Members of the Unity Community of Central Oregon are inviting the public to walk through their newly built labyrinth as a way to recenter spiritually in this time of a global pandemic and civil unrest.

About a dozen volunteers gathered Saturday at the spiritual organization’s property off Cooley Road in Bend to build the labyrinth. The group placed stones along a circular path, similar to a maze but with no dead ends.

Bend resident Lisè Gottwald, who joined the organization last year and led the effort Saturday, said walking through a labyrinth can help heal people who have been through traumatic events, especially during this time in history.

Gottwald has been through her own struggles, after her husband died a few years ago and her house was lost in a wildfire when she lived in California. She sees a labyrinth as a kind of cure.

“It is a tool that gives you peace as you walk it,” Gottwald said. “If you are really feeling shattered or blown apart in your family life during this time, a walk through the labyrinth is an opportunity to just stop everything.”

Before entering the labyrinth, people should state what exactly they want to address in their lives, Gottwald said.

“Start at the beginning with that in mind,” she said. “Then as you are winding your way back out, you are walking into your intention.”

LEN Meserve, a 77-year-old builder in Bend, designed the labyrinth for the organization. Meserve has built more than 100 labyrinths across the United States. Since he moved to Bend, 14 years ago, he has built about 20 in the city.

Meserve said he is drawn to how labyrinths connect people with the Earth and the ancestors and indigenous peoples who walked on the land.

“To me, it’s the historical use of them,” Meserve said. “It’s always been a place to get messages.”

Meserve said people often come to labyrinths looking for guidance.

“If you have a question, come with your question,” Meserve said. “ I tell people to come with a loving heart and your highest aspirations and feed the labyrinth.”

Jane Hiatt, senior minister at Unity Community of Central Oregon, said building a labyrinth was always a goal ever since the organization moved onto the property in 2018. Having it become a reality seems fitting considering all the turmoil in the world, Hiatt said.

For Hiatt, there is value in slowing down and recentering in the labyrinth.

“These are insane times we are in,” she said. “It’s connecting to what is real. There is nothing fake about the Earth.”