Our Educators
Our Teachers and Meditation Instructors
Shambhala Teachers have received training and formal permission to teach Way of Shambhala courses like Shambhala Training and the Everyday Life series. Meditation Instructors have training and formal permission to offer meditation instruction and to meet regularly with individual Centre members to offer support for their meditation practice.
- Susan Boychuk began her Shambhala Buddhist path in 1979 while studying dance at Naropa University in Colorado. She attended a course on Shambhala Culture taught by Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche and studied Ikebana with Marcia Shibata. She’s been a member of the Edmonton Shambhala Centre since 1982, and is our representative of the Shambhala Office of Culture and Decorum. She worked for 30 years as a Program Coordinator for the Faculty of Extension at University of Alberta, including around women’s writing.
- Blake Halwa
- Katherine McGeean first encountered Buddhism in Sri Lanka in her early 20’s. She was a long-time meditation practitioner prior to beginning her Shambhala Buddhist path in 2001 in Victoria. Katherine has had many roles in Shambhala in various locations, including Edmonton Centre Director (2008-2014), Edmonton Director of Practice and Education (2015-2018), Program Manager at Shambhala Mountain Centre (2006-2008) and Resident Director of Shambhala Training in Victoria, BC (2003-2005).
Our Meditation Guides
Shambhala Meditation Guides offer meditation instruction at the Centre. They have completed the Way of Shambhala and other practice requirements, been selected for their teaching promise, trained, and been authorized for their role.
- Anita Christianson has a passion for good food with family and friends. She has been Shambhala Practitioner since 2010 and is a certified Yoga Instructor with the Yoga Association of Alberta.
- Margo Johns is a nutritionist who came to Shambhala in 2000 and became a Shambhala Buddhist in 2003. She enjoys meeting new people and sharing Shambhala view.
- Phyllis Woolley
