CIRCLES OF TRUST - Key Persons
Adé Adeniji Adé Adeniji is a certified coach, group facilitator and consultant who works with individuals, teams and organisations to co-create environments that allow the implicit become explicit. He is passionate about navigating spaces where everyone feels included and brave enough to bring all their stories of strength and struggle. Adé is a Certified Daring Way™ and Dare to Lead™ Facilitator, programmes based on the research of Dr. Brené Brown which explore topics such as vulnerability, courage, shame, and worthiness. Adé has over 20 years experience in Human Resources and Leadership Development - spanning the public, private and not-for-profit sectors. Adé was Human Resources Director with Liberty Global Europe, a digital media company, with responsibility for the UK, Netherlands, Spain and Central Europe. Prior to that, he was Head of Human Resources with Guardian News and Media Ltd. He has held other HR roles with the Financial Ombudsman Service, ITV, the Foreign & Commonwealth Office, the Cabinet Office. Previous clients include BBC, Economist, Philips, Wellcome Trust, eHealth Africa, Buzzfeed, PwC and the NHS.
Job Titles:
- Accounting Specialist
- Accounting Specialist at Blumer & Associates
Ariel Thai Heide is an Accounting Specialist at Blumer & Associates. She keeps numbers moving quickly through all software products, maintaining the connections, and keeps everything reconciled and buttoned up for the final advisory review! Ariel started her career as a General Manager, fell in love with accounting and eventually went on to run the company for the owner (before he retired).
She'll start her day with 4 to 6 cups of coffee, puts on the jams (too many great bands to choose from!), and gets head's down in all of the client's accounting records. With a sweet tooth it's no wonder sweet tea and desserts are her go to indulgences. Her super power would be to fly if she could. She loves the fall and enjoys a good comedy or documentary.
Living in St. Hedwig, a suburb of San Antonio, TX, Ariel loves to spend time relaxing in her free time with her family, sons and friends - but she loves to stay busy, so she can't sit down too long! She loves to volunteer for local food banks and poverty alleviation in San Antonio.
Chiquita Taborn is our Executive Assistant and she comes to CCR with a wealth of experience and knowledge as an administrative assistant in the accounting and nonprofit sectors. Chiquita is passionate about helping organizations develop and maintain efficient operations to grow their businesses. She is also passionate about helping others discover the greatness within themselves.
Chris is committed to unlocking compassionate and courageous leadership needed to create a more just world. He is the Ford Foundation's Global Director of People and Organizational Development. He works on global programs that enable the foundation's strategy, enhance its culture of diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging, promote values-based team effectiveness and aid colleagues in reaching their full potential. Chris has served in leadership and organization development roles throughout his career and across sectors at such organizations as the Bell Laboratories, Columbia University, Visiting Nurse Service of New York and the Rockefeller Foundation. Chris has taught graduate courses at the City University of New York's Brooklyn College and at Columbia University's Teachers College.
Chris earned his bachelor's degree in psychology and his master's in organizational psychology. He is a somatic or embodied leadership coach. Chris holds certificates in leadership coaching, mediation and conflict resolution among other things.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Conference Superintendent
Dr. Aleze currently serves as a Conference Superintendent, in the Central and West Districts of the Indiana Conference of the United Methodist Church. Prior to her current appointment of Conference (District) Superintendent, Aleze served as the Director of Leadership Development for the Indiana Conference, and in the North Texas Conference in a host of ministry settings, as the Associate Director of Leadership Development, the Associate Pastor at First United Methodist-Commerce and Campus Minister for Wesleyan Campus Ministry at Texas A&M University-Commerce.
Emmy transitioned from an accounting background to the nonprofit sector 5 years ago. She has a passion for contributing to the success of an equitable society. Her nonprofit experience has been in healthcare, where she got to be part of a team that made a positive impact in the lives of individuals and their families who struggle to meet their basic medical needs. It has been an incredibly fulfilling journey for her and she is excited to bring this same passion and gratitude to contribute to CCR's commitment to creating a healthier and more empowered community.
Where I'm Finding Inspiration
I find inspiration through people I've met. Each person I encounter brings a distinct perspective and set of challenges, and witnessing their resilience and determination inspires me greatly.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- President of Carlson Capital Management
Justin Stets is President of Carlson Capital Management, a Minnesota-based independent wealth management firm. The focus of the firm is directed to deliver expertise, care and experience to families/individuals looking for the integration of estate, tax, philanthropy, risk management and holistic financial planning. Beyond this work, Justin is active in industry and community work, including community foundation board work. He holds a B.A. in Latin, Greek and Religion from St. Olaf College, and Master's in Theological Studies from Harvard University. Kristin and Justin have four children who are all spreading their wings. His Gallup StrengthFinder themes include: Learner, Responsibility, Achiever, Self-Assurance and Connectedness.
Kathryn McElveen is our Executive Director. Her work in public and private nonprofits, social justice, leadership formation, and executive coaching has focused on helping people-and their communities and organizations-integrate their inner and outer lives, align values and actions, and cultivate the agency and stamina necessary to sustain meaningful change. Kathryn is an experienced Courage & Renewal facilitator, committed to expanding access to our approach, and deepening the understanding and engagement of our principles, practices, and values to transform organizational systems and cultures to their most life-giving potential.
Job Titles:
- Mentoring Program Coordinator
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Writer
Mardi Tindal is a writer, adult educator and former Moderator (elected spiritual leader) of The United Church of Canada, who makes climate change - inner and outer - a focus of her work. She is known for her leadership locally, nationally and internationally, as a faith leader active in UN Climate negotiations from Copenhagen (2009) to Paris (2015), and has been described by Canada's largest circulation newspaper as "a compelling voice". She is a Courage & Renewal facilitator, a mentor for facilitators in preparation, and serves on the CCR Board. Mardi makes her home at Oakview Coliving in the Algonquin Highlands of Ontario, Canada.
The Center for Courage & Renewal exists to nurture deep integrity and relational trust, building the foundation for a more loving, equitable, and healthy world.
The Center for Courage & Renewal exists to nurture deep integrity and relational trust, building the foundation for a more loving, equitable, and healthy world.
Job Titles:
- Director of Membership & Belonging
Nichelle Harrison is our Director of Membership & Belonging. With an emphasis on belonging she is actively engaged in co-creating awareness and activity around inclusive, equitable spaces, workplaces, and community development. Nichelle is an entrepreneur, philanthropist, and a huge proponent of doing the inner work not only for personal and professional development, but for the overall good of humanity.
Pandora Saunders, CPA, is a Customer Ally at Blumer & Associates. She has been in the public life of accounting for many years, most recently leading and running her own small firm before starting at Blumer.
Dedicated and passionate about her work, Pandora loves helping people with their goals of growing their businesses by showing them useful information and providing guidance and suggestions on how to keep moving in a positive direction. She truly loves the clients she works with at Blumer and invites them into the firm with a thoughtful question "Where do you want to go and how can I help you?" She has a heart for nonprofits, has worked for a few, volunteers often, and even started her own school.
Hailing from Washington, UT, Pandora is originally from Seattle. She loves her two daughters, reading, fluffy blankets, hot cocoa, rain on the window, and resting in the shade on a hot day in the park. Her favorite pastime is rappelling from mountains, makes a mean lasagna (her favorite dish!), and would love the superpower of flying. She is a Lord of the Rings movie fan and jams to the smooth elevated sounds of her favorite group, Savage Garden.
Job Titles:
- Author
- Library / Library
- Writer
Parker's work has touched the lives of millions of people around the world seeking to live more courageously and authentically while serving the human possibility.
Biography
Parker J. Palmer is a writer, speaker and activist who focuses on issues in education, community, leadership, spirituality and social change. He is founder and Senior Partner Emeritus of the Center for Courage & Renewal.
He holds a Ph.D. in sociology from the University of California at Berkeley, as well as thirteen honorary doctorates, two Distinguished Achievement Awards from the National Educational Press Association, and an Award of Excellence from the Associated Church Press.
Palmer is the author of ten books-including several award-winning titles-that have sold nearly two million copies and been translated into ten languages: On the Brink of Everything, Healing the Heart of Democracy, The Heart of Higher Education (with Arthur Zajonc), The Courage to Teach, A Hidden Wholeness, Let Your Life Speak, The Active Life, To Know As We Are Known, The Company of Strangers, and The Promise of Paradox.
In 1998, the Leadership Project, a national survey of 10,000 educators, named Dr. Palmer one of the thirty "most influential senior leaders" in higher education and one of the ten key "agenda-setters" of the past decade.
Since 2002, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) has given annual Parker J. Palmer "Courage to Teach" and "Courage to Lead" Awards to graduate medical education program directors and designated institutional officials.
In 2005, Living the Questions: Essays Inspired by the Work and Life of Parker J. Palmer, was published.
In 2010, Palmer was given the William Rainey Harper Award whose previous recipients include Margaret Mead, Elie Wiesel, Marshall McLuhan, and Paulo Freire.
Parker Palmer is the author of ten books-including several award-winning titles-that have sold nearly two million copies and been translated into ten languages.
Sherri Whittington is our Global Operations Manager. She comes to CCR with a variety of operations and marketing experience in the tech and nonprofit sectors. Sherri is passionate about growing organizations for positive social impact through deep connection to community, clients and partners. She is a practitioner of the healing work that can be found when friends, neighbors and strangers gather in hospitable, welcoming spaces.
Job Titles:
- Chairman of the Board
- Executive Director
- Operations Manager
- Director of Membership & Belonging
- Mentoring Program Coordinator
Tara Reynolds is a community organizer with a passion for building trust in relationships and organizations. Tara is a Courage & Renewal® Facilitator and an alumnae of the Vermont Leadership Institute. She is a Co-Founder of WholeHeart, Inc., whose mission is to support inner transformation that leads to social transformation. She has had the privilege of working with young leaders and activists, PhD scholars, school administrators, CEOs and philanthropists seeking to lead lives of greater integrity and purpose. Tara finds joy in the wisdom of children, the beauty of the natural world, and the power of a good open and honest question. She and her daughter are new permanent residents in Canada and are grateful to live in Mi'kma'ki, the ancestral and unceded territory of the Mi'kmaw people. Tara enjoys working and learning with her husband, Brian Braganza, who is also a certified Courage & Renewal® Facilitator.
Job Titles:
- Director of Strategic Initiatives
- Is Director
of Strategic Initiatives. His career has included experiences in brand strategy, marketing, media, and nonprofit entrepreneurship. He spent a number of years helping build conferences at Forbes, worked with startup founders to help grow their businesses through digital marketing, and served as an account executive and strategist to launch and grow brands at Brains on Fire. He also started his own nonprofit, Brother Box, to encourage Black boys to dream big and be their most authentic selves. Taylor strives to inspire people to live authentically and show up for one another with hope, grace, and love.
Veta Goler recently retired after 33 years at Spelman College where she taught dance history and served in several administrative roles. Holding a master of fine arts in dance and a doctorate in African-American studies, she had a successful career as a modern dance artist - performing and choreographing nationally and internationally - and as a dance historian, focusing her research on contemporary African-American modern dance artists, particularly women choreographers. Her work also explores the intersection of dance and spirituality in popular culture, and spirituality and contemplative practices in education and the workplace. She has published her research in dance and culture journals and anthologies and has presented at national and international conferences. She became a Courage facilitator in 2007 and facilitates Circle of Trust retreats and workshops in retreat and conference centers, in academic institutions, and online. Veta now serves as chair of the CCR Board of Directors.