To honor the earth and the great diversity of life in her keeping, some
simple Goddess messages have appeared on billboards in the Twin Cities.

The billboards are part of a continuing effort by a local Pagans to post
messages of nature-centered spirituality across the country. The original
inspiration came from Greg Robinson of Arachne's Veil who was determined to have Pagan billboards up by the new year. He brought his vision to Northern Dawn Council, where it met with enthusiastic support and financial backing. Those interested and able to met in October and the Goddess Committee was formed.

We were fortunate in that Wendy Fredrickson, a member of the committee, has been working in outdoor advertising for some time and was able to advise us on how to approach the advertising company, where to go for materials, etc. The Committee met in October to discuss our first effort. We found we would need a budget of at least $650 for 3 billboards for 30 days. Decisions about color, content and intent were discussed.

The Committee chose the Goddess as a symbol that represents the growing Pagan movement's identification with deity as multifaceted, feminine, and symbolizing balance. Pagans strive to find divinity within one's self and experience passion and respect for all living things. The messages were carefully chosen to avoid proselytizing. The billboards are not meant to gain converts. Our faith is not one of guilt and fear, but rather one of celebration.

The billboards have three messages: "The Goddess is Alive and Magic is
Afoot", "The Goddess is Within", and "Embrace the Goddess". These messages highlight certain facts of the Pagan faith: the belief that people have a direct connection to spirit, that the faith is one of love, and that Pagans experience the world as a wondrous and magical place.

The billboards were posted in Minneapolis and St. Paul on Dec. 30, 1999 and happily coincided with the Goddess 2000 Project. We began in the spirit of "this just needs to be done" but we move forward with the hopes of seeing Goddess and other pagan centered billboards around the nation. The initial cost was $525.00 (plus $200.00 of donated services) and will cost the Committee $300.00 a month to maintain.

The Goddess Committee plans continue it's work locally both with fundraising efforts and acquiring more billboards. We are also hoping to work with the Goddess 2000 Project. The coordinators are putting together kits with materials and information for anyone interested in putting up boards in their region.