Financial Support for the Bowman family

As many of you may know, we lost our beloved Julie Bowman on July 16th, 2022 after her protracted struggle with cancer. 5Rhythms teacher Sarah Wilde reflects, “For over 25 years, Julie showed absolute unselfish commitment to the 5Rhythms community. It never waivered.” Quite simply, the spiritual dance community in Portland and its surroundings would not be what it is today without Julie. And now her family needs our support.

Julie handled the finances for her family, and her husband Tom and daughter Eliza are still in the process of understanding the larger financial picture--trying to stay current with bills while also doing the best they can to process their loss. We're hoping to raise $20,000 to help them with a variety of costs that have arisen in the wake of Julie’s passing. Most immediately, these include:

Expenses for Julie’s celebration of life:

This will be held at the Maine Audubon on Sunday August 14th (please come...see the main page of Caring Bridge for details).

Outstanding bills:

Unpaid medical expenses incurred over the course of Julie’s illness.

Added property taxes:

Due to Freeport’s 5.16% tax increase.

Retaining financial and legal consultation:

To figure out the contours of their new life without Julie and help the family put affairs in order to ensure their wellbeing.

Tom and Julie had no retirement fund:

This was drained when they poured extensive funds into expensive treatment costs in an effort to save their son, Jonah, before his premature death a few years ago.

Tom is still a working acupuncturist, but now in his sixties, he will soon be reaching the end of his prime earning years. Eliza has recently retrained and is looking for additional employment. Understandably, Julie’s passing has left them with a need for extra time and space to devote to their natural mourning process.

Julie supported so many of us over the years, so we feel called to help however we can. It all began almost 30 years ago when Julie attended a 5Rhythms class given by Sarah in Brunswick. She soon volunteered to manage Sarah’s classes in Portland. “The dance community would not have happened in Portland without her,” remembers Sarah. Julie created a mailing list, booked many venues over the years, filled in sessions with other teachers she recruited (such as Emmanuelle Roland and Kari Luhrmann), and lovingly held the space for unfacilitated dance sessions when teachers were not available.

When Sarah decided to step back from facilitating Andrew Holmes’s Holy Actor retreats, it was Julie who stepped up once again to ensure they continued. She took a short hiatus after Jonah’s death, but was quickly back at work, saying she needed The Dance and the community it provided. Not even the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic could deter Julie’s love of that community and this sacred practice. Working with a handful of longtime students, she was instrumental in creating One Dance Portland to make sure The Dance continued to flourish.

Julie’s impact was immeasurable, and we miss her kind, steadfast and loving presence tremendously. We owe her so much. Won’t you help us raise these funds so that, wherever Julie is right now, her soul can rest in peace, assured that the family she leaves behind is well cared for and held in their grief.

Please give what you are able, all donations large and small are greatly appreciated!