Your Guides for the Journey

Nick McLees

Nick is a deep practitioner in the Plum Village tradition, having spent several years at Deer Park Monastery, and uses mindfulness in his professional work. He is a facilitator at the Mindfulness Community of Milwaukee’s Wake Up sangha for young adults and the Chair of the planning committee for Wake Up’s December retreat at the Christine Center.

Lois Quinn

As a lay practitioner with a lifetime of experience living and working in diverse cultural settings, Lois offers unique perspectives and insights on the challenges and joys of practicing equanimity.
In the early 1960, Lois’ parents purposefully moved their young family to a transitional neighborhood in the inner city of Milwaukee. Growing up in this environment, Lois acquired a high level of cross-cultural fluidity, as well as a passion to dismantle barriers to equality. As an adult, Lois channeled this fluidity and her skill as an international economist to successfully foster changes in policy to address financial and social barriers faced by many in today’s world.
After her retirement in 2017, Lois moved back to Milwaukee and became an active member of the Mindfulness Community of Milwaukee (MCM) where she has since offered several Dharma Talks, co-led an 18 month long anti-racism study group, and became a member of the Executive Council.

Paul Norton

Paul is one of the founders of the Mindfulness Community of Milwaukee and is presently its Spiritual Director. He was ordained into the Order of Interbeing in 1999 with the Dharma Name True Boundless Radiance.
Jim Barrett is a simple practitioner of Mindfulness and Buddhism in the Thich Nhat Hahn tradition. He was ordained into the Order of Interbeing at the Magnolia Grove Monastery in 2017 and given the Dharma name “True Transmission of the Dharma.”

Simone Ferro

Simone is a dancer and choreographer with certification in Laban Movement Analysis and myofascial therapy. She practices with the Mindfulness Community of Milwaukee and is dedicated to bringing her professional experience as a teacher of dance, pilates, biomechanics, and related somatic practices to the practice of mindfulness.

Meredith Watts

Meredith is a long-term practitioner with the Mindfulness Community of Milwaukee and has taught yoga for twenty-five years. He currently focuses on yoga for mature bodies and on mindful movement that combines yoga postures, pranayama (breath work), and mindfulness practice.