Liten Hobbit Stuga at Coastal Mountain

Nestled on 5 acres of agricultural forest near the Columbia River in Astoria, Oregon, Liten Hobbit Stuga at Coastal Mountain, awaits its transformation into a hub for fostering resilience and community. Purchased in 2018, the property has been slowly cultivated towards our dream project— a women-led retreat and camp space where we envision fostering safety, security, resilience, compassion, and transformation through Dharma and community. Inspired by our existing "Liten Hobbit Stuga" (Little Hobbit Cottage), we aim to create a sustainable sanctuary blending agriculture and spirituality to empower underrepresented women practitioners (cis and trans), underserved seekers, and rural communities. 

Why Us? Simply put, this doesn’t yet exist in our area, and we need it more than ever now.

In turbulent times, we envision Liten Hobbit Stuga at Coastal Mountain and Hilltop Haven offering a unique blend of gender empowerment - think about everyone learning basic skills like sewing, gardening, cleaning, cooking, basic astronomy, survival skills, ecological stewardship, and community resilience. At the retreat, we plan to foster spiritual practice, collaborative and multi-disciplinary retreats and resiliency skills in Hobbit-inspired cottages. We hope to complement our current structures; A-frame cabin, meeting deck, pole barn, ADU, and garden shed with more room and all season outdoor spaces, while Hilltop Haven will serve as a vibrant flex space for administrative needs, classes, public offerings, and community-building. With a resource and asset library, tool lending, and a cooperative skill-building model—backed by significant investment—we’re poised to break down barriers, generate income for self-sustaining activities, and compound our impact to serve all.

We have already secured an opening 2025 investment of $35,000 for the retreat—our mortgage is current and taxes are paid, supporting an A-frame cabin, deck, pole barn, ADU, and garden shed—and over $275,000 cash has been invested in an additional property — Hilltop Haven — since 2021 our fully owned, former 1920’s mercantile. Outright, free and clear for us to use with no loan, this presents a community space to create opportunity for everyone. With a residential building manager in place, we will create jobs as well as space for budding entrepreneurs, a respite apartment for community members in transition or housing fluxx, as well as community flex space for use — gardening classes, clothing exchanges, book clubs, civics groups, community meetings…

We hold the key to this gem in the heart of Astoria and we’re seeking additional financial support totaling $250,000 to expand the whole vision. Please help us in completing the Stuga’s community retreat cabins and main meeting house outside of Astoria, finalizing the walking paths and reflection spaces, reinstalling the chickens, bees, orchards, and gardens. We have a contractor ready to complete the renovations of Hilltop Haven, our community space smack dab in the middle of Astoria. We envision utilitarian, functional, neutral, efficient, safe spaces—creating a cooperative hub with rural/forest and town/neighborhood presence where resilience thrives across generations and socioeconomic barriers.

Our Ask:
We invite your partnership—whether through funding, collaboration, or participation—to realize this transformative project. We hope to encourage financial support totaling $250,000. With this, we’ll complete the community retreat cabins and main meeting house, finalize walking paths and reflection spaces, reinstall chickens, bees, orchards, and gardens at the retreat, and complete renovations at Hilltop Haven to be utilitarian, functional, neutral, efficient, and safe—establishing a dual presence; a forested community retreat, and a walkable destination in one of Astoria’s most beloved local hubs, while simultaneously saving a historical hometown hangout.

Anchor retail and commercial leasees are ready to rent space and provide foundational income to support the free and low-cost community needs programs, creating a self-sustaining model to capture optimal community building return on this potential capital investment into perpetuity. We will all benefit from this addition to our community. Can you help share our request?

Offerings: Extended Information

• Community Building & Resilience Across Generations

  • We envision cooperative gatherings uniting everyone, highlighting the needs of women, children, and elders to cultivate shared purpose and strength at the retreat’s main meeting house.

  • Programs bridging socioeconomic divides, fostering resilience through intergenerational learning.

  • A resource blending agriculture and art at the retreat and urban vitality at Hilltop Haven, which will serve to teach adaptability.

• Women’s (Cis and Trans) Spiritual Resilience & Leadership

  • We envision retreats and classes led by women, amplifying cis and trans voices in spiritual empowerment across both sites.

  • Opportunities for leadership development within a supportive, nonsectarian Dharma community.

  • Safe, unfettered space for growth, prioritizing underserved female practitioners in completed cabins and renovated Hilltop Haven.

• Spiritual Transformation & Community Connection

  • Meditation classes at Hilltop Haven, which will serve to host in-person and Zoom sessions with visiting/out-of-town teachers, promoting inner peace.

  • A resource and asset library offering books, media, and tools for spiritual, community and practical growth.

  • Community events like book clubs at Hilltop Haven, fostering connection and dialogue in a safe, efficient space.

• Ecological Stewardship & Sustainability

  • Agroforestry tie-ins from Hilltop Haven to the retreat we envision for a sustainable community food supply, reinstalling chickens, bees, orchards, and gardens beyond the current garden shed.

  • Conservation efforts: native plantings for reflection spaces, rewilding, and habitat preservation along finalized walking paths.

  • Tool lending program at Hilltop Haven to support eco-friendly projects, reducing waste and consumerism.

• Cooperative Skill Building & Practical Application

  • Skill-sharing workshops at Hilltop Haven, which will serve to host sessions (e.g., permaculture, carpentry, cooking) in a cooperative model, led by a resident fix-it person and resourceful handyperson.

  • We envision hands-on application: building community cabins at the retreat beyond the A-frame and ADU, small projects at Hilltop Haven (e.g., repairs, crafts), increasing collective buy-in.

  • Events for underserved/marginalized communities to learn skills, trade/sell goods, and receive mutual aid, amplifying self-reliance.

• Cultural Preservation & Community Resources

  • Preservation of traditions, culture, and history through archival methods and public offerings at Hilltop Haven.

  • Hilltop Haven as a hub for administrative tasks, classes, and collaborative flex space, generating income for self-sustaining activities, with utilitarian, functional renovations.

  • Enhancing Clatsop County’s cultural vitality with accessible, practical resources and community events like plant bingo and clothing swaps.

• Accessibility for Underserved Seekers

  • Funding to remove barriers (e.g., travel, cost) for rural and underserved practitioners at the retreat we envision.

  • Hobbit-style community cabins (Liten Hobbit Stuga) as affordable accommodations beyond the current A-frame and ADU, paired with Hilltop Haven’s neutral, efficient urban access.

  • Hilltop Haven will host events for marginalized groups, boosting tourism and engagement in Astoria while compounding foundational investments.

• Transformative Social Change & Cooperative Future

  • A women-led initiative driving gender empowerment and social impact across socioeconomic lines.

  • We envision a cooperative model rejecting consumerism, building resilience with practical skills for all ages at both sites.

  • A forested retreat we envision with orchards and gardens, and an urban hub (Hilltop Haven) promoting peace, contemplation, and community as regional assets, self-sustained through income generation.

Impact:
We have a current cash infusion of $35,000 to the retreat, where the mortgage is current and taxes paid for the A-frame cabin, deck, pole barn, ADU, and garden shed, and $275,000+ at Hilltop Haven, owned outright, free and clear with no loan and title held.

We’ve invested over $310,000 to start, but we are tapped out! A lot of sweat equity, long days, many trips to the dump, and some fun times has carried us this far. Now we need your help!

Your support will unlock Liten Hobbit Stuga at Coastal Mountain and Hilltop Haven as beacons of compassion and cooperation—empowering women, healing the land, and serving as a model for resilience. From plant bingo at Hilltop Haven to agroforestry and gardening sufficiency on our farm, every dollar nurtures a future where community and ecology thrive together. Let’s Build This Together: With $310,000+ secured and two properties ready, we seek $250,000 to maximize our potential.

Curious to learn more? Additional information and grant requests are available for review. Thank you for your consideration of our project. We have experience and expertise in serving marginalized, underrepresented and women-identified coalitions and projects. We are delighted to continue creating community and opportunity, sharing resources and assets so that everyone, especially those who are typically left out in the cold, has more than enough to thrive. It starts with each one of us offering up our time, treasure and talent. 

The future is cooperative—please help us make it real.

Contact: emily @ tinebristlecoastal {dot} com or

Donate here: buymeacoffee.com/engdali