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For the love of nature

Join Us in Tucson for KVML’s 2026 Writing & Yoga Retreat

January 6-11

Earlier this year in Costa Rica, a group of writers gathered for a week that rekindled a sense of creativity and connection. We wrote to the hum of the rainforest, practiced yoga as the sun rose over the mountains, and found inspiration in the quiet, in each other, and in the lush beauty that surrounded us. It reminded us that creativity deepens when the body slows, the breath softens, and the spirit feels held by place and community.

That week planted the seed for what comes next.

As KVML enters 2026 with our organizational theme of Love, we are thrilled to announce the next chapter of our retreat series: the KVML Writing & Yoga Retreat in Tucson, Arizona, centered around the theme For the Love of Nature.

The Sonoran Desert is a place where the natural world invites contemplation. Its wide skies and ancient rock formations, its resilient plant life and long horizons. Everything seems to whisper, Pay attention. There is beauty here. It is an ideal environment for writers to reconnect with their words, and for practitioners of yoga to reconnect with their breath, body, and inner stillness.

We are especially delighted to host this year’s retreat at Tanque Verde Ranch, a historic desert oasis tucked against the Rincon Mountains. With its open skies, quiet walking paths, rich natural landscape, and warm Southwestern hospitality, Tanque Verde offers the perfect setting for writing, yoga, and deep creative restoration.

What Awaits You in Tucson

Nature Writing Sessions

Immersive workshops that blend close observation, sensory exploration, and craft. Expect prompts inspired by desert botanicals, rock formations, wildlife, and the shifting colors of dawn and dusk.

Daily Yoga for All Levels

Gentle, grounding yoga sessions designed to support creativity, relieve tension, and help writers ease into (and out of) long stretches of writing. You do not need yoga experience, just curiosity.

A Guided Hike with a Geologist

Walk the desert with someone who can reveal its hidden history in every stone. Learn how geological time and natural formation can become metaphors, guides, and unexpected muses.

Stargazing at Spencer’s Observatory

One evening, we’ll travel to Spencer’s Observatory, located next to Cat Mountain Lodge, for an unforgettable night under some of the clearest skies in the country. The desert night, and the comfortable bar atmosphere, create a quiet, starlit setting ideal for writers.

Cowboy Cookout Under the Stars

“Take in the stunning scenery in an authentic ranch BBQ experience. Savor the flavors of succulent grilled meats, homemade cornbread, fresh fruit and freshly baked desserts. Share a meal, laughter, and stories with fellow writers. These are often the moments where community forms and creativity opens.

Workshops, Coaching, and Creative Space
  • Daily writing workshops
  • Ample quiet time to draft, revise, or daydream
  • A supportive community of writers and yoga participants

Costa Rica taught us how powerful it is when writers step out of their routines and into environments that nurture body, mind, and imagination. Tucson will offer its own kind of magic. Sun-warmed days, deep stillness, star-filled nights, and a landscape that encourages us to slow down and love the natural world more fully.

In 2026, KVML is celebrating Love…love of story, love of community, and love of the world that makes our stories possible. This retreat brings all of those together.

Next Steps

  1. Complete the 2026 Registration Form
  2. Pay $500 to KVML → [KVML Writing Retreat Payment]
  3. Call Mary Ellen at Tanque Verde Ranch at 520-731-5568 to confirm your room


Program Cost:

  • $500 (paid to KVML)


Room Rates (paid to Tanque Verde Ranch):

  • Single: $650/night + tax
  • Double: $865/night ($432.50 each) + tax

All room rates include:

✔ Run-of-House accommodations
✔ Breakfast, lunch & dinner (gratuities not included*)
✔ Regularly scheduled ranch activities

* Suggested gratuity: $25 per person, per day

Kathi Badertscher, PhD

Director of Graduate Programs at the IU Lilly Family School of Philanthropy
Kathi Badertscher, PhD, is Director of Graduate Programs at the IU Lilly Family School of Philanthropy. Dr. Badertscher teaches a variety of BA, MA, and doctoral courses, including Applying Ethics in Philanthropy and History of Philanthropy. She has participated in several Teaching Vonnegut workshops and is a member of the Kurt Vonnegut Museum and Library. Dr. Badertscher has been a guest speaker on ethics in philanthropy, including at the National Association of Charitable Gift Planners – Indianapolis Council; Association of Fundraising Professionals – Indiana Chapter; and Zhou Enlai School of Government, Nankai University, Tianjin, China. In 2019 she received IUPUI Office for Women, Women’s Leadership Award for Newcomer Faculty. In 2019 and 2020 she received the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, Graduate Teaching Award.
Dr. Badertscher’s publications include “Fundraising for Advocacy and Social Change,” co-authored with Shariq Siddiqui in Achieving Excellence in Fundraising, 5th ed., 2022; “Insulin at 100: Indianapolis, Toronto, Woods Hole, and the ‘Insulin Road,’ co-authored with Christopher Rutty, Pharmacy in History (2020); and three articles in the Indiana Magazine of History: “A New Wishard Is on the Way,” “Evaline Holliday and the Work of Community Service,” and “Social Networks in Indianapolis during the Progressive Era.” Her chapters on social welfare history will appear in three upcoming edited volumes on the history of philanthropy, including “The Legacy of Edna Henry and Her Contributions to the IU School of Social Work,” Women at Indiana University: Views of the Past and the Future, edited by Andrea Walton, Indiana University Press, 2022 (forthcoming). Dr. Badertscher is also the Philanthropy and Nonprofits Consulting Editor for the forthcoming Digital Encyclopedia of Indianapolis, edited by David J. Bodenhamer and Elizabeth Van Allen, Indiana University Press, 2021. Dr. Badertscher is an active volunteer in the Indianapolis community. At present, she is a Coburn Place Safe Haven Board Member and a Children’s Bureau/Families First Brand and Marketing Advisor. Dr. Badertscher holds the MA in History from Indiana University and the MA and PhD in philanthropic studies from the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy.

Volunteer With KVML

Kurt Vonnegut Museum and Library Volunteer Application

Please contact [email protected] if you have any questions about this application’s content.