Thomas M. Atkinson is an author and playwright. His short story, “Grimace in the Burnt Black Hills,” won an Ohio Arts Council Individual Excellence Award, appeared in The Sun magazine, has received two Pushcart Prize nominations, and is being taught in English 11 & 12 AP classes in San Diego. His first novel, Strobe Life, is currently available for Kindle on Amazon, and he just completed his second novel, TIKI MAN. He lives in southwest Ohio with his wife and two sons. Email him at strobelife@yahoo.com.
Pamela Burditt holds degrees in nursing and communication; is an active member at The Loft Literary Center in Minneapolis, where she lives; and enjoys traveling to Third World countries and caring for children on behalf of Smile Network International. Contact her at dorothypbody@hotmail.com.
Kent Gerdes is the proud owner of the world famous Topa Topa Taxi, the only taxi service located in Ojai, specializing in long rides that seem to not take any time at all. Former occupations include community organizer, custom home builder, and IT executive. His spare time is spent writing, running rivers in Montana, and searching out steep roads with smooth surfaces to slalom down on his roller blades. Reach him at hurdygerdy@gmail.com.
Leslee Goodman is the editor of The MOON magazine and founder of Alchemy on Demand, a PR and communications firm. Email her at leslee@moonmagazine.org.
Bo Lozoff is the late co-founder, with his wife Sita, of the Human Kindness Foundation and the Prison Ashram Project, which supports inmates in using their prison sentences as an opportunity for spiritual development—an ashram behind bars. Lozoff authored many spiritual books, including We’re All Doing Time, a classic for both inmates and “free worlders” on working with the circumstances of our lives as “grist for the mill” of spiritual development. Lozoff died last November in a motorcycle accident in Hawaii.
Varsha Mathrani is a native of Queens, NY, and has been involved in public service all over the globe—in Alaska, Thailand, India, and Uganda. She has degrees in biology and public health and was a 2009 Fulbright Scholar to India. Contact her at varsha.mathrani@gmail.com.
Lisa Nichols is founder and CEO of Motivating the Masses, Inc., which is committed to helping entrepreneurs, business leaders and professionals live their dreams and build their own personal legacy. She has grown her passion for empowerment, service, and gratitude from a struggling single-mom into a multi-million dollar enterprise. In addition to helping business professionals, Lisa is founder and CEO of Motivating the Teen Spirit, LLC, which has transformed the lives of over 300,000 teens and young adults. She is also a best-selling author of three books and a renowned international speaker and leader.
Rain Perry is an award-winning songwriter and author of the autobiographical play Cinderblock Bookshelves: A Guide for Children of Fame-Obsessed Bohemian Nomads. She has released three albums on her own Precipitous Records, and her song “Beautiful Tree” is the theme for the CW Series Life Unexpected. She is the Grand Prize winner of both the John Lennon Song Contest (Folk Division) and the ROCKRGRL Discoveries competition, as well as a Telluride Troubadour finalist.
Rumi, also known as Jalāl ad-Dīn Muhammad Rūmī, was a 13th-Century Persian poet, scholar, jurist, theologian, and Sufi mystic.
