At the Sum of Us Festival, community is key. It is the foundation and motivation for the wellness retreat, which aims to foster friendship and collective self-discovery between LGBTQ women, trans, and nonbinary folks. Among family and friends, through reflection at wellness workshops, and even in explosive self-love at the Hawt Mess Forest Rave, Sum of Us has done just that for the last four years.
This September, the festival returns to the Mandala Springs Wellness Retreat Center in Cobb, California. The festival site is a little over two hours north of San Francisco, in Lake County.
Founded in 2020, Sum of Us is the first festival of its kind and is now led by CEO Yinka Freeman. It was "born from a pressing need for alternative spaces for LGBTQ people to connect," stated marketing director Joslyn Hatfield, a lesbian, in an email. "The community has historically been limited to concealed venues, such as bars and nightclubs — some of our most sacred spaces. With that said, Sum of Us Festival was conceptualized to address some of the limitations those spaces have."
So, whether dancing under neon lights to the music of some of the hottest DJs in America or cultivating connections through meditation workshops, festivalgoers can expect to step away with new friends and memories.
This year, from September 19-22, Sum of Us returns to the Mandala Springs Wellness Retreat Center. Since moving from its virtual format in 2022, Sum of Us has invited numerous musical guests, panelists, queer entertainers, and LGBTQ businesses to its four-day, three-night retreat. Events will include community favorites like the Trans Bodies Celebration Swim, the aforementioned rave, and Queer Field Day. And after last year's success, lesbian actress Amber Whittington ("The Matriarch") is set to host the event again.
The new venue, a year-round wellness retreat, also provides a variety of elevated amenities. Mandala Springs boasts 200 acres of rolling hills and winding streams, bathrooms with flushable toilets, and hot water showers, as well as a variety of housing options, including RV hookups, cottages, cabins, lodges, yurts, and campsites for tents, the website states. A vehicle pass is required for any guests bringing vehicles onsite.
The new venue is also the festival's most accessible space since its inception. "[Accessibility] is essential for our event to be considered a success," Hatfield wrote. Sum of Us has a volunteer-led accessibility team to address community needs, including ASL interpretation, mobility access, visual impairment, and dietary restrictions.
Along with its thousands of guests, Sum of Us fosters an environment of freedom and opportunity to explore individual and collective goals. In fact, the festival runs on 10 core principles, including "zero judgment," "open hearts/open minds," and "creative self expression." With no shortage of workshops, events, and communal and individual spaces, "each individual can choose the journey that is right for them," Hatfield stated.
"I love [Sum of Us]!" said Mira Kalin, a lesbian and previous festival attendee. "I went both years and had the best time! It's such a great feeling being a part of a community where you can feel so safe. Camping in the most beautiful park in the country surrounded by queer women. What more can you ask for? Paradise! I can't wait to go back."
The retreat is a chance to connect deeply with oneself and others, while honoring the love the LGBTQ community has fostered for centuries, Hatfield stated.
"Simply put, [Sum of Us is] a camping and wellness retreat designed for LGBTQ+ women, trans, and nonbinary identities," Hatfield wrote, but more specifically, she addend, it is "a reimagined well-being space for people seeking queer community, the creatively inclined, individuals exploring gender and sexuality, and everything in between."
Ticket information can be found at sumofusfest.com. General admission (access to the festival, all workshops, events, and parties) is $379, and a tent camping pass is $120. Biweekly and monthly payment plans are also available. Additionally, all full-time volunteers receive a festival and camping pass as well as free meals (See Get Involved for more information). Discounted tickets are also available for community partners.
In 2022, the festival sold out three months in advance. Every member of the team is a volunteer, and all funds from tickets and sponsorship go directly back into the festival and its growth, Hatfield stated.
Updated, 8/29/24: This article has been corrected to indicate the festival was founded in 2020 and is now led by CEO Yinka Freeman. The earlier version stated Freeman had founded the festival.
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