A Little Bit of My Story . . .
I'm a breast cancer survivor (over 13 years). I love dark chocolate, red wine, sitting on my front deck gazing at the mountains when I'm in Colorado, and sitting on my patio and taking in the beauty of the desert when I’m in Arizona.
I was born in Chicago and raised in Colorado. I earned a Ph.D. in Speech Communication at the University of Denver and then moved to California to teach storytelling, public speaking, interpersonal communication, screenwriting, and other communication courses at Antelope Valley College.
Along the way, I became a professional storyteller and actor. And after over 20 years of being a college professor, I quit my "day job" to follow my bliss and become a full-time storyteller and actor.
But I eventually realized that I wanted to go beyond those vocations.
That's when I discovered celebrancy and began immersing myself in ceremony and ritual by studying at the Celebrant Foundation & Institute, the premiere training program in the United States. I'm now proud to be a Certified Life-Cycle Celebrant™. Being a Celebrant combines my skills in communication, storytelling, and acting. I love creating ceremonies and rituals!
In addition to becoming a Celebrant, I answered the call to become a Spiritual Director by training at the Hesychia School of Spiritual Direction. Here again, my background in communication serves me well.
And, then I trained to become a Certified Grief Recovery Specialist®. Using the Grief Recovery Method® allows me to help others move forward after any loss, and my background in communication and spiritual direction aid me in this work.
What do I do when I'm not working? I love listening to my daughter's music (check out Sarah Tolar on iTunes or Spotify!), being amazed and entertained by my grandson, playing with my dog (Sadie), and spending time with friends and family.