Spring 2011 Staff
Britney Schultz, Intern
From Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, and the Gold Coast, Australia, somehow Britney found her way to the San Juan Ridge and Finding the Good. Britney cares deeply for the world and is committed to living a life of meaning and purpose. Although she had not worked extensively with youth before coming here, her honest and forthright way of being meets the students without pretense. There is no task that she won’t attempt and she won’t rest until all the work is done. As we head into post-production and film creation, where the work literally never ends, she may need more coffee than before! As much as she loved traveling, she can’t wait to turn raw material into finished product that will help others to see the world through the eyes of Finding the Good.
Annabelle Ziegenhagen, Intern
Annabelle returns to FtG 2011 as an intern this semester, and she is learning that while the differences may be subtle, they are significant. She is staff photographer, as well as photography teacher, cook, friend, writer, assistant, and “elder” to three students who are only a few years her junior. Together with Britney, she walks the fine line between “staff” and “peer” without a guidebook (there isn’t one) and takes her duties so seriously it sometimes keeps her up at night. Her artistry through the lens inspires the students to see the world, and themselves, in beauty and light – not always an easy thing to do. Perhaps it is because she sees the world like a child – wide-eyed and wondering, transfixed by the mystery and the beauty around her.
Tom Weistar, Co-Director
There are problems to solve and solutions to find, and some people are just born problem-solvers. Tom is one of those people. From little things like a broken trailer axle in the Baja desert, to big things like a Final Cut edit that won’t take, Tom can figure out and fix just about anything…..including what to do about a terribly antiquated and broken educational system. He founded Finding the Good with his wife, Debra, so that high school students would have an opportunity to learn in new ways while seeking sustainable solutions to the world’s problems. Tom likes nothing better than to solve two problems at once! He firmly believes that education should be relevant to young people’s lives, involve them directly with the world in which they live, and give them the opportunity to participate in the creation of a just and sustainable future.
–Profiles written by Debra Weistar
Spring 2010 Staff
Megan Putnam, Outreach Coordinator
“I drove out here with my dog in my ’68 Beetle in the middle of February…and so began the great California adventure,” explains Megan Putnam.
Putnam, 25, left the powdery snow of Colorado one year ago to join the Synergia staff in preparations for the current Finding the Good semester. She earned a degree in Environmental Studies from the University of Colorado in Boulder, but yearned for a solution and lifestyle that could cater to the myriad of problems her studies presented. Megan was able to find that, and be an instrumental part of the shift towards a solution in the Sierra Nevada foothills on the San Juan Ridge – the Synergia home base. “The air here is different. There is a space and simplicity to it,” replies Putnam. Megan is an inquisitive soul, and is as equally passionate about the land as she is the people living there. Nature is a constant source of wonder for her, and you can count on the beauty of the day coming up in conversation. She particularly appreciates color. “Green is sort of my standby. It is calm and vibrant at the same time. Orange looks like energy and possibility,” she explains. For Megan, one of life’s most riveting experiences was experiencing the stars, wrapped in a sleeping bag on the floor of the Grand Canyon with her family. “I’ll dance by myself for sure, but I like to dance with other people,” she says. And thus the adventure continues, with fellow instructors and peers, amongst trees and enthusiasm at Finding the Good.
Profile written by Kristen Houser
Andrew Payton, Media Educator/Life Skills Coordinator
Andrew Payton is an inspired, passionate person who started his life in suburban D.C., where he was brought up in a conservative family with not much environmental context. After traveling for some time in his life, including in parts of Europe, and spending some time on an organic farm, he was exposed to new ways of living. It was in these places that he realized that we as humans could open our eyes to the destruction of consumption. Andrew, now 23, feels that nature will find a way to balance itself and he is excited about being a part of the shift that will bring everyone closer to earth. He feels that the most practical knowledge in life can be gained through travel and experience and that the best way to make change is to be positive. Andrew has realized that we have to stay positive and realize that with the right mindset and will we can change the world. He also talks about how media, especially independent sources, show people something different, and will bring understanding that will help the current effort to change people’s ways of life. Andrew has a dual Bachelors degree in Film and English, and is serving as a life skills coordinator and media educator with the Finding the Good traveling semester program.
Profile written by Alex Depavloff
Jon Manrow, Infrastructure Coordinator
“Now what?” was the question for Jon Manrow at his job as an engineer right out of college. He had acquired his Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering and was making a fair amount of money; but is a decent job with decent pay all there is to a happy American life? For a select few, the answer may be “yes,” but for Jon, it was a definite “no.” Finding something to make life worthwhile took a few trips. First, a road trip from his home in Ohio; then, a trip to Guatemala. Travel gave him a sense of freedom that inspired him to search for new truths. He found them in Eastern philosophies and religions that he explored in Guatemala, leading to practices of yoga and meditation. He found that making one’s self happy and doing something you love can help others in return. Different connections brought him to Synergia, and now he is here for our traveling semester to do what he loves and do good for others.
Profile written by Nick Lee
Kristen Houser, Media Educator
Hailing from Louisville, Kentucky by way of Western Kentucky University in Bowling Green, Kristen is close to home at heart and a drifter by nature and necessity. She brings a host of skills and a splendid sense of humor to the Finding the Good community this semester. At 21, Kristen is an accomplished photographer and a budding documentary filmmaker with a passion for people and the stories of their lives. Her desire to impart her photo journalistic knowledge to her peers at Finding the Good stems from a fascination and profound respect for the inevitable sadness and suffering of the global human condition. Through sharing those stories in a beautiful way, Kristen hopes to shed light on such human realities while inspiring hope for moving toward a better world. While she’s not pondering the greater complexities of life, you are likely to find Kristen drawing inspiration from simpler sources like water, whales, not buying stuff, and kitty cats.
Profile written by Megan Putnam
Jeanie Wallace, Education Specialist/Mind-Body Coordinator
Jeanie is a glowing 24-year-old food enthusiast and yoga teacher. She seems to love everything to do with food, but she especially adores fresh produce. “I love running my hands over fruits and vegetables,” she says with a grin. For Jeanie, there is a huge connection between people and food. It’s an expression, she explains, as well as an integral component of culture. At U.C. Berkeley, where Jeanie earned her degree in Anthropology, she also enjoyed extra course work in forestry and mycology. Although her studies reinforced her love for both people and forests, she concludes that ideally, there should be more trees than people in her surroundings. Jeanie came to Finding the Good with a background in alternative education; before she entered Berkeley, she was home schooled for most of her life. In an unstructured learning environment, she explains, you learn because you want to learn. Her quest here at FtG is to reconcile structured education with the joyful pursuit of knowledge. Her avid interest in sustainable food systems has led Jeanie to start her own Aquaponics business, where she hopes to bring locally grown fresh produce and fish to urban environments.
Written by Annabelle Ziegenhagen
Tom Weistar, Program Director
The program director of Finding the Good, Tom Weistar, is a man that has been trying to find the good for some time now. He grew up in the Bay Area where he spent a lot of time outside and truly discovered what it meant to learn. He started to see at a young age how important it is to establish a homestead for yourself and for the people you love. He saw himself surrounded by talented people with the passion to make a better world, but no way to make it happen. He sought to create a place where people could get together and express their talents, their creativities, and their fervor to save the planet. With these goals in mind he envisioned the Finding the Good program. These days Tom looks towards the future and is excited to make a place where kids have a place to find solutions and change their lives for the better. He believes everything is tied together and is always exploring for something greater, as well as different ways of approaching the problems in our modern world. He thinks the world is on the brink of becoming radically different and he is set on delivering good news and positive direction to our chaotic structure.
Written by Alex Depavloff