EIDOLON FOUNDATION
NEW IN CHARLOTTE, N.C.
By Christopher Blackwell

I am interviewing Mobius, who is President of the Eidolon Foundation.

Editor: What does Eidolon mean? What is the Eidolon Foundation?

Mobius: EIDÔLON is an ancient Greek word meaning "the image of an ideal". We have chosen this name because we at the Eidolon Foundation wish to create reality out of our dreams and ideals.

The Eidolon Foundation is a charitable non-profit organization, located in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Eidolon Foundation was created to help support minority religions and alternative spiritual traditions in Charlotte and the surrounding area. We received our official letter of incorporation from the North Carolina Department of the Secretary of State on August 9, 2006. We are currently working on our 501(c)(3) tax-exempt paper work, and hope to have that finalized within the next few months.

Editor: How is it different from other religious foundations?

Mobius: The Eidolon Foundation is not a church, coven, or other organized religious institution, and does not promote a specific religious doctrine. Instead, the Eidolon Foundation is dedicated to promoting greater awareness of alternative spiritual traditions and minority religions in Charlotte, NC and the surrounding region.

Even though "foundation" is part of our name, the Eidolon Foundation is not a privately-funded foundation. Rather, we are a public charity, and seek to derive our support from public donations, fundraising events, and other charitable organizations.

Editor: What are your goals.

Mobius: At the Eidolon Foundation, we are working to build a community network of alternative spiritual traditions, philosophies, and minority religions in Charlotte and the surrounding Metrolina area.

Through this network, it is hoped that individuals seeking to learn more about different traditions, beliefs, and philosophies, will be able to meet together and work with one another. It is part of the Foundation's mission to help sponsor and coordinate meet-ups, gatherings, and study groups between individuals seeking to learn more
about their spiritual or philosophical path.

At its heart, the Eidolon Foundation has three core goals:

1) To promote greater awareness of minority religions and alternative spiritual traditions

2) To support local community activities for minority religions and alternative spiritual traditions

3) To foster the development of a private or charter school welcoming to diverse religious backgrounds and alternative philosophies

Editor: What activities are you planning right now??

Mobius: Our next upcoming event is "Drums for Peace", on August 27, where drum circle participants will gather in a local park to show their support for peace in these trouble times. We are also planning a "Kid's Day Out" event for the children of parents of alternative religions, where they can work on crafts (snow globes, runes, wands, hats, etc), as well as some fun activities for everyone, young and old. In addition, we are planning to begin a Sabbat series of "learning circles", and hope to begin other lectures, classes, and workshops very soon. In March of 2007 we will have a general Pagan/Alternative Religion festival, with music, lectures, and workshops, and already have several well-known authors signed up to
participate in the event.

Editor: What are some of your longer term plans? How will this help the community?

Mobius: Within the next few years, we plan to open a community center. This community center would be open and available to anyone for functions such as classes, workshops, meetings, and general gatherings. The center will also house a library of metaphysical, philosophical, and spiritual-centered books available to the general community to read or borrow. As Charlotte does not currently have such a facility to support alternative and minority religion, we are confident it will prove to be a great asset to the local community.

Ultimately, the Eidolon Foundation hopes to spin-off a private school or academy. The academy would be like any other school, in that it will offer a solid core curriculum and focus on academic excellence and employing state-certified teachers. In this school, the children will be surrounded by peers and teachers that better understand their religious background. Should there be a demand, it is possible that some religious and philosophically oriented classes will be offered to those in the upper grade levels (9th grade and above).

Editor: How can people learn what you have going on?

Mobius: To learn more about the Eidolon Foundation, and find out about upcoming events, please visit our website at
http://www.eidolonfoundation.org. You may also email
info@eidolonfoundation.org.

Editor: How can people help?

Mobius: We are always looking for volunteers. If you would like to donate your time, your skills, or your knowledge to the Foundation, please contact info@eidolonfoundation.org and let us know. You do not have to be local to Charlotte to help. We are looking for:

* People knowledgeable in organizational operations (management, finance, law, non-profit or otherwise).
      * People knowledgeable or who have experience with fundraising.
      * People knowledgeable or who have experience with marketing.
      * People who have skills or knowledge they may wish to teach in a class or workshop related to our mission.
      * Anyone who is enthusiastic about our mission and willing to help!

If you want to contribute monetarily, please contact info@eidolonfoundation.org to find out how. But not all donations have to come in the form of money. We are always looking for donated books for our library, and if you have any books you wish to donate, please contact us at the previous email address. We also happy to receive donations of office supplies, computer equipment, and similar items that may help support our growing organization.