About the Authors & Artists in our latest book

 

Allende- Goitía – Noel Allende-Goitía is an independent scholar and researcher. At the Metropolitan Campus of the Interamerican University of Puerto Rico, he coordinated the Puerto Rican Music Studies and Research Center and the music graduate program. His has a B.M. in Voice from the Music Conservatory of Music of Puerto Rico and a M.A. in History from the University of Puerto Rico. He made a postgraduate study in Musicology at the Center of Studies and Development on Cuban Music (1992), in Cuba, with Zoila. Gómez and graduated from Michigan State University with a Ph. D. in Music with a major in composition and a minor in ethnomusicology and a researcher fellow at the African Diaspora Research Project under the leadership of the late Dr. Ruth S. Hamilton.

Allende-Goitía Has published books in Puerto Rico music’s social and cultural history, music instruction and music historiography. His works in Music/Culture Social History have been presented at national and international conferences in Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Cuba, Jamaica, Brazil, Ecuador, Costa Rica, Uruguay, Spain, theUnited States, US Virgin Islands, Mexico, and Ghana.

Bariletti – Kate Bariletti, who lives in New Zealand, has been writing all her life, but she has increased her focus on writing since 2000. She received a mentorship for writing her first young adult novel in 2012. Additionally she has published two poetry collections and short stories. Her work appears in local publications. Currently she is working on a collection of poetry, a memoir and another novel. Find out more about Kate at katebariletti.com

Brown – Kelly Brown is a North Carolina native that has had the honor of living in several areas of this great state and has been a member of the Western North Carolina community for the past few years. Kelly has been involved in his community in a variety of ways since living here. Kelly has a deep love for the beauty of this region, its stories, culture, and the people that call it home. You can find him enjoying the many offerings of local businesses, sipping coffee, enjoying reading a book and/or laughing with friends. The best start to Kelly’s day is sipping coffee from a locally made mug and listening to NPR or a podcast.

Campagna – Jenny Campagna is an endometrial cancer survivor, mother of three fabulous grown men and an overjoyed grandmother.  She is a licensed professional clinical counselor supervisor currently working on her registered expressive arts therapist designation.  During the pandemic, she found creative ways to incorporate expressive arts in her practice via telehealth but misses breathing others air and sharing art space.  She is an active member of her Mennonite church where she often leads worship and sings in service or with her acoustic music group.  She loves gardening and arranging flowers for every little thing. You may visit her website at http://yourturncounseling.com or contact her at her work email, jennycampagna@yourturncounseling.com.

Carter –Todd Carter graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Education/Exercise Science and was a letterman in Football Sports Medicine from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and everything he’s done since bears little resemblance to that life. His career(s) in the restaurant business, sexual health and wellness industry, nonprofits and local government have taken him throughout the United States, around the world and now, back in his home state where it all began. From celebrity studded restaurant openings to sex toy tradeshows to fundraising for homeless families, Todd has persevered through a suicide attempt, contracting HIV, and enduring the murder of his soulmate and suicide of his boyfriend some twenty years apart. Vulnerability has become his “superpower” and poetic reflections his release.

Chin – Victor Chin is an aspiring poet and writer. He has been honored and extremely fortunate to serve as the vice president of the Berry SPITS, Phillip O. Berry Academy of Technology’s poetry and creative writing club, founded and advised by Ms. Natasha Wall. He has also served as a founder, artistic director, and general supervisor of The Cardinal Quill, his school’s literary magazine operated by the Berry SPITS. He looks forward to more opportunities in collaborating and communicating with others in artistic, literary, and intellectual fields of interest as he develops his craft in poetry and prose.

Gelsthorpe – Andi Gelsthorpe is a mother, modern-day hunter-gatherer, social worker, photographer, multi-media artist and community activist raised on the bluffs of the mighty Mississippi River in Illinois. She received her BA in Anthropology from the University of Illinois Champaign-Urbana in 1994 and her Masters in Social Work from the same institution in 1998. Andi is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and holds a Certificate in Expressive Arts Therapy from Appalachian State University. Andi is pursuing her Registered Expressive Arts Consultant and Educator credential. She works as an Early Interventionist for the State of North Carolina. In 2020, Andi was awarded an Artist Support Grant through the North Carolina Arts Council to create a temporary, public mural named “Be the Light” that was installed in downtown Boone from April-May of 2021.

Recently, Andi’s block print work has been accepted by Art-O-Mat to be sold worldwide. Her work has been published in Headwaters: Appalachian Journal of Expressive Arts Therapy and was selected to be exhibited in the Expressive Arts 35thAnniversary Celebration at the Turchin Arts Center. Andi lives in the beautiful mountains of Boone, NC with her husband, their son, and their two blue heelers, Rip and Frank.

Inkley – Tori Burris Inkley was born in Michigan, raised in the Carolinas, and has lived in New Jersey for the last 27 years after a 5 year stint in Southern California. Married to an actor (Fred), mother to three amazing children (Zach, Kiersten, and Maddie), and Mimsy to one very snugglable granddaughter, Tori is also the Executive Director of three Montessori schools, a non-profit for children with language and learning challenges, and one of only three Montessori Teacher Training Centers in New Jersey. She is also part-owner of an after school enrichment company and believes wholeheartedly in the benefits of meditation. Tori received her B.A. in Psychology from Catawba College, her Master of Education from James Madison University, and did her post-graduate work at San Diego State University. Writing is something Tori has embraced since childhood, and though her writing time is often limited these days, when she does write, it is freeing and therapeutic and when she truly is at her best. Tori is grateful and feels honored to be a part of this publication. You may reach out to Tori at tinkley@njmca.me and can check out her blog at  https://toridreamer.com

 Jack – Michele Jack is originally a Pennsylvania girl who has lived in the UK for a long time.  She juggles a job in tech with art, writing, editing and computer graphics. She has  lived in Ireland, worked in London, knit lots of sweaters, made soap, written ipad games for kids and produced an English daughter, all while remembering to drive on the left side of the road.

Kallimanis – Pamela Kallimanis is a Long Island native who has lived in New York City for most of her adult life.  Her book, The Zero Elegies, examines the altered edge of Manhattan’s skyline during and after 9/11. She teaches English and Creative Writing in the City and State University systems of New York.  She is currently at work on the second collection of elegies to be published by Three Mile Harbor Press.

LaTorre – Paul Latorre is a poet, educator, editor, and activist from Newark, NJ. He teaches creative writing at his alma mater of Bloomfield College, where he is lead Editor of ‘BC Underground’, a student-run literary magazine. His poetry blends pop culture with advocacy for various causes: from social justice to mental health, body image & eating disorders, sexual assault, grief & trauma. His first book of poems, ‘Disappearing Boy’ was published in March 2020 by Three Mile Harbor Press. http://linktr.ee/paulconqueso

Love – Jim Love. After a working life that spanned sales, political activism and nearly 25 years in the sports broadcasting industry, Jim Love has turned his attention to a very personal cause, mental health.  Jim , a product of rural North Carolina and a proud University of North Carolina Tar Heel, continues his journey of healing by sharing his story through his writing in the hope  that openness and honesty can spur deeper conversation on mental health in today’s world. Jim and his wife Lori reside in Kannapolis, North Carolina.

McRae – Ophelia McRae got her bachelor’s degree from UNC Chapel Hill, and currently lives in Carrboro with her two cats. When she’s not writing she is reading or watching RuPaul’s Drag Race.

Moodie Dyer – Amber Moodie-Dyer is a social worker, teacher, writer, artist and activist originally from Missouri. She received her BS in Psychology from Missouri State University in 2001, a Masters in Social Work from Washington University in St. Louis in 2003, and a PhD in Social Work from the University of Missouri in 2011. Amber also is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and Expressive Arts Therapist. She has worked in several nonprofit settings in the fields of community organizing, outreach and engagement, policy and advocacy, and direct practice in four different states over the course of 20 years on issues ranging from alternative education and afterschool programming for youth, neighborhood vitality, substance abuse prevention, community development, affordable housing, child care, environmental justice, social and economic policy, and health care.

Amber currently lives in Vilas, North Carolina, and works as a Medical Social Worker for Amorem, providing support to hospice and palliative care patients and their families. Amber co-founded the High Country Death Café in Boone, NC to provide a forum for people to talk honestly and openly about death. You may contact her at moodiedyer@gmail.com

Thorp – Alexandre Thorp is a software developer, mathematician, musician, and poet. He has a bachelor’s degree in Mathematics from UNC Asheville, where he also studied philosophy and music. He formed a strong bond with nature and poetry living in the Appalachian Mountains of Western North Carolina

Thorp – Heather Thorp began writing a journal at age 12 when her older sister gave her a journal. She has degrees in Social Work and is completing a doctorate in Educational Leadership with a concentration in Expressive Arts. Her beliefs are based in the integration of creativity, spirituality, and social and environmental justice. After taking a Therapeutic Writing class in the EXA program she started a women’s writing group that has met for over 10 years.  She loves living in the Southern Appalachian Mountains and loves being in the woods. She has experienced a litany of loss  and considers herself a grief warrior.  Years ago she and a friend started a  Death Cafe  monthly meeting in her community to have conversations about death to live their best lives.  She can be reached at artgirlheather@gmail.com

Trommer – Rosemerry Wahtola Trommer co-hosts the Emerging Form podcast, the Stubborn Praise poetry series and Secret Agents of Change (a kindness cabal). Her poems have been featured on A Prairie Home Companion, American Life in Poetry, PBS Newshour and Oprah Magazine. Her most recent book, Hush, won the Halcyon Prize. One-word mantra: Adjust. Please visit her website at https://www.wordwoman.com for more of her powerful work.

Venditelli —Jordan Venditelli (they/them) is an M.Divinity candidate at Harvard Divinity School. Studying gender and disability studies while pursuing ordination in the United Church of Christ, Jordan finds joy in community building and organizing. They currently live in Boston, MA, but consider the High Country of North Carolina to be home. When not studying or writing, they enjoy spending time with their beloved tuxedo cat and gardening. Their work has also been published in Bible Belt Queers, Praying Together: An Ecumenical prayer Journal, and through Harvard Divinity School.

Wall – Natasha T. Wall is a writer/teacher who lives in Charlotte, NC. She has published pieces in the Blue Stone Review, The Dead Mule School of Southern Literature, The Wild Goose Poetry Review, and Lost Horse Press: Nasty Women Poets: An Unapologetic Anthology of Subversive Verse to name a few. Ms. Wall has taught English and History for over 25 years. She has spent some of her time performing and winning awards in community theatre in Stanly, Cabarrus, Rowan, Davidson, and Mecklenburg counties. While in undergrad at WCU, Natasha forged a friendship with former NC Poet Laureate, Dr. Kathryn S. Byer, and was a member of Sigma Tau Delta English Honor Society and worked at the campus literary magazine, “The Invisible Academy”. Natasha was also a former member of the North Carolina Writer’s Network. Currently, she is the proud mother of Hannah-Kathryn Wall, an MT major, an Alpha Lambda Delta Honors student, and a proud Delta Sigma Theta Pi Gamma Chapter Soror at Western Carolina University, as well.

Wink – Dawn Wink is a writer and educator whose work explores the beauty and tensions of language, culture, and place. Author of “Meadowlark,” a novel of the Great Plains. Co-author with Joan Wink of “Teaching Passionately: What’s Love Got To Do With It?,” Wink created a literary, educational blog community, Dewdrops.

Whitley – J.Robin Whitley is a non-binary writer, musician, and artist. Robin has an A.B. in Music from Pfeiffer University, and an M.Div. from Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary. She lives with her new partner and three dogs in the High Country of North Carolina. Birdie is the small dog Robin’s had for nine years who inspires her to love more and to nap often. She would love to hear from you at robin@jrobinwhitley.net or visit her website.

Woods – Jean Woods has a Master’s of Pastoral Studies from Loyola University New Orleans, and a certificate in Spiritual Direction from the Shalem Institute.  Jean has seen people for spiritual direction for 25 years, as well as leading and facilitating programs about spiritual growth and transformation. She mentored the four-year Education for Ministry program, taught in extension by the University of the South for 23 years.  She also did a unit of Clinical Pastoral Education at Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte. Her passion is creation care and served in many secular capacities to save, protect, and educate about God’s creation.

 

Our Editors

Meador — Mary Neal Meador is a graduate of Middlebury College, where she studied French, German, and art history. She has been a production manager for the The New York Observer, a freelance book editor and designer for academic publishers including Oxford UP and Routledge, a production manager at a K-12 textbook publishing studio, and a professional consultant in the University Writing Center at Appalachian State.