Raised in the Gallatin Valley, I’m grateful to have a ‘sense of place’ that’s connected to nature. I believe that cultivating a care-full relationship with nature is an important part of finding balance and healing. As a nature and place-based educator for many years here, I had the fortune of being in nature every day, connected to wonder and delight with children.
I’ve sought a meaningful life and career in different ways over the years. Early on, I had opportunities to work in programs that helped women and at-risk youth facilitate stronger relationships with themselves and with the earth through empowering groups, dedicated time in nature, singing, art, writing, expressive movement, and rites of passage ceremonies. I became intrigued by the process of trauma recovery that I witnessed naturally occurring which led me to obtain certification in Somatherapy from Heartwood Institute. Combining yoga, Chinese acupressure and nutrition, massage, and hypnotherapy, I had the honor of meeting clients holistically, and better understanding the human capacity for grief and pain as well as joy and healing.
Seeking to strengthen my career, I came to Montana State University and, as one of the first to pursue a degree in Liberal Arts there, I had the unique opportunity to build my own program. Combining the sciences, humanities, and arts, I took courses that contributed to a deeper understanding of the learning process. Creating coursework for freshmen, I uncovered the variety of ways people make meaning through learning and what creates lasting significance in those experiences. As I worked on my thesis, my son went to preschool, and I watched the process of meaning-making in children, deepening my appreciation for holistic approaches that incorporate the head, heart, and hands in relation to the natural world.
After the birth of my second child, I studied Waldorf education through Transformational Teaching training and started Merry Hearts Waldorf and Nature School. I felt successful as a teacher but had a hard time as a parent, which led me to seek counseling and Circle of Security-Parenting (COS). COS transformed my relationships with my children and partner as well as the day-to-day function of the school. I fell in love with the power of understanding human attachment. After obtaining my facilitator’s certification from COS International, I began hosting classes for parents in the Bozeman area and expanded to Zoom classes for parents and grandparents throughout the U.S.
Being with people who connect more deeply with themselves and each other is something that lights me up and motivated me to get my master’s degree in Marriage and Family Therapy. Merry Hearts is a place for anyone who seeks safer self-expression and deeper personal connection with the themselves, their loved ones, community, and nature.