About Priscilla
Reared in a small town in the rural South with three lively siblings, a schoolteacher/shop-owner mother, and a career-mailman father (both of whom were English majors and writers), Priscilla gained a love of reading, writing, playing, thinking, music, solitude, nature, and animals. Passionately dedicated to acquiring knowledge and new experiences, she’s lived in Atlanta, St. Louis, Delaware, Belgium, Pennsylvania and has roamed widely. She now lives in Waynesville, NC, in the magical Smoky Mountains of North Carolina, near the mystical vibes of Asheville.
Priscilla’s career spans being an in-the-field market researcher, a medical editor for leading publishers, an insurance executive for a Fortune 100 company, a marketing product manager for the world’s largest privately held collectibles company, a freelance writer, an award- winning beer journalist, a yoga teacher, and now a book author, AMC’s 50 Best Day Hikes in New Jersey (second edition pending).
Priscilla writes, hikes, and brings sonic healing to all through the vibrations of the gong.
Training
- Dozens of writing workshops, including three years with Janet Benton founder of The Word Studio and author of the novel Lille de Jong.
- Completed Module One, Pilates Mat Training, 2020
- Trained hike leader with the Appalachian Mountain Club since 1996.
- 9-hour course, “The Physics of Sound,” with Thomas Orr Anderson, MA, 2019.
- 50-hour “Metaphysics of Sound” course with Mitch Nur, Ph.D., 2019
- 10-day “Gong Camp” with Mitch Nur, Ph.D., 2019.
- 28-hour Gong Resonance Therapy Workshop Two with Crown of Eternity www.CrownofEternity.com, 1/19, Northport, NY (Kundalini Yoga and Healing of Long Island)
- 62-hour Kundalini Teacher Training Level II, Conscious Communication Module, Oct.-Jan. 2018-2019, at Khalsa Healing Arts in Yardley, PA
- 20-hour Gong Resonance Therapy Workshop with Crown of Eternity, www.CrownofEternity.com, 2/18, Sarasota, FL
- 3-day chair yoga intensive workshop with international trainer Willem Wittstamm (Mangala Singh), Aug. 12, 13, 14, 2016 at Khalsa Healing Arts in Yardley, PA (Priscilla co-produced event)
- 62-hour Kundalini Teacher Training Level II, Relationship Module, Oct.-Jan. 2015-2016, at Khalsa Healing Arts in Yardley, PA
- 3-day Chair Yoga training, International Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Center, Nassau, Bahamas, 1/15
- 8-hour Healing Gong Workshop with Crown of Eternity, www.CrownofEternity.com, 11/14
- Reiki certified, Level Two, 11/14, with Joyce Cooke, Bensalem, PA
- 48-CEU SuperHealth ® Specialty Professional Training: Yogic Science to Break Habits & Addictive Behaviors at Guru Ram Das Ashram, Espanola, NM, 3/14
- 15-CEU Chair Yoga Teacher Certificate with Deborah Kurilla of Integral Yoga Works, Warrington, PA, 2/14
- 25-CEU Yoga Therapy Training Intensive with Todd Norian at Kripalu, MA, 2/13
- 8-hour Arthritis Foundation Exercise Program Instructor Workshop Training, Chester County, PA 11/12
- CPR certified, Newtown, PA 11/12
- 200-hour Kundalini Yoga certification at Khalsa Healing Arts, Yardley, PA, 3/12
- B.A. Emory University, Atlanta, GA
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Previous Positions
Employment: Director of Marketing at Cigna Group Insurance; Product Manager at the Franklin Mint collectibles; Medical book acquisitions editor at W.B. Saunders.
Previous Associations
- Vice President, Philadelphia Direct Marketing Association
- President, Editorial Freelancers’ Association (Philadelphia chapter)
- Chapter Chair, Delaware Valley Chapter of the Appalachian Mountain Club
- President, Bucks County Neighbors
Awards
- Short stories in literary magazines
- 1st Place in Institutional Advertising & Direct Mail Promotion from the Professional Insurance Marketing Association
- Gold & Silver awards for feature articles from the North American Guild of Beer Writers (judged by University of Missouri’s journalism school).
Other Vocation
Priscilla is a professional book reviewer at The US Review of Books. Click here for reviews. www.theUSreview.com Interested in getting your book professionally reviewed? Contact Priscilla at pestes2@verizon.net.
Volunteer Work
- Priscilla is a trail work volunteer for the Carolina Mountain Club of Western North Carolina.
- Priscilla is a volunteer hike leader for the non-profit Appalachian Mountain Club and leads yoga and hiking retreats at AMC’s lodge (Mohican Outdoor Center) in the Delaware Water Gap.
- She served on the Mohican Outdoor Center committee, 2014-2015.
- She taught Yoga/Gong for Addictions at the annual international conference for Women for Sobriety for 6 years.
- Priscilla served as Membership Chair, President and Advisor of Bucks County Neighbors social and philanthropic group. Member since 2003.
- She served on the 2014 Bucks County Free Library Community Planning Committee.
