Iya Tahirah
Dedicated to racial consciousness and the evolution of Humanity,
Iya is an Elder and initiated priestress In Ifa, a religious practice of
the Yoruba People of West Africa. She is also a shamanic practitioner
of the West African Spiritual Healing Arts.
The founder and co-founder of St. Croix Council of Elders at St.
Croix US Virgin Islands, she holds leadership as an Elder of her community. She
is a Mother / Grandmother to many national and internationally. For the last
twelve years, she has served as Elder to the Vermont Wilderness School, and
the "Art of Mentoring." She continues to serve as an Elders to VWS ‘s Board of
planners, and host and co-host monthly Intergenerational Dialogues at Vermont
and St. Croix Virgin Islands.
During Covid, Iya Tahirah has been instrumental in Offering her gifts and
services to the "Good of the Whole" spiritual community and she features and host s a Soul Talk Every Friday Morning (11:am at Good of the Whole).
Iya Tahirah holds a BA Degree in Social-Cultural anthropology, and an Associates Degree in Cross Cultural studies and communication. She has a minor and degree in
Gestalt Psychology.
Bios of our Team
Listed According to Elder Protocol
* Denotes Recognized Indigenous Tribal Leader / Chief
Denotes Order of White Shell Leader
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Order of the White Shell ™
GM Mari Fix McEwen
Founder OWS and Ancestors of the 4 Directions
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Is e m ’ainm ainmichte Mari Fix McEwen / Seanmhair, Seinneadair Bogha-Froise Coille den Tùs is the daughter of Carolyn & granddaughter of Beatrice Ewing, from lineage Clan Ewing of hamlet Kilfinan (Argyle and Bute) in Alba (Scotland) / watershed Loch Fyne. Clan Commander for the Ewings is Cousin John Thor Ewing. Clan Ewing are the people of the Yew Tree, the world tree of everlasting life and death of the Celtae. Mari's Grandfather is Henry Young, husband to Beatrice Ewing. Her patralineal line is Beatrice of Clan Wasson and Fix/Fics, father Jack, son of Jake. She is directly related to Clan O'Neil through Ewen of Otter (Ewings), and also through her Neil relatives, along with Clan Cameron, Clan Ross, Clan Mar, Clan MacBeth, Clan McMahon, Clan McFarlane, Clan Adair, Clan Stewart, Clan Brus (Bruce), Clan Comyn, Clan Montgomery, Clan McAlpine, Clan Campbell (Archibald,9th Earl of Argyle), Clan MacGillivray, Clan Raghnall Mac Ruaidhri / Clan McCrorry, Clan Sommerled, Clan Rögnvald, and Sigurth Syr Halvdansson.
Currently residing in the unseeded territories of the Tataviam / Tongva / and Chumash tribal peoples / watershed Humaliwoo in what is currently known as Southern California, she was recognized as an Elder by Peruvian Elder and Maestro, Hermano Vidal (Vidal Ayala Sinches) and his counsel of Peruvian Incan Elders in 2015 and was given the task to bring her People back to their indigenous roots as well as to unite the Indigenous people from the 4 directions. She has spent years studying with 3 indigenous medicine lineages and was an active dancer with an indigenous Danza group from Mexico. She is also a direct apprentice of Taoist Master Ching Fung Dao Shr and a Tai Chi Student in the lineage of Grand Master Kai Ying Tung.
A Ceremonialist, Ordained Minister and Alternative Medicine Practitioner of various energetic modalities, she has been facilitating Therapeutic Sound journeys since 1991. She holds Certifications in various Therapeutic Arts, Sound Healing, Music for Wellness, Mindfulness, Irish Mythology, Celtic Studies, Scottish Clans, Ancient Architecture, Stonehenge, Magic and the Middle Ages, Archeoastronomy and Archeology, a degree from CSULB, Children's Literature, and has served as both a teacher and an Adjunct Professor. She has also counseled youth under USC's pilot program in Motivational Interviewing. See further Certifications here.
As a sitting Grandmother, circle co-facilitator and Counsel member with the Indigenous Women / Grandmothers of Europe, she is representing Indigenous Scotland as well as supporting Indigenous Women of Europe Overseas, to revive their roots, understand and embrace indigenous values, connect to nature and honor the ways of Spirit. She is dedicated to unify with our other indigenous relatives from the hoop, to create healing, understanding, solidarity, balance and connection.
Founder, Initiator and Facilitator of the Ancestors of the 4 Directions and the Order of the White Shell, she is a member of Four Worlds Foundation with Chief Phil Lane, a member of Tiyoshape Spiritual Family with *Chief Rueben George, a member of Four Worlds Women’s Talking Circle with Joan Henry, a new member of OBOD (Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids), and a member of the Circle of Friends. She is a facilitator with mentor Choctaw-Navajo/Chahta-Dineh Elder Patricia Anne Davis of the “Indigenous Change Process, ” and dedicated to extricating the out of balance condition within herself and humanity for the good of all.
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Cynthia Klatte Cunningham
OWS Team & Ceremonialist
My maternal grandmother’s parents were from the part of Poland that was occupied by the Austrian Hapsburg Monarchy. The region was called “Galicia”. Today, their homeland is in the area of Lesser Poland Voivodship and Greater Poland Voivodship (Malopolska and Wielkopolska Province). Her grandmother was an Ashkenazi Jew in Poland. My mother’s paternal grandfather was from a part of Poland that was partitioned into the Poland-Lithuanian Republic which was later occupied by Russia. My father was adopted out of an orphanage in New York state by a minister from Germany who was married to an English wife. His biological mother was named Cunningham and she was a young unmarried house maid who lived with and worked for a wealthy family.
My genetic DNA tests have been analyzed by various companies, results agree that I am Eastern European, Finnish, British Isles (Ireland and Scotland) and Balkan, and a direct descendant of Harald I "Bluetooth" Godwinsson of Denmark, Edward I Longshanks of England, Eleanor of Castille, Malcolm II Canmore of Scotland, Saint Margaret of Scotland and the 1st Earl of Pembrooke.
Ancient Ancestry
My ancestors are predominantly Viking, Scythian, Celt (the Picts, the Boii), Early Slav & Ostrogoth. My relations include two Swedish viking shieldmaidens, a Scythian female warrior of Mordovia, an elite Early Slav female warrior of Mordovia, and an ancient Siberian man who lived 45,000 years ago, who is the ancestor of modern Tibetans. and Tuvans (indigenous peoples on the Mongolia-Russian border).
I graduated from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst with a
B.A. 1991, Cum Laude, Psychology Major, French minor and with a Masters in Social work in 1997 from the University of Connecticut. I currently work for the University of Arizona as a licensed Social worker, counseling students at the university. I was also a foreign exchange student at the Universite de Dijon, France 1989 summer exchange program in French language.
I have been with the Indigenous Grandmothers of Europe as a Sister on the Meeting Organizing Team with Sister Ava, and Grandmother Mari Fix McEwen. I am one of the Initiators of the Order of the White Shell.
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Alexandra Lorraine di Genova di Salle
OWS Ceremonialist
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My name is Alexandra Lorraine di Genova di Salle, I live now in what was called Ligurian Land, the territory between France and Italy. My watershed is the Var River that flows into the Mediterranean Sea.
On my mother’s side, i am from quite an old Norman family line, going back before the Xth century. From my father’s side, we are from an old Abbruzzi's family, from the land of The Italic Marrucini. My father migrated to the USA around 1950 and his bones and spirit rest now on what would be considered Seminole Land. I grew up in Rome, Italy through my adolescent and teenage years. I had a eyesight problem that left me with partial blindness. When this occurred, I came to Turtle Island to stay with my father. I lived on Turtle Island for about ten years. While I was there, I was blessed to learn to “Walk in Beauty” and participate in ceremonies with the Miccosukee tribe in the Everglades. At that time, I also discovered the Rainbow Family of Living Light, otherwise called the Rainbow Family in the States. The Gifts I received from living on Turtle Island were the introduction to and learning to walk the Good Red Road, and the coming to an understanding that I was dedicated to be a bridge between various peoples, weaving the continents together within the Sacred Hoop of Life.
While living in the United States, my profession was Massage therapy and Hydrotherapy. Later when I returned to my homeland in Europe in 2000, I continued those professions for a number of years. In Europe, I furthered my studies, training to be a nurse’s assistant within psychiatric wards. I later moved on to become a Special Educator for children and young adults with Autistic Syndrome. I also worked a few years in Youth Protection Houses.
I have been walking the way of the Druid since the age of 20, when I was first initiated into Little Brittany’s Broceliande Forest Order of the Druids, and then much later in 2015 when I was initiated into the Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids, or OBOD. Today in 2021, I am still an active member of OBOD, UK and I am also a practicing member of a Gaulish Druid's Assembly in France. I still participate in Rainbow Gatherings that happen here, with my European Family. I am a dedicated mother of two girls, a young adult named Vivian and a teenager called Léna. Now I have the honor to be part of the Order of the White Shell, where I am living and acting upon the vision to restore Trust, Beauty and Justice within the tribes of the northern Hoop, in Honor and Love of our Great Mother of All, Nature.
Ává Niamh
Purification & Fire Keeper for Ancestors of the 4 Directions and OWS
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Ává's ancestral lineages are from what is known today as the south of Ireland and Germany on her mothers’s side, and the north of Ireland/England/Scotland on her father’s side. She is of the Ferguson Clan. On her father’s side, her grandmother’s ancestors have been residing on Turtle Island (in North America) for over 11 generations, which is where she feels most at home.
Ává is a vocalist with SOLACE of LUNA, creates abstract art as iCreatrix and has worked as a creative consultant in many disciplines and industries.
She was born on the beautiful & unceded territories of the xÊ·mÉ™θkÊ·É™yÌ“É™m (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and SelÌ“ílÌ“witulh (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations, also know by the colonial name of Vancouver, Canada. For well over a decade she has been deeply devoted to an Indigenous ceremonial way of life of the sundance, sweatlodge and sacred teachings of White Buffalo Calf Woman. Ává is grateful to be blessed with respected elders and mentors on this path which share their wisdom, songs, prayers and medicine in a good way, as we are all related in this sacred hoop of life.
Les Malbon
Elder Brother and Speaker, Ancestors of the 4 Directions
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My name is Les Malbon. I am of Scottish, English, Irish, and Scandinavian descent. I am of the Patterson clan. I live, work and play in the Snuneymuxw First Nations territory. I am a professor in the Kinesiology department at Vancouver Island University. My core teaching concentrations are Human Wellness, Health of the Human Spirit, Nature and Health, and Nutrition and Local Food Systems.
 At the heart of my practice is the realization that everything is interconnected and that deep learning must be holistic and reflective. When we care for our own health and well-being we create healing in the world. One of the foundational frameworks that informs my life is from the Earth Charter; it suggests that we must join together to create a sustainable global community based on the principles of: Respect for Nature, Universal Human Rights, Social and Economic Justice, and a Culture of Peace.
In 2020 I received the Provost teaching award for excellence in (Indigenous Ways of Being and Knowing). I recently completed a United Nations diploma at the University of Peace (Earth Charter Institute in Costa Rica) in Sustainability and Peace Studies. I am a permaculturist and a trained herbalist from both a Western and Indigenous perspective. I have been engaged in Indigenous ceremony for over 30 years and it has become a way of life for me and my family. It has been a great joy to spend time with Elders that have shared their wisdom teachings. I am dedicated to the truth of oneness and the unity that exists between all things. The earth is but one country and we are all related as one human family.

 Email: les.malbon@viu.ca
Grandmother Paulienne Elizabeth Voll
Speaker, Ancestors of the 4 Directions
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I am Paulienne Elizabeth Voll. I am the only daughter of Amina Sitti and Nappie Voll. I have one daughter. I live in the southern part of the Netherlands. I was born in 1957 in Makassar Indonesia. My ancestors from my Father's side were European, German., with ancestors related to Scandinavia The ancestors of my Mother's side are related to the Philippines, New Zealand, China and Portugal. My parents moved to the Netherlands immediately following my birth. For almost three decades I worked as a Social Counselor and Case Manager in an Organization for Refugee Asylum Seekers. Before that, I worked as a Teacher of History and Geography. l also worked in a Biological Food Store. I have always been passionate about addressing the subjects of injustice and inequality in the world. I am deeply concerned about Climate Health , Nature and Refugees. I am so grateful to be part of the Indigenous Grandmothers Circle of The Low Lands.
I feel connected with both the Old World in Europe and Indonesia, where ancestral lineage plays an important role in the culture.
I honor and worship the Ancestors who teach me the spiritual wisdom of Mother Earth, the Divine Feminine, the Womb, Nature, the Four Directions and all of the Elements.
Cynthia Cunningham, OWS Co-Initiator (bio 2)
I am C Roxanne K, daughter of Roxanne Jurkowski, who was daughter of Stephania Saletnik, & Michael Jurkowski, and granddaughter of Kazmiera Sajdak and Jan Saletnik of Galicia, a region occupied by the Austrian Habsburg monarchy which is now Malopolska Poland. This voivodship was occupied by Austria during their lifetime. Kazmiera Sajdak’s mother was of Ashkenazi Jewish descent, which was hidden from her descendants who came to the US and was only discovered by myself in my 20s. I am also great granddaughter of Daniel Jurkowski and Anna Nowak of the land that is now Poland which was occupied 3 times by Austria, Lithuania and Russia.
I am the daughter of Robert Klatte, who was born Robert Cunningham, son of mother Cunningham and father unknown, who was adopted by an Anglican minister from Germany and his English wife who had immigrated to the US. My father hid his adoption and it was accidentally discovered during my adult years. My mother found his birth certificate which had the word “Bastard” stamped on it. The story told was that his mother was a household servant in a wealthy household in Westchester Co, NY, who was young and unmarried and who got pregnant and gave up the baby to an orphanage.
Ancestral Lineage
I have spent several years doing DNA studies and genealogical research trying to find my paternal ancestry. While I have found his immediate family tree, I have found my ancestral lineage. Robert was of Irish, Finnish and Balkan descent. I also found my ancient ancestors, though some I know not which line they hail from.
My ancestors are predominantly Viking, Scythian, Pict, early Slav and Ostrogoth. My ancestors include two Swedish Viking shieldmaidens, a member of Flóki Vilgerðarson’s expedition to Iceland, a noble Scythian female warrior of Mordovia, an elite early PÅ™emyslid Moravian female warrior, a Pict of Moray Firth, Scotland; a Pre-Celt of Rathlin Island, Ireland; Kievan Rus, and Hungarian Magyars. My maternal mitochondrial DNA goes back 36,000 years to Ursula, U5, Clan of the Cave Bear, the oldest of the seven native European clans (Bryan Sykes' book, "The Seven Daughters of Eve"). My most ancient ancestor is a Siberian man who lived 45,000 years ago and who is the ancestor of modern Tibetans and the indigenous peoples of the Mongolia-Russian border.
Spiritual Practice Lineage
I call myself a Spiritual Ecologist, as my connection to Source is found through nature, my ceremonies celebrate the sacredness of Mother Earth, Father Sky and all that they have created. I studied the paranormal and neopaganism starting in childhood and began practicing Wicca at age 18, as soon as I was out of my parent’s home. I also studied and practiced Egyptian ceremonial magick and the druid revival practices of Ireland and Scotland.
I also studied under members of the Runakuna (the Q’ero tribe of Peru) and became a mesa carrier, practicing with a local community. My teachers have included Puma Fredy Quispe Singona of Cusco, Peru, the founder of WILLCA and a co-founder of Cusi Huayna. He was trained by his grandfather, Don Maximo Singona, after being by struck by lightning.at age 6. Others have been Dona Asunta Quispe Yapura and Karina Davalos Concha of Cusco, Peru.
Professional Training
I graduated cum laude from the University of Massachusetts with a BA in Psychology in 1991. During that time, I obtained a minor in French and studied at the Universite de Bourgogne in 1989. I graduated from the University of Connecticut in 1997 with a MSW and have worked over 20 years as a licensed clinical social worker. I currently provide psychotherapy at the University of Arizona and have a small private practice in Tucson.
Energy Medicine Training
· Association of Comprehensive Energy Psychology Member. Comprehensive Energy Psychology Level II Practitioner, having received supervision by Barbara Stone, author of Soul Detective.
· Reiki Third Level Master/Teacher (taught by Alice Moore, RN, BS, Usui Shiki Ryoho Master and Lucia Maya and Zelie Duvauchelle, Karuna Reiki Masters
· Pranic Healing training under Grand Master Choa Kok Sui at The Institute For Inner Studies in NJ
Other Training
· Four Worlds Digital Talking Circle Leadership Program with Phil Lane, Jr. in 2020
· Trainings in decolonization of the mind, the healing of intergenerational trauma and collective transformation.
Projected Advisors to OWS Team
Patricia Anne Davis
Teacher of the Indigenous Change Process and Mentor
Patricia Ann Davis is an American Indian elder. Her English name is Patricia Anne Davis, and her Dineh ceremonial name is “peacemaker”. She was born of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw-Chahta, and born to the Taa chii nii and Kii yaa aanii kinship families of the Navajo/Dineh Nation. Her maternal grandparents are Chahta, and her paternal grandparents are the Kii yaa aanii clan of the Dineh. She is an International Teacher and Healer by tribal lineage, training, and initiation. She translated Dineh blessedway ceremonial principles into an Indigenous Ceremonial Change Process to facilitate a healing process that is not coping, but correction of any out-of-balance conditions within people, society, or the environment. She designs presentations, training, ceremony, and workshops within the context of the natural order and Indigenous science, a concept from the literature to define a distinction between an Affirmative Thinking system and a Eurocentric Dualistic thinking system. The purpose is to reframe win-lose destructive and death-producing choices and decisions into win-win constructive and life-affirming choices and decisions. She designed an “Indigenous Ceremonial Change Process” to facilitate a reframe of thinking systems with these unifying principles:
Inclusive of all ethnic nationalities Cross-cultural • Inter-generational Restores resources to the next generation of youth Universal in practical life application and can be translated into any language. She has traveled to 9 countries to teach the ICCP.
