The Melissae

A 6-month Women’s Sacred Beekeeping Apprenticeship

May-October 2026

The hive and the honeybee have long been connected to women’s spirituality & mysteries…

The hive is a living breathing mystery school and the truest one I have ever known.

A lot of my work the last 14 years has been in rebirthing the reverent traditions of beekeeping that existed before the onset of industrialization and I believe that in order to do so:

The bee women must return. the feminine, and really the feminine principle must be brought back into this work.

Beekeeping has long been an intersection of folk medicine and magick, women’s spirituality, art, myth, philosophy and more. It is only in the last few hundred years where we have seen this tradition become an industry in which the needs of consumerism and capitalism are placed above the needs and health of the honeybee. For in the ancient world beekeeping and spirituality were not separate but intricately interwoven.

It was understood that to tend to the bees, was to tend to the holiest of holies…

The honeybees are asking us to listen to their needs. They are calling for a different approach to beekeeping: one that honors them, the great mystery, and employs a holistic approach that seeks to return them to their vitality, their wildness…

Just as the honeybees need stewards and guardians, we also need them…

The honeybees have a way of reweaving us into the magic of life, into the web of creation that called us all into being, and our role in tending that web.

“If the world is to be healed through human efforts I am convinced it will be by ordinary people, people whose love for this life is even greater than their fear, people who can open to the web of life that called us into being and who can rest in the vitality of that larger body.”- Joanna Macy

The honeybees mirror the feminine journey in such a beautiful way.

In working with the bees we come into deeper relationship to our wombs, our bodies, our intuition, & the alchemical journey of woman.

THE MELISSAE- A 6 MONTH APPRENTICESHIP EXPLORING:

BEEKEEPING, WOMEN’S SPIRITUALITY, ANIMISM, SISTERHOOD, STEWARDSHIP, SPIRITUAL ECOLOGY, & MORE…

Who were the Melissae?

Melissa in Greek means Bee therefore “Melissae,” translates to Bee Women. In the Ancient Mediterranean world this term was used to describe nymphs or priestesses who served a great Mother Goddess.

In the study of pre-patriarchy Goddess worshipping cultures & women’s spirituality we see a strong connection to the bees.

You see the hive and the womb have always been connected. Both hold the perfect environment for nurturing life into being. They are both warm, dark, protected, and represent the darkness from which life & beauty emerge.

For 6 months you will join Courtney and an intimate group of women through the beekeeping season.

What we’ll explore:

• Foundations of Natural and Sacred Beekeeping

• Honeybee Biology and Behavior

• History of Beekeeping

• Hive Designs + Choosing and Modifying Hive Designs to be more Bee-Centric

• Holistic and Bee-Centric Management of Hives through the Seasons

• Building Tree Nests & Log Hives

• Land Stewardship and Cultivating Habitat for the Bees

• Apitherapy and the Therapeutic & Shamanic Application of Hive Medicines.

• Intuitive Beekeeping & Dreamwork

• Womb Shamanism & Women’s Mysteries

• Beekeeping as Ritual and Spiritual Practice

Structure:

• One live virtual class each month

• 2 in person immersions each month

• 2 private 1:1 visits with Courtney either at your own hives or hers. Scheduled separately.

• Group Telegram Chat

• Extensive Reading List

• Guided Practices & Rituals

• Handouts & PDF Guides

• Options to join Courtney on calls for swarms, removals, and hive inspections throughout the season.

2026 SCHEDULE AND DATES COMING SOON

PAYMENT PLANS AVAILABLE-

APPLY BELOW FOR TUITION AND MORE INFORMATION

APPLY BELOW FOR THE 2026 SEASON