Kathryn Thomas is the Executive Director of Yoga 4 Change located in Florida, as well as the CEO of ANAMAR Environmental Consulting, Inc.   After serving in the United States Navy as a helicopter pilot, she began studying to become a Yoga teacher through the Yoga School of Kailua.  Upon moving to Jacksonville, Florida, she witnessed the need for mental, emotional, and physical healing in her new community and started Yoga 4 Change to fill that void.  Kathryn has training in multiple disciplines including Power Yoga, Chair Yoga, Hatha Yoga, and Yoga Nidra.  Kathryn formerly served on the board of the Yoga Service Council, where she worked as the project manager and contributed to two of the Best Practice Book Series: Yoga with Veterans, and Yoga in the Criminal Justice System.   In her new role as the CEO of ANAMAR, Kathryn is focusing on the business development of the company, while taking the administrative duties off the shoulders of the technical staff.  Kathryn resides in Florida with her husband, daughter and their 2 Labrador Retrievers.

Eloise Charet - Bear Clan

Eloise Charet-Calles, Bear Clan of Turtle-Island, was born May 20, 1951, in Trois-Rivieres, Quebec and grew up primarily in Montreal and on the family farm in Montebello, Quebec, the third eldest of ten children.

Eloise's up-bringing led her to seek a life of humanitarian service working in Mexico with local street children and in Morocco teaching the children of nomadic shepherds.

In 1974, Eloise and her sister Anna opened and directed "Canada House"- an orphanage in war torn Phnom-Penh, Cambodia. Their work succeeded in enabling the successful airlift and placement of 80 Cambodian and Vietnamese. children to waiting families in Canada and the U.S. “We refused to leave without our babies and drew world attention to our cause. We stood by our motherly instincts and survived incredible tragedies to save the seed of a generation that was wiped out in Cambodia.”

From 1976-78, Eloise continued her work as a volunteer with several orphanages in Dacca, Bangladesh eventually returning to British Columbia, Canada.“I had a gardening/landscaping business in Vancouver, B.C. until my marriage broke up; then I had a huge garage sale and departed for Kathmandu.”

In 1986 Eloise and her children left Canada for Nepal, where she helped coordinate the production of the book Erosion and Sedimentation in the Nepal Himalaya, for which Dr. Galay won the "Canadian Engineer of the Year" award in 1988. During her time in Nepal, Eloise established a local restaurant, organized a soup kitchen and undertook home care for several handicapped orphans from Mother Theresa's Sister of Charity Foundation.

Returning to Canada in 1988, she lived at the family farm in Quebec and continued her interest in herbal medicine, health, nutrition and the raising of her five children. In 1990, she moved her family back to British Columbia and finally settled in the Kootenays.

Eloise helped to organize a cooperative store for cedar basket weavers in the small village of New Denver, located on Slocan Lake in the West Kootenays. On July 22, 1997 she hung up her apron and stood on the Old Sandon Road in New Denver, where she was arrested and chose to spend the next 55 days fasting in the maximum security Detention Centre for Women in Burnaby, B.C. rather than sign the undertaking assuring her compliance. “I was presented with a petition signed by every woman in jail in support of their sister Eloise and her cause for water. It was one of the most touching moments of my life. Throughout the court process I realized that corporations had more rights to water than the people.”

Eloise began the Cross-Canada WaterWalk on May 8, 1998 at Mile 0 of the Trans-Canada Highway in Victoria, British Columbia. In early June 1998, she took a break from walking to receive the Vancouver Island Human Rights Coalition medal, presented by the Governor General of British Columbia and walked into Ottawa with her fellow waterwalkers on October 2^nd, 1998.

“I discovered how tainted our water was and witnessed the suffering of many communities. In Winnipeg, the heart of Turtle-Island, I crossed paths with Bear Grandfather, who was sent by the Bear Grandmothers from the East to walk from Montreal to Vancouver for water. We both followed the red road, the path of legends. We both were cleansed in many sweats across the nation, and the water blessing ceremonies became more intense. Two Bear Grandmothers stood at the entrance to Ottawa with big braids of sweet grass to honour the WaterWalk pilgrimage. She is Bear Clan and as mothers, grandmothers they are very protective of the next generation and all generations to come.

Beginning in November 1999, Eloise stood outside for three cold months in front of the Nelson court house with her trans-Canada water samples, attempting to draw attention to our Canadian water crisis during the federal election campaign which was then taking place. She assisted with the creation of many local markets enabling small businesses to sell their products.

In 2003, she was arrested at the Smallwood Creek blockade in Winlaw. She made an appeal from her Bear Clan status to preserve our watersheds and pressed for community eco-logging, part of her evidence being her water samples.

From the year 2000 on, Eloise has taught cedar and other fibre collecting and weaving, claiming that we can get as much money in baskets from a tree as can be gotten in boards. She has worked alongside loggers throughout the Kootenays when gathering cedar bark, in the hopes of encouraging cable logging and more trans-formative industry in our area. She also travels to schools, first nations meetings and conferences to speak for water, demonstrating her water samples and talking about her experiences. Along with a small group of people, she stopped the herbicide spraying in our clearcuts, prevented a power project from destroying three drainage up the Duncan, stood with the Sinixte people on Perry Ridge. She was also candidate for Mayor in Victoria.

In the fall of 2005, Eloise held a roadblock in the Incomapleux with Henry Hutter for two weeks until the police arrived for arrest. Both Eloise and Henry stepped aside and let workers through, but maintained their position as an information camp. The very next day, a rock cliff slid onto a bridge and blocked the road, forcing all loggers to evacuate the valley. The Incomapleux was preserved another year. Pope and Talbot, the company involved, is suing Eloise and Henry.

In 2012, Eloise wrote a book on Cambodia called ‘Never without our children’ which has been translated into French and she was flown to Cambodia to be in a documentary aired on television.

In the following years, she has been teaching aboriginal studies in many schools, from basket weaving to food and medicine as well as trying to save the toads at Summit Lake. She has volunteered for many community events and remains as always devoted to small local business and caring for the environment.

“It’s hard to imagine that in these modern civilized times, we, the little people, are being branded as criminals and almost terrorist by the State. Good governance is equal to the quality of water given to all our children and that means pure, natural, clean water, not tainted and bleached as we are witnessing today. To pervert water and convince everybody that it is healthy is morally wrong. To legally permit any industry to destroy watersheds and to allow corporations to pollute the environment is a sin. Profit and business must never rule over life. Managing nature is the arrogance of all time. Our indigenous roots teach us that we are a small piece of this immense web of life and we must learn to respect all life as we should respect one another and Leave a Living Legacy for future generations.”

Lauren Price, YN1, US Navy (Retired), is the founder of “Veteran Warriors,” a national veterans’ advocacy group, and she has led that organization since its creation in 2009.  She has testified before Congress on veteran issues. 

Achievements:

• Graduated from Omega Institute, (Cinnaminson, NJ) with Paralegal Certification 1987
• Graduated from Saint Leo University, B.S. Criminal Justice, Minor in Psychology
• Eighteen years of experience in the legal profession
• Enlisted in the U.S. Navy January 3, 2005.  Served at a Shore Command until deployment to Iraq, ultimately returning to Shore duty upon her return.
• Served as a Convoy Driver and Public Affairs Officer for a year in Baghdad, Iraq – February 2007 – March 2008
• Served as Intel and Logistics Lead Petty Officer at Defense Logistics Agency, U.S. Central Command
• Awards: Army Commendation Medal, Joint Service Achievement Medal, Army Achievement, Combat Action Ribbon, National Defense Service Medal, Iraqi Campaign Medal –(with star), Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Naval Reserve Meritorious Service, Military Outstanding Volunteer Service Medal, Navy Overseas Service Ribbon, Army Driver Badge
• Medically retired from the U.S. Navy January 2015
• Married to James Price, Senior Chief, USN, (Ret.), five (5) adult sons, (3 veterans – 1 Air Force, 2 Army and 1 active duty Navy). Resides in Florida since 2004
• Community Service:
• Guardian Ad Litem, Sixth Judicial District, October 2004 – October 2011.
• Pro Bono Child Support Assistance – 1987 – Present

Dr. Robert Weiss is a foot and ankle surgeon who is a graduate of the Ohio College of Podiatric Medicine, and residency trained at The James C. Giuffre Medical Center (formerly St. Luke's & Children's medical center) in Philadelphia, PA.  Dr. Weiss is a known columnist and has written hundreds of articles on sports medicine related injuries, for The Norwalk Hour, The Hersam Acorn Press, The Westport News, and the Darien News Review.  He is a veteran of 35 marathons and is know to many as "The Running Doctor." 



Dr. Weiss is an inventor who holds 2 U.S. patents for a foot support system/orthotics which stabilizes the foot and ankle and helps as it relates to knee, hip, and lower back symptoms.  He is past chief of foot and ankle surgery at the former St. Joseph's Hospital in Stamford and on the staff at Stamford Hospital and Norwalk Hospital.



Dr. Robert F. Weiss suffered as a young man from serious foot and knee problems. He has made it his life's work to use the opportunity to engage in a healthy range of activities.

He has spent over 25 years in research development and clinical testing of a patented, high-tech, biomechanical orthotic for aiding with walking, and general foot comfort.  With the help of the patented product he went on to complete 35 marathons.



His orthotic treatment is directed to correct structural deficiency and muscular imbalance.  A prescribed orthotic device serves to control motion and position of the leg during locomotion.

Janis B. Meredith, sports mom and coach's wife.



I was brought up in a family who loved sports, married a man who has coached for 29 years (football and softball) and have had three kids play youth sports from age 4 to college.



I see youth sports a bit differently, with a view from both sides of the bench. I believe in character building for kids in sports.



As a communications specialist and freelance writer, my kids are now 30, 27, and 24 and all three played sports in college. I am also a certified parent life coach.



I've seen just about everything in youth sports-good and bad. And I feel strongly about helping parents and young athletes build character through the athletic experience.



Playing sports brings excitement and recognition. It may even help pay for college and open doors for the future. But nothing will ever be more important than the type of person your son or daughter becomes in the process.