonal, a 25-minute drive north of Los Barriles on the east coast of the peninsula on the Gulf of California (Sea of Cortez). (See the satellite image above.)

You can locate the property yourself on Google maps. (1) Search for “El Cardonal, Baja California Sur, Mexico.” (2) Switch to the satellite map. (3) Magnify the area indicated by the red arrow until you can make out the trees. (4) Move to the vacant seaside lot two lots down from the lot marked by the red arrow with a big Cardinal cactus in the center. That is the location.

The lot is bordered on the north by an estate. On the south by an elementary school. And on the west by the sea and 100 meters of beachfront.

Keep all this in mind when you read the letter that is already in the mail to you asking for your help to make the dream of a center in Mexico come true.