Just the right touch

Edie Weinstein-Moser, best described as an insatiable cuddler, massaged the knee of Faith Kremer as she lay on a carpet of soft blankets.Kremer, 38, a social worker who lives south of Annapolis, Md., closed her eyes and nestled against another woman, who rested her head on the belly of Kerry Blubaugh, 56. He owns the Natural Healing Arts wellness center off St. Albans Circle in Newtown Square, where the unusual workshop was taking place on a recent Sunday afternoon. 

Blubaugh pressed his back against his close friend, Denise Gilmar, 45, of Glen Mills, who snuggled near Melvin Jones, 32, someone she had just met. She rubbed his shoulder, while Jones massaged the back of stranger Linda “Linney May” Hunter, 56, of Glendora.

“Ah, this feels wonderful,” said Hunter, a holistic practitioner, resting her chin on a fluffy pillow.

The Cuddle Party was going perfectly.

Cuddle Party? The very name raises eyebrows. Snickering is inevitable. But this wasn’t some kinky swing time.

Begun in 2004 in a corner of the country not usually associated with touchy-feely encounters – New York City – the nonsexual socials have since spread around the nation, including the Philadelphia locale, and to Canada, Australia and England. Founders Reid Mihalko and Marcia Baczynski, sex and relationship educators, bill the events as communications and boundary-setting workshops that have touched thousands of snuggle-starved adults.