Amanda is an initiated Sacred Fire Firekeeper and a board member and acting executive director of Blue Deer, a nature retreat and healing center in the NY Catskills. Through her enthusiasm, spirituality, work-ethic, and passion for learning, she works to build community. Volunteering her time is an important practice in her life. She and her husband Alan, who is also a firekeeper, hold ritual space and host community fires and gatherings to support connection both internationally and also for their local community in Santa Monica. Amanda holds a B.A. in Entrepreneurship from the University of Southern California and spent 15 years helping to develop her family’s transportation company in partnership with her husband,. A mother, wife and grandmother, her home is always open and buzzing with visitors and the aroma and taste of good food.