Wine Country Times

Joy Wesley, owner of Bee Focused, a beekeeping service company in Santa Rosa, volunteered to teach a group of women as part of Women’s Recovery Services’ (WRS) Weekend Discoveries program. 

WRS, located in Santa Rosa, is a nonprofit organization founded in 1975 that helps families recover from a mother’s addiction, according to its website. The organization’s goal is to break the cycle of addiction for women by providing a safe residence that allows neglected children to remain with their mothers while in recovery.

Weekend Discoveries, initiated by WRS board members Marianne Estournes and Judy Ryder in September 2022, is designed to provide women residents with opportunities for personal growth and skill development through educational experiences outside of WRS. 

According to Wesley, she became involved with the program after meeting Ryder at a book reading in April 2023. Wesley first participated in the program soon after in June, and decided to sign up again in October when she taught a class titled "Bees and Blooms.”

During the class, she guided the women through an exploration of the relationship between bees and flowers and emphasized the importance of pollinators in the ecosystem. 

"The most important thing they can gain from their time with me would be that they are part of nature, not separate from it," Wesley told Wine Country Times. "And that the small act of planting a flower in a pot can bring so much good to other living beings."

Wesley said she found this teaching opportunity both gratifying and humbling. “The part I enjoy about the WRS students is their honesty about the subject and willingness to share their own thoughts,” she said. “Many of my other classes require me to get creative to get folks to relax and ask questions, but the women at WRS jump right in with no hesitation.”

Looking ahead, Wesley said she plans to continue her involvement with the WRS program. 

"As a resident of Santa Rosa, having the opportunity to teach the women at WRS fits right into that founding principle," she said. "At the end of the day, I feel great, and the women who attended my class are smiling and talking about plants and pollinators."

For more information, visit https://womensrecoveryservices.org. For more information about Bee Focused, visit https://bee-focused.com.