In 2023, we began a tradition of having an annual online "Honoring Milestones" ceremony. The ceremony begins by acknowledging all those newly certified by TIFI and those who have become Coordinators. (These are also acknowledged monthly in our InFocus News Feed, and on our Milestones page on focusing.org). Toward the end of the Honoring Milestones ceremony, we take time to remember Coordinators who have recently passed. All members of The International Focusing Institute are warmly welcome to attend this online ceremony.
The Honoring Milestones Ceremony is always scheduled in conjunction with the Weeklong for Advanced Focusers. This is because a certification ceremony has long been a feature of the Weeklong. Each year, people all over the world receive certification from TIFI, and many of them have not been able to attend the Weeklong in the year of their certification, and consequently were not able to participate in the ceremony. Having the ceremony on Zoom allows us to open it to everyone, whether attending the Weeklong or not. This gives us the chance to honor all those who have dedicated so much of themselves to reach this goal. It also gives the whole membership worldwide the chance to cheer on their fellow Focusers. The evolution of the certification ceremony into the Honoring Milestones Ceremony also gives us the opportunity to celebrate our new Coordinators and to remember Coordinators who have passed away.
In 2025, we organized Honoring Milestones as part of a new online event, the Daylong Celebrating Certification, which was open to any certified member of The International Focusing Institute. The Daylong included registration for the Honoring Milestones ceremony. This new event was a big success, so we do plan to do them in the future, although we are still deciding exactly when and how. The intention is to give a "taste" of the Focusing Weeklong for those unable to attend that event.
The 2025 ceremony took place on Zoom on Friday, September 5.
There are 3 elements to the event:
- Certification Ceremony honoring those certified by TIFI between September 1, 2024 and July 31, 2025
- Honoring new Coordinators
- Honoring Focusing elders who have passed
You can watch the 2025 Honoring Milestones ceremony on our YouTube channel, at this link. The memorial section begins at minute 57:00.
In 2025, in addition to honoring new Certified Focusing Professionals, and new Coordinators, we honored the memories of:
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You can read about other notable Coordinators who have passed on our Focusing Heritage Gallery page.
Past "Honoring Milestones" events
Honored at the 2024 Honoring Milestones event (watch full event on our YouTube channel):
Mary Hendricks Gendlin (tribute given by Doralee Grindler Katonah)
Bebe Simon (tribute given by Len Grossman)
Reva Bernstein (tribute given by Doralee Grindler Katonah)
Janet Klein (tribute given by Mary McGuire)
Honored at the 2023 Honoring Milestones event (watch full event on our YouTube channel):
Janet Pfunder (tribute by Jude Cobb)
Zack Boukydis (tribute by Laura Bavalics)
Mairead O'Brien (tribute by Mary Jennings)
Marta Stapert (tribute by René Veugelers)
Marie Sherry McDonald (tribute by Mary Anne Schleinach)
Agnes Wild-Missong (tribute by Madeleine Walder-Binder)
Lucy Bowers (tribute by Laura Bavalics)
Bala Jaison (tribute by René Veugelers)