Life…

At age 5, together with my parents, I landed on Conanicut Island, situated in Narragansett Bay, a beautiful New England Seascape. Freedom was fishing, swimming and cliff-jumping, rowing, sailing, climbing, pond skating, tree-fort building, bike riding and making some tolerable trouble. As a very young child, with my mother as my amanuensis, I dictated poetry. When I could manage a crayon or pencil and had some written words, my mother’s brief career as my scribe ended. Similarly, I sang as soon as I could make sound, and wound my way through choirs and choruses, solos and ensembles, rock bands and one-woman shows. Happily, I continue to play with words in prose and poetry, and I still sing in a blues, jazz and rock ensemble (we’re very flexible). I went to a small neighborhood school where my 8th grade graduating class totaled 73 students. For high school, we had to leave the island where I was immersed in a freshman class of over 500! I developed many wonderful friendships and began working with Tarot, aura reading, meditation and crystals—helping became part of my life. I graduated with honors, still in Love with music and poetry—and now, mysticism. After high school, I took a gap year.

College & Graduate School

My college career began at University of RI where I was a voice-performance music major. After two years at this very large school and immersive music studies including private study with the masterful soprano and voice teacher, Margaret Frazier, I transferred to Rhode Island College where I continued my work as a writer and poet, and studied voice privately with a wonderful teacher, Georgette Ross-Hutchins, who encouraged and opened my voice in ways I could not have imagined.
During my senior year at RIC , I started my family and entered into a whole new education: parenting. For the next 12 years, I studied other modalities and ways of helping, until I began my Graduate studies at Salve Regina University in Newport, RI—a beautiful and enriching experience. I graduated with a Master’s in Holistic Counseling, and earned two advanced Certificates of Graduate Study in Counseling (for licensure) and in Holistic Leadership (systems/groups/change events). This experience provided me with the curriculum I expected, and growth I could never have anticipated. It transformed me and I remain deeply in Love with the work that I continue to do.

Career and Avocation

I have enjoyed many rich experiences, both cultivated and completely surprising, that have developed my work and enhance my human being-ness Here is a brief (and growing!) list:
Studies:

Childbirth Education and Labor and Delivery Guide/Support 2002// Yoga Teacher Training and E-RYT Certificate at Finding Inner Peace, Abington and Boston, MA 2004// Reiki Master-Teacher Certificate, 2004//Ordained Minister, ULC 2005//Herbalism and Pharmacognosy with Michael Ford 2008-9//

Projects and Service: Founding Board Member—Rhode Island Birth Network 2007//Board of Directors, Alternative Food Co-op 2010-11//Hollow Grove Druid Gathering-Founding Member 2020.

Deep Dives: I am drawn to and seek out immersive experiences. Research is also a geeked-up pass-time for. On the following topics, I have taken such informal deep dives:

Buddhism, Agnostic philosophy, Druidism and other pagan spiritual pursuits, Baha’i Faith, Christianity and Christ-centered spirituality, Hinduism, Yoga, Feminism and Queer Culture, Trans culture and Trans issues, Death and Dying, Compassion in End-of-Life care, and have read and studied masters and Gurus such as Ram Dass and Maharaji (Neem Karoli Baba), Paramahansa Yogananda, Krishamurti, BKS Iyengar, bell hooks, Audra Lorde, Barbara Ehrenreich, Virginia Woolf, Margaret Atwood, Betty Travitsky, and Winnie the Pooh (okay, he’s not an author, technically, but truly full of dope wisdom). This is not an exhaustive list. Please see recommended reading.

Research, Workshops and Trainings: ADHD in children, in adults and particularly in Women. Borderline Personality “Disorder” as a trauma response. Numerous trainings in Equity Initiatives, Sexual Function, Wellness and Sex Addiction, Polyamory, Ethical Non-Monogamy, Early Intervention and Early Childhood, Healthcare Communication, Psychedelic-Assisted Psychotherapy, Trauma and Addiction, Somatics and the Body-Mind, Music and Art Therapy, and more.