Member Profile

I grew up about 45 miles southwest of Oak Park in a small town called Oswego – or at least it was small when I grew up. Now it is a burgeoning suburban community, but when I lived there it was 1,900 people and Chicago was a world away.  It was pretty much an idyllic town to grow up in – the sort where no one locks their doors, the neighborhood kids played “kick the can” on summer nights, and you knew not just the families on your block but several blocks over.  

My parents and both sets of grandparents also grew up within 10 miles of Oswego, so I am definitely a Midwesterner through and through.  

In my twenties (a long time ago!), due to family, school, and work, I lived in Charlotte, New Orleans, St. Louis, and Minneapolis.  I really loved the excitement of acclimating to new places, but I’m also not a bit sorry that I ended up back near my home stomping grounds.  

My degrees are in Social Work, but for most of my career I worked in the human resources area, first in the corporate sector and then in higher education.  I retired from the University of Chicago Law School in 2019, and before that spent many years at Chapin Hall Center for Children, a policy research center affiliated with the University of Chicago.  I feel so fortunate to have loved working and the organizations I worked in.  But now that I’m retired I can’t imagine how I ever had the time to work!  My husband Ron and I are huge fans national parks and day hiking, especially of the parks west of the Mississippi.  Over the years we’ve visited most of the western parks, and some of them more than once.  It’s impossible to pick a favorite – but Death Valley holds a very special place in my heart.  (Oh, wait, so do the Tetons….and Capitol Reef…and Big Bend…and, and, and….)

My introduction to the Zen Center was the Primer Course about 12 years ago.  I had always been interested in learning more about Eastern traditions, and Zen in particular, and so how fortunate could I be to have a Zen Center just a mile from where I live?  I loved the Primer course and pretty quickly enrolled in another course and, as they say, the rest is history.  

I’ve participated in several different volunteer opportunities, starting out with being a morning opener some years back.  I’ve been on the Board of Directors, served as steward for the Women’s Circle, and coordinated Sunday Morning Zen.  Right now I’m co-stewarding the Kinship Circle with Kelly Good. Volunteering is such a great way to be involved in the Center’s “well-being,” to get to know others, and to really feel like an integral member of the sangha.  (And it truly is a wonderful sangha.)

Several years ago I completed the training that Robert offered to become a certified teacher of the Foundations and Path of Liberation courses.  Teaching has definitely deepened my own practice, and it’s a lot of fun and very satisfying to share these teachings with others.  

There are many, many things that are great about the Zen Center, but something that I am so appreciative of is the inclusiveness that Robert and June have embedded at the core of the Center.  You can be of any faith tradition – or none - and you will be welcomed.  What binds us into a community is our desire to live an awakened life, and to reduce the suffering of all beings, including ourselves.  

Grateful.  That’s how I feel about being a member of the Zen Center.  

March 6, 2023