Community Leaders Resilience Fund

While research reveals a strong safety profile, psilocybin is not for everyone, and some conditions may be disqualifying. Eligibility depends in part on the facilitator or service center. The following conditions or situations may be contraindications:

• Mental-health conditions such as schizophrenia, schizoaffective or schizophreniform disorder, major depressive disorder with psychotic features, psychotic disorder, bipolar disorder, mania, delusional disorder, any dissociative disorder, substance-induced psychosis, or severe paranoia
• Current drug or alcohol withdrawal, or active/severe drug or alcohol misuse
• Cardiovascular conditions such as poorly controlled high blood pressure, prolonged QTc interval, congestive heart failure, history of cardiac arrest or ventricular arrhythmia, presence of an AICD, coronary artery disease, angina, tachycardia, arrhythmia, Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, heart-valve disease or artificial valve, cardiac hypertrophy, cardiomyopathy, aortic disease, or aneurysms
• Gastrointestinal conditions such as moderate-to-severe liver impairment or gastric outlet obstruction
• Dialysis or severe kidney disease
• Neurologic conditions such as dementia, cognitive impairment, seizure disorders, epilepsy, history of stroke or TIA, or cerebral aneurysm
• Medications such as lithium, two or more medications affecting serotonin (e.g. SSRI, SNRI, SPARI, TCA, MAOI), or angle-closure glaucoma medication
• Pregnancy
• Tuberculosis, COVID, and other highly contagious diseases
• A first-degree relative (parent, sibling, child) with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or any psychotic or dissociative disorder

If you live with any of the above and can't resolve it before receiving services, we recommend not applying, as you likely won't be deemed eligible. By law, a person cannot receive psilocybin if they have active psychosis, take or have taken lithium within the past 30 days, or have ideation of harm to self or others.

We are not deciding or confirming that anyone should receive psilocybin services — only whether an applicant is a good fit for a grant, so they can pursue a licensed facilitator who, together with the client, will decide whether to work together.

In 2020, Oregon voters passed Ballot Measure 109 (the Oregon Psilocybin Services Act), allowing the manufacture, delivery, and administration of psilocybin within licensed service centers supervised by licensed facilitators. In 2022, Colorado became the second state to establish a regulated access program for psilocybin and related psychoactive plants.

While psilocybin is legal within the Oregon and Colorado state-regulated models, it remains a federally illegal Schedule 1 substance under the Controlled Substances Act.

Grants of up to $3,300 are awarded on a rolling basis (final amounts vary by need). Funds are distributed directly to the licensed facilitator and/or service center.

The grant covers: licensed facilitation including preparation and integration; your Oregon state-regulated journey at Fernlove; group lodging arranged by SEF for 4–5 days (your own private bedroom in an on-site cabin); and community meals created by a local chef.

The grant does not cover: airfare, train, bus, or other travel to and from Oregon and the service center; additional travel around the state; solo meals or individually purchased food; the cost of the psilocybin; or additional therapy or integration services after the program.

Lodging is on site at Fernlove. Each participant has their own private bedroom in one of the property's forest cabins, just steps from the service center, so you can rest and integrate without leaving the land. Group lodging for the cohort is arranged by SEF and included in your grant.

The fund supports small groups of leaders undergoing facilitation together. Cohorts from similar backgrounds may self-select or be grouped by reviewers for fit. The model fosters peer support and ongoing community, raises the quality of care, and lowers costs. If you'd prefer individual care, you can indicate that in the application and it will be considered case by case.

Group work has become less common in the U.S., partly due to a Western, FDA-driven approach to medicine. But psychedelics — especially psilocybin — have a long, successful history in group settings, both clinically and in Indigenous cultures going back thousands of years.

Beyond saving time and money, studies show that feeling part of a community improves psychological wellbeing and connectedness. Many people who start out preferring individual work end up strongly preferring group after experiencing it. Learn more via the National Library of Medicine.

Grants are awarded on a rolling basis, and we communicate with all applicants by email. Selection is based primarily on the applicant's work as a community leader, financial need, expressed need for psychological/emotional/spiritual support or burnout relief, whether they belong to an underserved population (geography, race, ethnicity, cultural barriers, occupation, ability, age, gender, etc.), and a demonstrated readiness to receive psilocybin therapy.

The CLR Fund is an initiative of the Sheri Eckert Foundation (SEF), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit committed to making Oregon and Colorado's evolving psychedelic ecosystem accessible to people of diverse backgrounds, means, and geographies.

Our Board of Directors is David Bronner, Tom Eckert, and Nathan Howard. Our team includes Nathan Howard (Executive Director) and Lorena Dame (Director of the CLR Fund), and we work with Magical Teams to support the application process.

The State of Oregon's official Oregon Psilocybin Services page contains many resources, including sample forms like the Informed Consent and Client Bill of Rights.

You can also read the OPS Fact Sheet and the Scientific Literature Review.

Anything you share is strictly confidential and will not be shared with anyone, for any reason, without your written or electronic permission. Submission is voluntary, and declining will not subject you to any adverse treatment.

SEF uses your information only to review, manage, and execute the fund's program. It may be processed and stored on IT platforms and accessed by SEF employees and contractors for that purpose. All workstations and Typeform devices are fully encrypted, and Typeform's data-protection standards are HIPAA compliant. We do not share, sell, or lease your personal information to third parties unless required by law.