Workshop: 01/25/25 Cacao for Mind, Body, and Soul with Cacao de Luca.

Saturday 01/25/2025 10:30-11:45am. 

Come experience a unique cacao class with local chocolate artisan, and wellness practitioner Ryan DeLuca from Cacao de Luca. In this class we will learn about the process of making cacao, its benefits, and how to work with it intentionally while enjoying a brief meditation at the end. Guests will sample roasted cacao beans, and enjoy a rich cup of cacao together.

Workshop will take place at Gathered Botanicals storefront:

781 College Ave NE

Grand Rapids, MI 49534

There is free street parking around the shop off of Bradford ave, and College ave. There is one designated handicap parking space in the back of the building. Shop is wheelchair-accessible. 

About the Instructor:

Ryan DeLuca is a local chocolate artisan and deeply passionate about the health benefits of cacao. He believes cacao is medicine for our mind, body and soul, and provides education about how to intentionally use cacao to improve your wellbeing. He’s honored to be purchasing cacao beans from Atucún Chocolatería, a chocolate company based out of Comayagua, Honduras. Atucún is sourcing their cacao beans directly from farmers and producers throughout various regions of Honduras, and the cacao trees are grown sustainably in polyculture. Ryan then roasts and refines the beans into cacao in Grand Rapids. He currently sells bags of pure cacao for sipping chocolate, and is working on a menu of various cacao flavored beverages, in addition to other chocolate products!

Ryan also works as a somatic therapist and holistic life coach. In addition, he is a Lead Practitioner at the Vitalist Institute of Psychospiritual Transformation in Grand Rapids, where he facilitates group embodiment classes and assists at Vitalist School. He incorporates cacao into many of his group workshops as a tool to take clients deeper into the experience. He’s passionate about how our thoughts and emotions impact our physical health, healing generational trauma, the science of spirituality, and the heart-brain connection. He believes we all have the capacity to heal ourselves, and that starts by regulating our nervous system, developing awareness and tools for how our body responds to stress, and learning the language of our intuition.