Volunteers
THE MINDFUL EDGE Facilitators

Heidi BornsteinMy passion for bringing mindful awareness to adults and teens comes from discovering meditation when I was a teen. It opened doors of perception, awareness and clarity that have guided me my entire life. Being able to share the mind body practices with adults through MBSR Workshops and teens through The Mindful Edge and seeing them open, soften, and connect with their own inner wisdom is incredibly inspiring.

Founder – MBSR< SMART & Yoga Teacher / Facilitator

HEIDI BORNSTEIN is a Hatha yoga and meditation teacher, who received intensive training at the International Meditation Institute while living in India. She is a certified instructor in Hatha Yoga, Yoga Science, and Yoga Ed for Elementary Schools, High Schools, and For Working with Those At-Risk. She trained as an MBSR teacher under the direction of Roy Hintsa, MBSR Toronto, and Dr. Diane Reibel, the Director of the Stress Reduction Program at Jefferson University’s Myrna Brind Center of Integrative Medicine. She participated in the 7-Day Professional Training in Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction in Mind-Body Medicine under the direction of Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn and Dr. Saki Santorelli. Heidi trained in Mindfulness for Kids at Risk with Vinnie Ferraro, Street Yoga training for Kids at Risk as well as smartEducation™ (Stress Management and Resiliency Techniques) with Linda Wallace.
Heidi is the co-creator (with Heather Elson) of the Yoda-Yoga Program for kids, a program specifically designed for use in the 20 minute DPA (Daily Physical Activity) in elementary schools. Heidi is the co-creator and teacher for The Mindful Edge® – Stress Reduction and Life Strategies for Teens program in high schools. Heidi is on staff of Yoga Community Toronto, and is on the steering committee for Mindfulness Toronto. She has been teaching yoga and meditation in Toronto since 2002 and continues to support yoga, meditation, and mindfulness programs for children, youth, teens, and adults.


Stephen ChadwickThe “stress” of education has been on academics and a full education is missing, one where a child develops socially and emotionally.
Children are multi-faceted human beings. I believe that adults and youth need to become friends with themselves, accepting who they are and connecting with the wisdom that they have within already.  

Educational Liaison – MBSR & SMART Teacher/Facilitator

STEPHEN CHADWICK is an MBSR teacher who received his training under the direction of Roy Hintsa and Dr. Diane Reibel the Director of The Stress Reduction Program at Jefferson University’s Myrna Brind Center for Integrative Medicine. He received his certification as a Yoga Ed Instructor for High Schools, Working with Those At-Risk, Level II Curriculum Training of Mindful Schools, and trained in smartEducation™ (Stress Management and Resiliency Techniques) with Linda Wallace. Steve is a teacher for The Mindful Edge® –Stress Reduction and Life Strategies for Teens program in high schools. He has twenty seven years experience as a public school teacher with the TDSB, specializing in working with Children with Special Needs and ESL.


JeremyFinkelsteinMindfulness Teacher

 

JEREMY FINKELSTEIN is the founder of Mindful Living, a psychotherapeutic mindfulness-based meditation group for beginners and MBCT/MBSR graduates and a mindfulness-based facilitator for Mindfulness Everyday and The Centre for Mindfulness Studies. He has done facilitator training through the University of Massachusetts medical school and The Centre for Mindfulness Studies. Part of faculty at the CMS, Jeremy runs workshops for teens and leads silent retreats. With Mindfulness Everyday, Jeremy facilitates The Mindful Edge: Stress Reduction and Life Strategies for Teens.


Natalia Fister, B.English, B.Education
SMART Facilitator / Associate Mindfulness Facilitator / Hatha Yoga Teacher

NataliaFisterNATALIA FISTER has been teaching in high schools since 1990 and Hatha Yoga since 2002. Natalia has studied yoga and meditation locally and internationally, travelling to India several times, Kripalu in Massachusetts to continue her yoga teacher training, Nosara, Costa Rica and  Lake Atitlan Guatemala to attend yoga retreats, and most recently, to Vallecitos, New Mexico to attend a 5 day silent retreat for educators. Natalia pioneered a credited yoga and mindfulness course in high school for the York Region District School Board (YRDSB). She currently teaches a grade 11/IDC3O “Mindful Yoga and the Art of Happiness” course and a grade 12/IDC4U “Mindful Yoga and the Philosophy of Wellness” course. She is a certified facilitator for SMART: Stress Management and Resiliency Techniques. She has facilitated numerous professional development workshops for educators on mindfulness in the classroom, including the annual “Bridging Hearts and Minds” conference on Mindfulness for Educators and Health Care Providers in San Diego. She embeds mindfulness practices not only in her yoga course but all her English courses. She is committed to sharing the benefits of mindfulness and yoga to students and teachers alike in the conviction that it will transform their lives as much as it has hers.