We Light NYC 2014

What

In the dim days of winter and dark nights of the soul, how and where do we find light? Join Feminist.com founder Marianne Schnall and an eclectic group of beacons and firebrands for a night of intimate stories and incendiary sparks…celebrating women’s resilience, courage, creativity & faith. (Scroll down for expanded bios)

Agapi Stassinopoulos
self-love & compassion

Bonnie St. John
leadership & resilience

Alanna Kaivalya
movement & expression

Claudia Chan
empowerment & authenticity

Rev. Jacqui Lewis
unity & justice

Jennifer Kass
happiness & transformation

Karen Poel
embodiment & wellbeing

Dodeena Bradley
passion & reinvention

Also featuring

Merging ’90s R&B and neo-soul with her indie-rock roots, Caroline Smith‘s new music has settled comfortably into a new backdrop as she takes a step from girl to woman. Half About Being a Woman is a record about self-acceptance and growing into yourself; it’s about going back to the roots of ‘feel-good’ music.

“It was a long and winding road to be comfortable in my own skin and to be confident with what I offer this world as an individual. When I got there, I just wanted to write all about it. I wanted women to listen to my record and, if only for a moment, feel strong, feel powerful, and remember that beauty comes in all sizes.”

Marianne Schnall
catalyst & convener

This event will directly support feminist.com founder Marianne Schnall and her trailblazing organization. Resources will also fortify the Our Inner Lives initiative–because caring for our inner lives makes us more effective in the world, and being passionately engaged in the world nourishes us inside.

Agapi Stassinopoulos
self-love & compassion

Agapi Stassinopoulos

Agapi Stassinopoulos was born and raised in Athens, Greece. At age 18, she entered the prestigious Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts in London and became a member of the Young Vic. She moved to the U.S. to do film and television, and completed her Master's degree in Psychology. While her sister, Arianna Huffington, was doing research for her book about Greek mythology, Agapi's love for the gods and goddesses was ignited and led to two books of her own, Conversations with the Goddesses and Gods and Goddesses in Love, as well as a one-woman show and PBS special. Her most recent book, Unbinding the Heart, is an inspiring journey of inner exploration to help us reconnect with our true selves. Agapi is a frequent speaker at international events and conferences and contributor to The Huffington Post. An inspiring teacher, Agapi conducts seminars worldwide for women and men, empowering them to recognize their individual gifts and create the lives they want.
http://unbindingtheheart.com

Bonnie St. John
leadership & resilience

Bonnie St. John

For over twenty years, Bonnie St. John has circled the globe as a keynote speaker and leadership consultant. Overcoming a challenging childhood, Bonnie has risen to the highest levels of achievement. Despite having her right leg amputated at age five, she became the first African-American ever to win Olympic or Paralympic medals in ski racing. Bonnie graduated Magna Cum Laude from Harvard University and earned a Rhodes Scholarship to Oxford. The celebrated author of six books, Bonnie co-authored her most recent #1 bestseller, How Great Women Lead, with her teenage daughter, Darcy. Together they traveled around the world on an extraordinary mother-daughter journey into the lives, and life lessons, of fascinating women leaders. Bonnie has been featured extensively in national and international media including: The Today Show, CNN, CBS Morning News, NBC News, PBS, NPR, and The New York Times, as well as People, “O”, and Essence magazines. NBC Nightly News called Bonnie, “One of the five most inspiring women in America.”
http://bonniestjohn.com

Alanna Kaivalya
movement & expression

Alanna Kaivalya

Alanna Kaivalya is an author, modern mystic and founder of the Kaivalya Yoga Method, an approach that fixes what is broken in yoga. She’s an outspoken advocate of yoga for the individual—an integrative experience for the whole person—and a scholar committed to reinterpreting Joseph Campbell's work for the 21st century. Alanna’s first book, Myth of the Asanas, is a guide for learning about mythology and philosophy in a fun and accessible way. Her latest work is Sacred Sound: Discovering the Myth and Meaning of Mantra & Kirtan. In addition to writing, Alanna is a performer who takes the traditional spiritual music of Kirtan and blends it with her own eclectic American music influences. Alanna recently launched of The Kaivalya Yoga Method Teacher Trainings and is developing two mobile yoga apps geared towards deepening student and teacher practices. Yoga Journal has distinguished her as one of America’s Top 20 Teachers Under 40.
http://alannak.com

Claudia Chan
empowerment & authenticity

Claudia Chan

Claudia Chan is a women's leadership and lifestyle expert dedicated to celebrating today's female role models through her women interview series on ClaudiaChan.com, and S.H.E. Summit, her annual global women's week convening women dreamers with extraordinary female thought leaders. On her journey from all-women's schools to her 9-year reign as president of girlfriend events company Shecky's, Claudia noticed the dire lack of mainstream programming positively portraying women leaders. In 2012, she launched SHE Globl Media Inc., a purposeful women's platform that empowers women to live their most optimal personal and professional lives so they can change the world. Referred to as “SHE Who Must Be Obeyed” by The Daily Beast, “Intrepid Woman” by The Glass Hammer, and “a motivational media woman in charge” by Cosmopolitan Magazine—Claudia has been featured in countless media outlets including the Aol/PBS initiative “Makers: Women Who Make America.” She also speaks on women’s leadership at corporations, universities and conferences.
http://www.claudiachan.com

Rev. Jacqui Lewis
unity & justice

Rev. Jacqui Lewis

Dr. Jacqui Lewis is Senior Minister at Middle Collegiate Church in the East Village of Manhattan—a dynamic 800-member multiracial, multicultural, inclusive congregation. She entered the ministry—and Princeton Theological Seminary—at age 30, after eight years in the corporate world at Eastman Kodak, working in sales, marketing and human resources. Ordained in the Presbyterian Church, Jacqui is a nationally recognized activist, speaker, and preacher on the topics of racial, economic, and gender/LGBTI justice. She is the author of The Power of Stories: A Guide for Leaders in Multi-Racial and Multi Cultural Congregations, and is a frequent contributor to the Huffington Post. Jacqui has been interviewed on NPR’s Weekend Edition, WABC, WNBC, CNN, GritTV, in Ebony and Forbes magazines, and The New York Times online. She is also Executive Director of The Middle Project, an institute that prepares ethical leaders for a more just society.
https://www.facebook.com/Rev.Jacqui.Lewis

Jennifer Kass
happiness & transformation

Jennifer Kass

Jennifer Kass is a global spiritual mentor, love pioneer and speaker. Jennifer’s mission is to make love a global force, awakening all willing hearts and minds, to create a world that works for everyone. Jennifer guides clients in one-on-one transformational programs using practical spiritual tools that provide a gateway to your inner happiness, and a holistic approach integrating diet + lifestyle changes, for a radical shift. Jennifer shares her message through her weekly blogs and podcast, live events, one-on-one mentoring, as a writer for WellandGoodNYC, The Daily Love, and MindBodyGreen and other well-known blogs, TV and radio appearances. A former editor at Allure magazine, Jennifer holds a degree in Journalism from the University of Colorado and is a graduate of the Institute for Integrative Nutrition in New York City.
http://www.jenniferkassllc.com/

Karen Poel
embodiment & wellbeing

Karen Poel

Karen Poel is on a mission to help people feel better in their bodies, their work and their lives. She is a seasoned coach who spent more than 25 years as a senior executive in large companies, where she learned (by necessity!) how to energize employees (and herself) during complex and challenging times. Karen believes that the key is to: master practices that foster relaxed power and flow; sense differently to unleash intuition, creativity and synchronicity and create generative spaces that evoke vitality, full engagement and high performance. As a leadership coach she works with executives, teams and organizations to develop practices that nurture personal wellbeing, improve team dynamics and evoke organizational transformation. She co-creates leadership spaces that are safe, playful, aware, collaborative and empowering and focuses on the vital shifts that can make a big difference. Karen is passionate about running marathons, skiing, cooking and her two daughters.
https://www.linkedin.com/pub/karen-poel/7/406/638

Dodeena Bradley
passion & reinvention

Dondeena Bradley

Dondeena Bradley is a seasoned leader driven by a conviction to make the world a better place. She has spent more than 25 years in “Corporate America” as a warrior for humanity, health and heart in spaces where they were often in short supply. She is a disrupter who dispenses unconventional wisdom and intuits imminent convergences. As Global Vice President of Innovation at Weight Watchers, Dondeena is charged with helping to transform this venerable organization and expand its reach and impact. Dondeena received her PhD in food science and MS in nutrition, yet believes we need to take broader view of wellbeing—and expand beyond food options to support people in making positive choices around all aspects of their emotional, physical and spiritual wellbeing. Dondeena is passionate about music, sports and horses—and believes in the power of co-creation and communities to reinvent and make things better.

An event benefitting feminist.com Thursday Dec 4th 6 to 10pm

"Serious & Seductive!" - The New York Times

"She's all elegance and awe" - Billboard

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