Reimagining Holidays: Grief & Gratitude

In this 60-minute workshop, performance coach Chris Riggs facilitates a discussion of grief and gratitude rituals. The program includes breath and mediation practices, as well as a brief overview of gratitude rituals from around the world that enable growth and community-building. Chris says, “My goal is to briefly touch on the ‘true’ story of Thanksgiving, speak to my family's grief ritual, then invite attendees to share theirs. I would even like to create space to dream in the sense that together we can discuss ideal grief rituals that we'd like to create in a collaborative setting, so that folks have something to take with them into the holidays.”

Chris Riggs

I’m a performance coach specializing in one-on-one academic lifestyle and group coaching for cultural institutions. My work pulls from my training in neuroplasticity development practices, cultural history studies, university curriculum development, and community organizing to help individuals and businesses create actionable steps toward achieving their goals. I have worked with artists, students, business professionals, yoga scholar-practitioners, media organizations, and wellness brands to identify their passions and areas of opportunity to grow those passions into the foundations of sustainable work-life balance. My goal is to help clients perform consistently at their highest levels in all areas of life so they can concentrate on time cultivating their true selves and the relationships that mean most to them.

I’ve given workshops and talks for organizations such as Yoga Alliance, Reimagine, the YogaNow! app, and Umoja Events’ 2021 Juneteenth Celebration about the power of co-collaboration, transformative change, and social justice. I’ve hosted team-building events for companies like Yahoo, Gensler, Amazon, and Peloton. And my articles have been published by the likes of Embodied Philosophy’s Tarka, the Fashion Studies Journal, and Condé Nast College.