Sara Vander Zwaag

Practitioner

Institute of Integrative Nutrition, Certified Integrative Nutrition Health Coach (2020)

Contact

sarasunflowerhealth@gmail.com

Sara Vander Zwaag is a Holistic Health Coach & CEO of Sunflower Health and Wellness. Her practice focuses on helping clients recover from Eating Disorders and disordered eating through intuitive eating and body image work. Sara received her Integrative Nutrition Health Coaching Certification from the Institute of Integrative Nutrition. She specializes in helping clients unlearn diet culture, and she is passionate about fighting fatphobia through her weight-neutral, Health At Every Size approach. 

Maxine Garcia

Instructor

Contact

coach.mtmg@gmail.com

LinkedIn

Maxine is a Chicago-based Leadership and Business Coach focused on empowering women as they navigate pivotal moments in life, career and entrepreneurship. Her background encompasses 15+ years in the HR space managing leaders, talent and programs across a variety of industries. She has served on advisory boards for youth-based organizations focused on workforce development and music education, mentors HR professionals, and consults with non-profit leaders in human capital management, operations strategy and board development. 

She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Management and Marketing from Marymount Manhattan College and a Master’s degree in Organizational Development from The Evelyn T. Stone College of Professional Studies, Roosevelt University. She is certified through WELCOA in Workplace Wellness Management, is a certified Life Coach and working toward her ACC credential with the International Coaching Federation. 

Maxine is creative at heart and believes in the value that diverse ideas and perspectives bring to both individual and organizational growth. Her purpose is informed by her experiences as a minority, female leader in business and her unwavering belief in the untapped potential of the empowered individual. 

When she’s not coaching or consulting, she immerses herself in the arts and music; has trained in latin dance, muay thai and is a self-taught photographer.

Kristin Christophersen, Ed.D.

Practitioner

BA Psychology (1995)

Certificate Women’s Studies (1996)

MA Sociology (1998)

Ed.D. Educational Leadership (2023)

Contact

kchristophersencoaching@gmail.com

Kristin is a life coach and community college instructor based in Portland, Oregon. She holds degrees in psychology, sociology, and a doctorate in educational leadership with a focus on postsecondary education and adult learning. In addition, she has completed certificates in women’s studies and mindfulness. Her teaching focuses on the social construction of identities and structural oppression.

After more than a decade of struggling with poor health and receiving inadequate support from the medical community, Kristin was diagnosed with the rare disease acromegaly in 2010. Following a significant surgery and recovery, she made the decision to radically transform her relationship with her body, work, and family as part of her healing journey. She is grateful to be a part of the Banyan Tree Women’s Collective. 

Kristin has extensive experience working with women at various stages of life, empowering them with the tools to explore and uncover their next chapters. She is particularly grateful for her ten years as a volunteer mentor in a program dedicated to supporting women transitioning out of Oregon’s prisons.

When Kristin is not busy making soups or walking her dogs in the forests surrounding the Portland-area, she is actively volunteering for organizations in her community that support women and children.

Efstratia Mantzouranis

Instructor

Contact

Email: inthisbody2020@gmail.com

IG: @inthisbody

Effie is a lifelong dancer, and dance instructor currently teaching classes and workshops in the bay area. Effie primarily teaches heels and twerk  and uses these empowering, feminine movement styles as a tool for sensual expression, body reclamation, and embodied transformation and healing. Effie is currently training to become a somatic practitioner and coach and uses her knowledge of the body through the lens of somatics to create a deeper embodied experience in her offerings. 

Megan Knipp

Practitioner

Contact

MeganKnipp.com

@meganknippnutrition

megan@meganknipp.com

Megan, BS, NC, is a Holistic Nutritionist, Natural Chef, and Health Educator based in Oakland, CA. Her practice, Megan Knipp Nutrition, bridges the relationship between Holistic Nutrition and Mental Health for physical, emotional, and mental wellbeing. Grounded in Functional Nutrition, she takes an integrative, sustainable, whole-self approach to nourishment. Megan empowers her clients to use food as a safe and powerful tool for healing the mind and body.

Diya Raheja

Instructor

Contact

Email: divyanshu.raheja@gmail.com

 Instagram: @diya_raheja22

Diya is a Raqs Sharqi and Fusion Belly Dancer. Diya has several years of training from India and the US. She is passionate about dancing and loves sharing this art form with others.  

Angela Arrivo

Practitioner

Contact

Angela Arrivo

angelaarrivo@gmail.com

IG: @angelaarrivo

Angela is a 200-Hour certified Yoga instructor, a Holistic Nutrition Consultant, and a certified Barre instructor based out of San Jose.

Originally a Chicago native, Angela moved to the Bay Area in 2015 and discovered her passion for wellness and life itself. Wanting to share that passion with others, she supports active, on-the-go individuals with holistic nutrition consulting to help better prioritize long-term health with guidance and knowledge so that positive lifestyle habits can be built and maintained. Her Yoga classes focus on mindful movement, breath work, and tuning inward.

Angela studied holistic nutrition at Bauman College in Berkeley, and graduated with honors in 2022. She encourages those who work with her to stay curious and to have fun. Angela finds inspiration in every day life, in the equanimity nature brings her, and connection with others.

When she isn’t on the mat, at the barre, or at the local farmer’s market, you can find Angela wrapped up in a book, on a hike, or dancing at a concert.

Laleh Khoshkbariie

Instructor

Contact

catering@tuliplolly.com

www.tuliplolly.com

Owner/Chef at Tulip Lolly Catering since 2010. Mother of two awesome kids. Dance instructor and lover of people, culture, food and life. Bachelor of science degree from San Jose State University. Acting degree from FootHill Conservatory. 

Angie Mercado

Instructor

Contact

Email: getfit2beat@gmail.com

Web: Almfitness.com

Angie is always moving…. a self-proclaimed hummingbird. If her body is not in motion, her mind is. Even as a kid you couldn’t get her to sit down, especially if music was playing. She got hooked on group exercise at 17 and has been teaching classes ever since. She graduated from the University of San Francisco with a degree in Exercise Sport Science, expanding her passion for fitness into the areas of personal training and nutrition. 

Angie’s love of music and obsession with choreography inspired the creation of Groove, a high-energy, cardio-dance class with a saucy vibe. HIIT workouts (high-intensity-interval-training) are Angie’s specialty. She delivers a whole-body workout in 40-minutes. The workouts are challenging, fun and addictive. Every class is different, but the result is always the same. Students leave feeling strong, sweaty and inspired. With every class experience Angie’s goal is to help people find joy in movement. 

Angie carries professional certifications with The American Council on Exercise (ACE) and the National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM). In addition to personal training, she teaches both virtual and in-person classes. 

Lee Noto

Practitioner

Contact

hello@leenoto.com

Instagram: @LeeNoto_

www.leenoto.com

Lee guides women on a journey to embodying their Inner High Priestess, so that they can create a deep, intimate relationship  with themselves and effortlessly create their dream partnership. Her mission is to help women feel empowered and free in their expression. 

In her “past life,” she earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Business & Entrepreneurship and her Master’s Degree in Education. From teaching in the classrooms of Hawaii to running multiple businesses in New York City, she has a reverence for nature, learning, and quick wit. 

In “this life,” Lee is  a master coach with certifications in holistic coaching and transformational coaching, and has deeply studied personal development, sacred sexuality, and spirituality. She shares powerful communication tools and somatic practices that allow clients to connect deeply to their emotions and bodies. 

By guiding clients into deeper self-love, self-acceptance, curiosity, and play, Lee helps them boldly open their hearts in order to give and receive the epic love they desire. She is most loved for her ability to hold a safe space for clients to step into their power and create a bliss-filled life.

You can find Lee dancing in the park, singing aloud, or talking in various accents for her own entertainment. :p

Laurie Hang

Instructor

Contact

hanghealthyyoga@gmail.com

www.HangHealthyYoga.com

Laurie is a Certified Yoga Therapist who personalizes the practice of yoga to her private clients and small groups. She enjoys the creative approach to her work, from making yoga FUN, to using her favorite yoga prop, the chair! Laurie is also the Founder of Hike to Yoga LA, with the mission to increase community wellness through nature and yoga.

Lucibel Nunez

Instructor

Contact

lucibeln@hotmail.com

LucibelNunez.com

Lucibel is a Mom, Wife, fitness instructor, health coach and QHHT practitioner. She was born to help people and the best way she is able to do that is through movement and love. She had a group fitness studio for nine years before Covid and has since had to close and pivot everything online. It has been a journey but a journey with many silver linings. Always up for a challenge, Lucibel has enjoyed the process of teaching and working online and is so excited to connect and work with people she would have otherwise not been able to work with due to physical distance.

Mary Beth Ray

Practitioner

Contact

Email: mb@3greencircles.com

3greencircles.com

Mary Beth is a holistic nutrition consultant, Functional Medicine and National Board-Certified Health & Wellness coach, and a certified yoga teacher. She helps women understand their bones, nourish their bones, and build stronger bones so they can enjoy a long life of mobility and independence. MB firmly believes that the crux of our health care is self-care enriched with collaboration, support, information, and grit. Practicing with MB you will hone a more graceful engagement with your everyday life. To learn more about MB’s personal journey and how she can help you, visit