Members of Our Wisdom Council

Frances is the founder of the Discovery Team which is the core guidance team responsible for the birth of The Order of Saint Hildegard.

Leaning on 20 years in nonprofit and faith-partnered communities, crisis-based social services and teaching, Frances recently served as Executive Director of United Ministries of Pensacola before moving into community and leadership development.

A former pastor in the British Methodist Church and in the Western North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church, Frances has studied with powerful mentors, including Archbishop Desmond Tutu. 

Experiences of toxic/traumatic spiritual abuse nearly silenced Frances's call to lead, but the work of deep contemplation and the grace of healing and rising  grew Frances into a nurturer of leaders. In 2018 Frances became a Certified Dare to Lead ™ Facilitator and is currently studying to be Certified as a Guided Meditation Facilitator. Frances loves cooking, Mama Earth, singing, walking in the woods, leading worship in a new and uncertain wilderness, and writing.

Anita is a healer.  

She is the author of 

Kamikaze Yogi: 

Christ, Yoga and the Courage to Emerge. 

She is also the Creator of the podcast "It's 5 O'Clock Somewhere" and the founder of Smiling Heart Yoga. She lives in New Jersey and helps people dig deep to rise big. Anita is expansive in her leadership and facilitates the journey for many.

Michelle is a visual artist full of wonder and curiosity for the ever surprising mystery of Divine communion. While much of her artwork rises out of the ancient tradition of icon art, Michelle has found a way of creating that is playful and freeing. Artmaking opens us to the spiritual realm and fosters deep listening — something Michelle desires to help others experience. 

A survivor herself, Michelle also seeks ways to educate others on spiritual abuse and trauma in the church. She believes listening and holding space for others to share their stories of pain is an undervalued ministry and was the at the heart of the person Jesus.

Sarah is the Director of Family Ministries at First Presbyterian Pensacola. She has a knack for getting to the heart of the matter and loves a good dry, goofy and obscure joke. 

Sarah has a background in ministry and ministry leadership, board leadership, financial oversight and childhood development.  She loves a good Old Fashioned. Sarah is studying human resources and nonprofit leadership.  She's a mom of five incredible girls and she has a tattoo of a dancer on her forearm. Because she loves to dance. And sing.

 Sarah is a birther of the new. She is learning to trust her gifts.

Donald is a 33 year old queer person  from rural Appalachia. In his early ministry and prior to coming out 4 years ago He was an Ordained minister in the Assembly of God. 

While at Pentecostal seminary he came out, received his first reiki attunements, and fully jumped into the waters of New Thought Metaphysics. 

Today he is an ordained metaphysical minister and Reiki Master.