Attaining Freedom From Within

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Helen Blaaker is the Co-Owner and CEO of The Easy Yogi, an Ayurveda Consulting Practice, and mindfulCITY, an online resource for all things mindful.  Helen is an Ayurvedic practitioner and meditation teacher. With years of monastic training and a life devoted to contemplative practice, she brings a rare blend of softness, depth, and precision. Her presence invites participants to slow down, listen inward, and notice the subtleties that shape their inner and outer lives. 

Dr. Mookherjee Philip is a cardiologist healer who deals with ‘all matters of the heart.’ Over her 20+ years of practicing medicine she became acutely aware of the role stress plays in people’s heart health.  Disha, with a background in healthcare, spiritual mentorship is a powerful and uncompromising guide. Her direct, intuitive approach cuts through confusion and resistance, helping participants face themselves with honesty and courage. She is a force to be reckoned with—steadfast in her commitment to truth and transformation. 

Yolanda Beckers is a seasoned healer and movement guide who, alongside her husband Koen, has held a sacred healing and meditation space for over 30 years. Their center offers a rich variety of holistic therapies, weaving together sound, movement, and energy work to support deep transformation. Since the very beginning of our silence retreats, Yolanda has gently guided participants in Qi Gong—offering a steady, grounding practice that many have found essential to their healing process and embodied presence.

Marilyn Rolfe is an acclaimed visual artist whose murals can be found brightening walls all across Florida. With decades of experience and a vibrant creative spirit, Marilyn brings a powerful yet accessible approach to art as a tool for healing.

As our art facilitator, she helps participants move beyond the fear of “not being an artist” by offering simple, encouraging steps that unlock creative flow. Her workshops invite you to explore expression without judgment, using color, texture, and form as pathways to emotional release and self-discovery.

Marilyn understands that art is more than technique—it’s a deeply human language. Her presence in the retreat helps participants reconnect with their inner voice and allow what’s within to come forward in surprising, beautiful ways.

  Evelyn Pena is a gifted energy healer, Reiki practitioner, sound healer, massage therapist, and yoga teacher. With a nurturing presence and deep intuitive wisdom, she supports others in their healing journeys through touch, movement, and vibration. Having participated in numerous silence retreats, Evelyn brings a grounded, compassionate energy that beautifully complements the deep inner work of participants, offering a space where transformation can gently unfold. 

  Dr. Sarah Jefferis is a powerful poet, author, editor, and Reiki practitioner who helps others access their authentic voice through the body. Creator of Mat to Pen, a unique Yin Yoga writing workshop, Sarah guides participants to unlock creativity by moving through the physical blocks that often hold back expression. This year, she joins the retreat to help us dive deeper into our writing by awakening the body’s subtle energies—allowing words to rise from a place of truth, presence, and embodied wisdom.  

E.Y.E.S is the Founder of Rent-Assaince Man, COO of The Easy Yogi and COO of mindfulCITY. He has worked in the food industry for approximately two decades. His philosophy on food is that the body requires nutrients to be healthy and food is just the pretty packaging for those nutrients. This is why he finds it important to create visually appealing, delectable dishes from whole foods as part of a healthy lifestyle. He is also passionate about the intersection of healthy eating and functional movement to promote longevity, vitality, and confidence.  Yet , through Submerge Society, music, the arts and lyricism are his truest form of expression and transformation.

 Aarti Pappu is a Physician Assistant in Albany, NY. She believes that the key to "getting better" is not to just diagnose and cure but to heal. Same goes for the soul. Aarti has been a practitioner and facilitator of Raja Yoga meditation for over 35 years and has seen the transformation of many with the combination of knowledge, meditation and implementation in every day life. And so she believes in the healing power of silent, honest and real reflection of the self, in a comforting environment. Having gone through the healing path of silence journey herself, she is moved to share healing with others just like she found the tools, the space, the time and the perfect setting to heal. 

Caroline Ward has been invited to teach in more than 60 countries about how to live more authentically. She has spent the last 30 years experimenting with the laws and principles of life, making her an excellent resource for those shifting towards more authentic living. As a leader and guide, she is best known for her powerful vision and intuition, her unlimited heart, and wise guidance. In the early 2000s, her Melbourne-based consulting business, About People, garnered a reputation for bringing a balance of head and heart to their work, with the ability to capture people at all levels of organizations. She is a 30-year practitioner of Raja Yoga Meditation and the author of two books, "The Four Faces of Woman" and "My Courage, Your Courage," both focusing on the transformational power of the feminine archetype. She is currently writing a memoir, "The Optimist Heart: Life Experiments in Resilience, Stamina and Unbridled Joy."