Erica Sofrina
is a nationally recognized consultant, teacher, lecturer, author, and
founder of the West Coast Academy of Feng Shui. Her ability to translate a
complex art and science into simple, usable applications has brought her
national acclaim as a teacher of Feng Shui for the West. Her interactive,
inspiring and personalized teaching style creates an atmosphere of
intimacy, excitement and anticipation as students build their knowledge
towards a career as "Environmental Healers." As a graduate of the Western
School of Feng ShuiTM and with formal training in Interior Design, Erica
brings to her teaching over a decade of experience as a successful
business owner in the field of Feng Shui and Design. She is also the
author of the book, "Small
Changes, Dynamic Results! Feng Shui for the Western World."
Presenter: Ann Marie Holmes
Consultant: Ann Marie been a consultant in Earth Spirit Living for
16 years with over 1,000 applications for both home and commercial
sites.
Teacher:
She also teaches classes in Feng Shui, sensitivity and earth design to
city planners, home owners, builders, real estate agents, therapists,
lawyers, architects and other individuals.
She lives in
Lihue, Kauai with her husband, Ray, and their Corgi dog, Nubie.
From Ann Marie: I was an introspective child in an
acquisition-oriented environment. The home of my childhood was part of a
fifties tableau, with my parents focused on creating the American dream.
“Educate and develop that mind” and "create financial security” were our
family mottoes. My father, a small business owner, joined all the business
associations and clubs in town and won a spot on the city council.
Nature was an
accessory to this agenda, an adornment like the furniture inside, nicely
tamed and appointed. We were the spectators in the yard, witnesses to the
creative efforts of the professional gardener; I was encouraged not to
interfere, until, in my early twenties, our picture-perfect lifestyle
ended abruptly with my parents’ divorce. Along with all the changes in our
family patterns came a gift with the departure of the gardener: I assumed
the role of interim gardener.
I thoroughly
enjoyed this. Sitting on the earth weeding and digging, I felt support
from the Earth that was profound. My recently earned Sociology degree and
full time job were set on the back burner as I joyfully plunged into the
physical world I could grasp with my heart and muddy hands. I started a
gardening business with a friend, and for the next five years, most of my
time was spent outdoors in clients’ backyards, planting and tending
flowers, shrubs, and trees. I talked to the plants and instinctively knew
which plants to use.
One day I saw a
book on the Findhorn Garden in Scotland and and was so excited to discover
other people who shared my understanding of nature presence. Findhorn
eco-village was a remarkable forty-acre project with gardens and
buildings, which served as a major destination worldwide for leading-edge
conferences. Seeming impossibilities melted away in a series of wonderful
coincidences and soon I was working and studying with this remarkable
group of people, which at the time numbered about three hundred, plus a
steady stream of visitors from around the world.
I became the
focalizer of cleaning at Findhorn. This job was the least favorite in
the community and the focalizer had to beg for helpers.
Since
Findhorn was based on the idea that every task relating to the
environment is significant, I decided to explore the premise of cleaning
with a positive attitude. Within a short time, I had a waiting list of
new members wanting to join my team and cleaning became a popular
activity.
International visitors and
staff alike were drawn to my Saturday morning cleansing meditations.
We prepared for the rigorous physical work by greeting and
appreciating the local "beings," then visualizing ourselves clearing
grimy energies from the hotel with their help.
Many people stayed after
the meditation to help clean the hotel. One visitor, who insisted on
working in his three-piece suit, came back to delightedly to report
that cleaning the men's loo (bathroom) had given him a major insight
for his next big step in life!
After two
years, I returned home to California established a cleaning business,
hiring people who were also interested in researching the effects of
working with positive energy. I placed this ad in the paper."Wanted:
people who are willing to clean with a positive attitude and explore the
possibilities of treating cleaning as healing, not drudgery."
Clients told
us: “When I come home after you’ve cleaned, it feels so good I don’t
want to leave!” One client stated, "Your cleaning saved my marriage!"
Many asked us: "What are you doing?"
In 1987, I
discovered FENG SHUI, an ancient system that closely adhered to my
experiences regarding subtle energy.
I immediately began classes with H.H. Grandmaster Professor Lin Yun
Rinpoche, a Feng Shui Master of the Black Set Tantric Buddhist Feng Shui
in Berkeley, California and have studied with him for 17 years.
Presenter: Amalia Camateros
Amalia Camateros,
author of "Spirit of the Stones", is a ceremonialist and
EarthSpirit wisdom guide who inspires us to reconnect with the Earth as a
sacred temple of Living Spirit.
She is a Naturopathic Doctor and Counselor, who has
worked in the field of health and consciousness for over 24 years. She
has garnered a notable reputation as a ceremonial dancer for the
inauguration of special events and conferences and for her ability as a
powerful facilitator of her EarthSpirit Dance workshops.
A service of her mastery is to integrate the Spirit
Self into the body and to embody the full potential of divinity.
Presenters: Doug & Trish Regan
The Dolphin experience will be led by Doug and Trish
Regan who founded Dolphin/Spirit of Hawaii in 1994 when they experienced a
dramatic spiritual calling to "jump off the cliff," leave their
professional lives behind and come to Hawaii to work with the wild
dolphins. Since then they have conducted transformative dolphin-swim
seminars. In addition, for seven years they worked very closely with world
renowned dolphin researcher and author, Joan Ocean.
More Information on Other Presenters Coming
Soon!
