Great interactive community space with live music, seminars, talks, healing and enlightening…read moreactivities. You're invited to make suggestions for greater goods!

Ojai's living room. A one of a kind place where the earnest folks of the Ojai valley (visitors,…read moreforeigners, outsiders equally welcome) can meet to enjoy a concert or film or discussion or whatever can be shared. No pretense, only love. Always all welcome, pay what you can, often many reasonably priced beverage options too.

I've never been here before, but my daughter unfortunately, has broken her foot and the only way to…read moreget around would be besides crutches would be a knee scooter. We called them and they said they had one and that they were going to discount it once we got there and when I arrived there, they said that they had it sitting for a little while and the fact that it's pink and has some tassels that were they're going to take half off. Very easy to deal with super friendly people. I highly recommend this place.

Help of Ojai certainly does some great work within the community, and for that they should get more…read morestars. Unfortunately friendliness and people skills don't seem to be prerequisites for staff, so that aspect of the organization has been sort of a hit and miss for years. However another (more recent) negative move is the organization's decision to become political by changing it's mission statement - jumping on board the pandering train. This was clearly unnecessary, as the original mission statement was perfect. And to be fair, the first sentence of the new mission statement would have been fine all by itself. But apparently someone with an agenda to push has been successful in at least partially derailing the trajectory of the organization. I hope they fix that.

Our visiting grandchildren were treated to a delightful ranch experience at River Rock Ranch this…read moreweek where we could pet the beautiful mustang horses and also the cows. A highlight was being treated to a horse training show. We enjoyed learning the story of the legendary wild mustangs and how they come to the ranch in cooperation with the Bureau of Land Management.

Go there and meet Bruce and Bern and learn the art of The Mustang horse . Donate sack pellets feed…read moredirectly to Bern or Kelly his wife to show your love. Feed is always welcome by these three people. . Great looking horses. All different colors and personalities .

This place is amazing. I am so SO grateful for how they tried to help Jackie the Queen Eagle of Big…read moreBear. They do wonderful work and if you find an injured raptor, I wouldn't hesitate to tell you to bring it to them. What everybody needs to remember is: I think many of the workers are volunteers so be sure to verify they are open before you visit.

Never heard of this sanctuary until it connected with medically assisting the world famous Bald…read moreEagle, Jackie. Whom I have been watching on the FOBBV web cam for years. The medical team, and countless hours of quality care has been broadcast on multitudes news stations for many weeks. They are on FB and Instagram. This is a publicly funded sanctuary. Small donations from many do make a difference. If you can spare any amount, they are a 501c3, which means you can write off your donation. I don't have much, but I was compelled to send something.

As a local I have been to ASAP multiple times. Every time I have been there the staff is welcoming,…read moreand very approachable. The place is very clean and the cats look very happy. We adopted a sweet cat from here in July and we could not be happier. I recommend this place, the application process is a breeze and is paperless. One difference between ASAP from other shelters is that you can foster cats and that they have different age cats avaliable. They will also not discriminate against people with disabilities and try to match you with a cat/kitten. I really enjoyed my experience and highly recommend ASAP.

I didn't adopt a cat here, but I wanted to write a review because my daughter is a girl scout and…read morewe came here for a field trip. What an amazing place that I honestly didn't even know existed! The people working here are so knowledgeable and good to the cats. The girls had the best time playing with the cats as well! They have small rooms to go in where you can hangout with the cats in an enclosed, safe environment. I can definitely tell that the cats here are really loved and cared for! This is such a loving place for these cats. Also, shoutout to ASAP for being so good with the girl scouts who visited them as well!

Phenomenal earth day visit to the gardens. It's a peaceful way to experience the naturalness of…read moreOjai. We met so many pleasant workers, visitors, and resident artists along the way.

Taft Garden and Nature Preserve is one of the most beautiful places I've visited in my long life…read more The peace and beauty is enhanced by the limited number of daily visitors. It is possible move about the multiple trails at your own pace self guided, or join tours (when offered) to learn about the Plants, Birds, Geology, and Art. The garden is tucked away, and for me getting there and back to Ojai proper was a big part of the magic of the visit. Thank you to all who created and maintain Taft Garden and Nature Preserve.

Such a beautiful getaway with such a loving, compassionate, and heartfelt staff here in Ojai. I am…read moreso grateful for visiting and the nature is so beautiful and grousing. I would highly recommend for a girls trip or a couples getaway you will not regret it!

I am participating in the Foundation's 2015 Work Retreat, lead by Brooke and Leif…read more Wow! what an experience it has been. The land is magical, the community embraces, and the foundation is serving. For the body, the work retreat provided physical activities like, making clay from the earth which is then used to make a cobb wall. Allowing each person to manifest and cultivate moving meditation, team work, and physical endurance. For the mind, the land provides space with nature to manifest an awareness with Mother Earth's creations. Silence is valued, allowed, and appreciated by the community. Hidden areas that overlook the breathtaking valley allow for meditation and peace. For the spirit, I was able to let go. Allowing my authentic spirit to run free from judgement, express with love, and forgive with grace. Laughter has filled my heart here. The community is PURE LOVE and ACCEPTANCE. My time here has been magical, I do not want it to end. I have learned more than what the program had to offer: permaculture and sustainable living (which already exceeded my expectations). I have shared and absorbed the reflections in others that mirrored myself. Space in my heart and soul has been created to fulfill with things that serve me and the world. The traditions to which the foundation was built are shared, respected, and continue for generations. I fell in love the moment I first arrived. The love for this place continues to grow. I cannot wait for my next visit. Thank you Ojai Foundation for the land, healing, and teachings that are shared with everyone that comes to visit. Om Shanti Iris

Beautiful center, gardens and grounds. Wonderful staff. The energy of Krishnamurti remains. I had…read moreextraordinary meditations. Very grateful.

Attended a 3 day yoga retreat facilitated by Rowan. I wasn't very familiar with J Krishnamurti's…read moreteachings but I had such a wonderful experience with a lovely group of people with lots of dialogue. I hope to be able to attend again. I was inspired to do much more reading of his teachings on my own. The grounds are peaceful and conducive to learning.

**February 2024: Saturday Afternoon Visit**…read more This Goodwill is tiny, but the items they put out are really good quality and the prices are fair. I don't think I would go out of my way to visit this thrift shop, but if I'm in Ojai I would definitely take a peek to see what treasure it may hold. On my recent trip I bought a white puffer vest that fit me perfectly and it didn't even look like it's been used. I suppose consider the size of the store they only put out the best items so it's worth a look if you're in the area.

I love thrifting. This one is better for dropping off donations as the store is tiny and really not…read morevery good. They charge too much and don't give bargains as much as other stores. The staff are so rude every time I drop off where they don't thank you for donations but make you feel like they are drill sergeants telling you where to put your items and if you mess up they correct you fast. Iykyk how it is then you'd agree. The bins are labeled confusing so it is guessing sometimes.

An incredible space for young people to find out who they are and what they're here to do. We are…read moreso grateful for this "school!" My 10 year old son started at RTS a year ago after several years at a public school in the county. He was so anxious at the public school: most of the kids there would run out the gate at 3pm wanting to get out of there, with my son being very upset if I was even a few minutes late. His clothes were frayed at the wrist and knees from him chewing anxiously on them, he was labeled the class clown because he was always trying to lighten the mood. Most of the "teachers" kept asking if he had ADHD or another learning disability. We knew that he did not, and so decided to try changing his environment. We started in January (so glad that we were able to start mid-year) and the dramatic difference in his happiness, behavior, sense of connection and community has been VAST. It's such a testament to the incredibly thoughtful space Natasha and Jim Bailey have co-created. The kids can choose what they do each day, with climbing trees or chatting with friends being a perfectly valid activity (there's so much learning in everything.) My son is building things, mastering design and 3D printing, playing 3 instruments without any lessons (and no urging to practice), has created his own small business and is learning entrepreneurialism and team management. All at the age of 10. (What was he learning in the other school? How to survive the day and do what other people told him to do...) The Rock Tree Sky model (or Sudbury model, the first democratic school) isn't for everyone, but we've found it more appropriate in preparing our son for life during this modern time than traditional school was. If you have any doubts or concerns about this model, a great book I was recommended was Peter Gray's Free To Learn. Note that there are no formal lessons, no strictly age-segmented classrooms (amazing), and no "teachers" only "mentors". There are rules of conduct and there are offerings each day that kids can choose from: cooking, carpentry, sewing, gardening, pottery etc. but most of them choose their own adventure each day. Isn't that what we're all doing? Isn't that what life is about?! I can only speak with the utmost respect for this learning environment and warm community. I know that the kids here are destined for brilliant things, with so many supportive people gently guiding and cheering them along the way. Ps. You can apply to the Summit program via OUSD, which is a homeschool program integrated into RTS, which also subsidizes some of the tuition and offers a more traditional classroom experience for a couple of hours a week. It's incredibly affordable compared to other private schools here, but again - it's not for everyone. If your family values self-directed learning (and living), we highly recommend RTS!

Jim Bailey and Natasha Efross put together this amazing school that both my 9 & 11 year olds…read moreattend. "Self Directed Education" and that's exactly what it is. The school sits in 2 beautiful locations in upper Ojai and your finding space for your little one may prove to be slightly difficult, so I highly recommend that you get on that wait list STAT. The teachers/mentors are the very best of the best and the kids are amazing. This is one of those schools that your child will never want to leave. I honestly don't have the ability to write all that needs to be said so I will leave it to you to go and give it a visit. Oh, their logo happens to be pretty damn beautiful too. 5 stars.