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Temple of Two Waters centers land return and reparations, and the ability of QTBIPOC - especially disabled QTBIPOC - to access spaces to create, rest, and dream as a direct intervention to the violence of empire, colonization, and enslavement enacted upon Black and Indigenous people and their descendants, as well as the violence of ableism and the cisheteropatriarchy. In this time of genocide, fascism, anti-trans and anti-queer bigotry, increasing anti-ablesist policies, and emboldened hatred against our people, it is vitally important for us to have safe spaces to be together, dream, and heal.

The Story + Why of Temple of Two Waters

Temple of Two Waters (T2W) was founded by M. Cherry Omirelekun Rangel, an Indigenous and SWANA nonbinary queer femme healer, cultural strategist, artist, and resource organizer whose work for nearly two decades has focused on disrupting philanthropy, moving resources to BIPOC leaders and orgs, land return, reparations, cultural justice, disaster response, and spirituality. T2W is guided by the leadership of an all Black and Indigenous queer and trans governing board of advisors primarily with roots in the places our sites are located in, and with deep experience in organizing, land stewardship, arts and culture, healing justice and community care, disaster response and recovery, liberatory governance and decolonial organizational development. 86% of our leadership body identifies as tgnc, and 80% are disabled. T2W and Cherry’s leadership is further supported by a constellation of mentors, advisors, and coaches who bring expertise in land stewardship, radical real estate, agriculture, cooperative structures, and more. 

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T2W sites trace a common migratory path from the Gulf South to the rural Northwest—a journey many of our people have taken over time, whether by choice, force, or survival—including several of our stewards’ parents. The vision for Temple of Two Waters was born in 2023 when Cherry was gifted a parcel of land in rural Columbia- Sinkiyuse territory in the Ancient Lakes region of so called Washington State, where her parents were displaced to and where she spent much of her childhood. They immediately saw the possibilities for the land to serve as a sanctuary for local, regional, and national QTBIPOC communities as a venue for rest, retreat, creativity,  gathering, and healing. And that furthermore, T2W could respond to several emergent needs - to heal the relationship with nature and land for a community that often lacks safe access to nature and land, to offer no cost landing spaces/ residencies for a community that often experiences housing instability, to create a hub for movement gathering and building that responds to emergents needs within community - especially in times of disaster - and to cultivate a space for creative play and rest, where imagination can thrive. Additionally, there are very few resources available for queer and trans folks in the rural expanse of so called Washington state between the urban centers of Spokane and Seattle which are 5 hours apart by car.  With support from individual donors and the Kataly Foundation, T2W secured an additional 20 acres of land close to the original parcel. In partnership with fellow New Orleans QTBIPOC organizers, creatives, and sibling projects, we have also identified a metro site that will connect New Orleans QTBIPOC communities to these same resources. 

Launch + Implementation

Temple of Two Waters is launching with an incubation and infrastructure building phase. During this time we are learning from other queer and trans land projects, developing the legal structure to hold the land trust, raising the revenue to build out structures, and engaging in the design process with our design partners Built Collaborative and Studio Buraaq. Over the next two years, our design  collaboration will focus on the phased build out for our 22 acres, actualizing our vision for an accessible off-grid sanctuary and land-based healing space into an operational, community-rooted site grounded in access, ecological stewardship, creative practice, and collective care.

 

In 2026 we are focusing on the development of access roads, water and septic systems, renewable energy infrastructure, communications + mesh network systems, and other foundational utilities needed to support long-term site activation. Concurrently, the team will advance the architectural design and permitting of the main sanctuary house and key communal structures, while establishing a phased implementation strategy aligned with fundraising realities and long-term sustainability.

 

In 2027 we will focus on construction of several priority structures and site elements. This will include completion of the core infrastructure network, small residential / retreat cabins, communal gathering spaces and other early-use structures that can support stewardship, programming, and phased occupancy of the land. Construction activities will be paired with continued ecological restoration efforts, land stewardship practices, and refinement of operational systems for long-term use and care of the site.

 

After our incubation and infrastructure building phase, T2W will offer (all programs center disabled QTBIPOC):

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  •  Year long fellowships to QTBIPOC interested in land stewardship at each site
     

  • 3-6 month residencies to QTBIPOC artists (creative residencies) and organizers (rest residencies)
     

  • Hosting and operating seed libraries and community gardens (accessible to all neighborhood residents as well as QTBIPOC)
     

  • Providing community hubs for QTBIPOC including learning and workshop space, accessible meeting space, studio spaces for QTBIPOC (sound, movement, visual arts), and performance space for QTBIPOC
     

  • Providing space for QTBIPOC healing justice practitioners to provide services, and for QTBIPOC to access various healing modalities and appropriate spiritual care
     

  • Act as a climate disaster hub for neighborhood residents and QTBIPOC during times of climate crisis or other disaster

 

In the meantime, we are offering some initial programming including our Spiritual Tools for the Start of New Earth workshop and lecture series, site grounding gatherings, artist and healer immersions, design workshops, ecological learning opportunities, and the development of operational frameworks centered on access, interdependence, and collective imagination.

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