SD Formation Program Leaders & SC Mentors
If you are part of a spiritual direction formation program or a guide or mentor to spiritual companions, we invite you to join us on October 18th, 2:00pm – 3:30pm PDT for our SD formation program leaders/SC mentors gathering. At this upcoming session, we will be moving towards formalizing this group, reviewing the Five principles of SD Formation programs document written 5years ago, considering diverse manifestations and perspectives on SD and SC training initiatives, and more! RSVP here.
Unable to join us? Register to receive access to a recording for later viewing and learn about future gatherings (next one scheduled for February 15, 2024) RSVP here for the February gathering.
Upcoming Formation Program Events
Related Documents
Steering Committee
Ravi Verma
Ravi Verma is a spiritual director and has worked professionally with churches and lay leaders for over twenty-five years. Ravi’s passion is to work with individuals and groups to build bridges between parts of ourselves, with others and the cosmos based on our connection to the Divine. Ravi, born in India, now teaches at Stillpoint, and works with corporations, retreat centers, and non-profits on issues of spiritual development. Ravi is a past Chair of the Coordinating Council of Spiritual Directors International.
Cindy Lee, PhD
Cindy is a spiritual director, aspiring mystic, asexual, and proudly Taiwanese-American. Her spirituality honors the traditions of her family which include the Christian tradition in a Taiwanese immigrant church as well as Taiwanese ancestral, Daoist, and Buddhist traditions. She is a graduate of the Stillpoint spiritual direction program in California and completed her PhD in the area of spirituality from Claremont School of Theology. She teaches as an adjunct professor in the areas of spirituality, mysticism, and spiritual direction. She is also director of the Liberated Together Spiritual Direction school that centers the healing and liberation of women of color and non-binary people of color. Cindy is the author of Our Unforming: De-Westernizing Spiritual Formation (2022) which is written from a Christian perspective. She also leads retreats and workshops in BIPOC-centered spirituality and spiritual care.
Westina Matthews, PhD
For the past 15 years, Westina (she/her) has been connecting with others through her writings, speaking, workshops/retreats, spiritual companioning, and teaching. Her practice reflects contemplative living through “holy listening”. A graduate of the Shalem Institute, for the past 12 years Westina taught contemplative spiritual direction at General Theological Seminary in the Center for Christian Spirituality. A “p.k.” (preacher’s kid) and educator at heart – with a doctorate and two post-doctoral fellowships in education — she would say that her family business is education, faith and service. After a 24 year career with Merrill Lynch, she retired as a managing director; and then was a fellow at the Weatherhead Center for International Affairs at Harvard where she studied women and girls of faith in Burundi in central Africa. Westina then became chief program officer for the Jackie Robinson Foundation for four years. But writing is her passion, the author of Dancing from the Inside Out: Grace-Filled Reflections on Growing Older (2019), This Band of Sisterhood: Black Women Bishops on Race, Faith, and the Church (2021) and co-editor of Soul Food: Nourishing Contemplative Living and Leadership (Church Publishing, September 2023).
Her vision for SDI is to be an intentionally inclusive community that embodies a holistic spiritual grounding, drawing from the wisdom of the ages and the new emerging voices.
Myriam Klotz
Rabbi Myriam Klotz is a spiritual director and supervisor in Jewish seminaries and in private practice since 1999. Myriam consulted with several rabbinical schools to introduce spiritual direction to their students and faculty. She coordinated the spiritual direction program at the Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion from 2010-2020, and has been the director of the Bekhol Levavkha Spiritual Director Training program since 2014. Myriam is also a Senior Program Director with the Institute for Jewish Spirituality where she teaches somatics and embodied practices from a perspective of deep listening and honoring of our bodies’ sacred wisdom. Myriam lives in Philadelphia, PA with her spouse Rabbi Margot Stein. She is the proud mom and step mom of two sons.
Bernadette Miles, PhD
Bernadette (she/her) is co-director of Kardia Formation P/L, where she offers companionship of empowerment for women and men through spiritual direction, Spiritual Exercises, supervision, and various programs for personal and leadership development. Before establishing Kardia, Bernie worked with the Australian Jesuits where she held various roles including Director of Campion Centre of Ignatian Spirituality and Coursework Coordinator for Sentir Graduate College of Spiritual Formation, (University of Divinity). Her work included the development and delivery of the Master of Arts in Spiritual Direction and graduate studies in leadership and organizational development.
Rev. SeiFu Anil Singh-Molares, MTS
Rev. Seifu is the Executive Director of SDI and an ordained Zen Buddhist priest, as well as a practicing spiritual director/companion and motivational speaker. He is a veteran of numerous interfaith and interspiritual efforts over the years, including Seeds of Compassion in Seattle in 2008, where he was one of the chairs, and as founder and executive director of the Compassionate Action Network. He has a Master’s in Theological Studies from Harvard University.
Rev. Seifu is an accomplished speaker and university lecturer and is a key contributor for the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation. In a previous life, he was also an executive at Microsoft, where he successfully grew international groups and divisions and provided leadership to multi-cultural teams around the world.
Amrutham Babu
Amrutham is an experienced marketing manager with over 8 years as product marketing specialist and digital strategist. With a Bachelor of Science degree and an MBA from India’s esteemed Amrita University, she has a strong background in data analytics and design software. Her areas of expertise include: Developing marketing strategy; Digital & social media marketing; Campaign management; Creative writing; Graphic Design. She is also a service corps member at 501 Commons and has helped several nonprofits in Washington to design and execute their marketing goals. She believes in the higher purpose and is constantly working towards it. She’s excited to use her professional knowledge and experience to support the SDI community in a meaningful way.
