News from The Wild Hunt
In response to recent events, concerns, and requests from our readers, The Wild Hunt has updated our main page to better serve the community. If you witness or become aware of violence or threats against Pagans, you can now report these concerns directly through a dedicated section on our site. Our team will investigate and provide reporting as appropriate.
Additionally, we’re expanding our coverage of community gatherings through Pagan Community Notes. We are also developing a comprehensive event calendar to help you more easily discover opportunities to connect with others in our community.
About Rev. Jan Avende
With nearly a decade of priestly service under their belt and nearly two decades of involvement with ADF, Rev. Avende has a depth of work to bring to the table. They have served in several positions within ADF, including Vice Archdruid, Initiate Program Preceptor (Rev. Amber Doty will assume this role as Rev. Avende leaves it), Regional Druid for the Heartland Region of ADF, Chief of the Bardic Guild, and many
other roles serving our international membership.
Adding to their resume includes two years of work as a prison chaplain, a year as a hospital chaplain at OhioHealth’s Grant Medical Center (Level 1 Trauma Center), and they are nearing completion of work for eligibility to become a board-certified chaplain. On the local level, Rev. Avende has also been a Grove Priest of Three Cranes Grove, ADF, in Columbus, Ohio, for nine years, managing much of the day-to-day liturgical and spiritual needs of their local community, both in the Grove and beyond.
Their M.A. in Education has also served them well on this journey, leading to the publication of three books on ADF Druidry: The Spiraling Sun, a Winter Solstice Liturgy; Kindling Sparks: A Religious Education Program for Young Pagans; and co-authoring ADF’s free-to-the-public training program, The Hearth Keeper’s Way.
Rev. Avende is also the first person to serve as ADF Archdruid who is not a cisgender man; when asked about this, they stated, “We all know the face of modern Paganism is changing; I hope that I can be part of showing that modern Druidry is open, welcoming, and inclusive. We have a long way to go, but every new face, every different person, every connection is meaningful, especially to those who haven’t experienced that connection before.”
As Archdruid, Rev. Avende seeks to focus heavily on helping our membership feel more connected to the organization and being a compassionate point of contact for all members of ADF. Their goals include empowering our volunteer base, completing the new ADF website roll-out, and kicking off a discernment process to improve ADF’s administrative structure and procedures to better support the needs of a religious organization focused on trust and inclusion.
ADF has always been part of the larger fabric of the Pagan community worldwide. Still, Rev. Avende is interested in weaving those threads together in a more accessible way for all. By taking steps to broaden access to ADF’s best-in-class training program and crafting an inclusive spiritual home for folks practicing at a distance while also seeking community, they hope that everyone can find empowerment in their work through a connection with Our Own Druidry. Rev. Avende noted, “Notions of ‘spiritual care’ and
‘leadership’ are not path-specific to Druidry; we have amazing resources that can be used to strengthen the modern Pagan movement as a whole.”
Rev. Avende’s formal installation to the office of ADF Archdruid, along with the formal investiture of our new Mother Grove, will be held at Stone Creed Grove, ADF’s Wellspring Gathering in late May 2025.
Their official terms of office begin on May 1, 2025. Rev. Avende’s first term will run three years, until April 30, 2028; other offices mentioned are on 2-year terms.

Thor Fights Jormungand 1930 Charles E Brock [Public Domain
For the sixth year, Thor’s Oak Kindred has a team walking in the Ricky Byrdsong Memorial Race Against Hate. We invite you to join us or donate to this worthy cause.
Thor’s Oak Kindred is a diverse organization dedicated to the practice of the Ásatrú religion in Chicago. We come together to honor the Norse gods and goddesses, the spirits of the land, and the departed people who inspire us. Since 2016, we have been building and nurturing a face-to-face community of practitioners in Chicago and the greater midwestern region for ritual celebration, group events, and mutual support.
Our members are kindred by choice and have chosen to embrace each other as family. We are proud of our diversity, and we stand against all discrimination on the basis of race, sex, gender, orientation, identity, origin, ancestry, age, or ability.
With the poison of white nationalism spreading worldwide and using Ásatrú as a propaganda vehicle, it is no longer enough to issue declarations and denunciations. We must join with other people of positive intent, push back on resurgent hate, and promote productive change.
On June 15 in Evanston, the YWCA hosts the 26th annual event in memory of Ricky Byrdsong, the Northwestern basketball coach murdered by a white supremacist in 1999 while walking in his neighborhood with his young children. On the same day, the shooter wounded six Orthodox Jews. Over the subsequent weekend, he killed a Korean-American graduate student and wounded an African-American minister before taking his own life.
All proceeds are used to further the YWCA’s mission in the areas of racial justice and violence prevention. Their programs assist children in schools and youth organizations to challenge their own prejudices and foster healthy, violence-free relationships among their peers; support teenagers in examining their own relationships and practicing constructive ways to handle conflict and differences; and encourage adults to engage in constructive dialogue, interactive activities, and meaningful action as related to racial justice.
Help make a real difference in the real world. Register today and join us on the walk. If you don’t live in the area, you can donate any amount small or large.
Sign up to join our walking team or donate at this link.
To learn more about Thor’s Oak Kindred, visit their website.
Happening This Weekend
Spirit Northwest: West Coast Pagan conference in Portland, May 1 – 4, 2025.
Spirit Northwest is a transformative and new format gathering for seekers, offering 90 and 120-minute immersive workshops on Paganism, witchcraft, and natural magick.
We heard from many in the occult community that people longed for in-depth workshops and rituals, hands-on learning, and make-and-takes with well-known speakers, ritualists, and practitioners.
Amy Blackthorn is the award-winning author of the best-selling Blackthorn’s Botanicals series.
J. Allen Cross is an accomplished author and folk magician known for his book American Brujeria: Modern Mexican American Folk Magic and The Witch’s Guide to the Paranormal.
Maria Minnis is a tarot reader of 20+ years who teaches people about blending their spirituality with magic, liberation work, and eroticism in their everyday lives.
Your Hosts: Courtney Weber, Kanani Soleil, Hilary Whitmore, and Silent.
More information is available on the Spirit Northwest website.
Other Events and Happenings
EBSAT Meeting 5:00 pm PDT to 5:30 pm PDT– Embracing the Divine Feminine: Mesoamerican Mother Goddesses
Zoom meeting: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89030272698?pwd=VUpqKzVIN2hLTjdZY2JKQktuUG9JQT09
or, open the Zoom app and enter the Meeting ID and Passcode:
Meeting ID: 890 3027 2698
Passcode: CCL
IshtarFest
lshtarFest will be held virtually on Zoom from June 6-8, 2025. We will have classes, rituals, cooking demonstrations, musical performances, and other spiritual offerings surrounding Sumerian mythology and culture.
This year’s festival, Building on Herstory, celebrates the legacy of the ancient Sumerian goddess Inanna, a powerful symbol of transformation, love, war, and sovereignty. As one of the earliest recorded deities, Inanna’s mythos has shaped the stories of divine femininity, resilience, and personal evolution for millennia. We also celebrate her later forms as Ishtar, Astarte, and the planet Venus.
Through this theme, we explore how Inanna’s journey—from her bold descent into the underworld to her triumphant return—continues to inspire modern narratives of empowerment, rebirth, and leadership. We honor the foundation laid by her ancient myth while building upon it, weaving her essence into our contemporary understanding of feminine strength, spirituality, and justice.
Join us as we reclaim, reinterpret, and revive Inanna’s wisdom through art, storytelling, ritual, music, and community gatherings. Together, we build upon herstory, forging new paths while staying rooted in the divine wisdom of the past.
Early bird registration through May 6. Wicked early registration by April 10.
Register Here: https://sites.google.com/view/ishtarfest/home
Vendors wanted for our Vendor
Marketplace: https://sites.google.com/view/ishtarfest/home.
Presenter proposals due April 5: https://forms.gle/2fJC9cnieRUPwGMJA
Questions: ishtarfest@handsofchange.org.
Mystic South is coming back to Atlanta, GA! Join us July 11-13, 2025 at the Crowne Plaza Ravinia for 3 days of workshops, rituals, panels, academic PAPERS, and community building. Come for the weekend, or just for the day, and enjoy all the offerings Mystic South has to offer.
Our headliners this year are Pamela Chen, Mawiyah Kai El-Jamah Bomani, and Courtney Weber. They will be joined by over 100 other presenters from around the country who are presenting offerings during our conference weekend. Mystic South will also feature a Friday evening performance by Ginger Doss and Lynda Millard, along with our Saturday evening dance party.
The Mystic South Vendor Hall features over 20 vendors selling their handmade Pagan craft items. The vendor hall is open to the public, so if you’re in the area, stop on by! Our divination room is making a comeback, too! Also, open to the public, come by for a reading from one of our talented community members.
Tickets are on sale now! For more information and to purchase your tickets, head to the Mystic South Website
Tarot of the Week by Star Bustamonte
Deck: Guardian of the Night Tarot by MJ Cullinane, published by Hay House, Inc.
Card: King of Wands
The next seven days are likely to call for channeling one’s inner lion to roar in order to have an impact in a way that is soulful, charismatic, and visceral. Whatever challenges might pop up, the key to moving forward once attention is gained is to provide a clear, thought-provoking, and impassioned vision for the future. Proper use of power is heavily indicated.
In contrast, allowing arrogance to rule in the decision-making process is liable to result in reckless behavior and undermine plans by disempowering the very people whose actions and support are needed. Being in a position of power often comes with extra accountability and is unlikely to allow for aggressive and wildly imprudent actions—at least not for long before the behavior ends up getting checked and corrected.
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