The Functionality of Your Eye Brain Connection Integrating Periphery and Affecting Balance and Movement
Vision is learned, and 75% of all sensory input is vision. Based on these two facts, learning how to use your eyes and brain together in a different conscious way will allow you to elevate and expand your learning potential and maintain your aging visual process. Come and experience hands on how you can expand the way you see, think and move, all inspired by enhancing your new found vision, and learn to integrate your eye-brain and conscious connection.
How to Expand Visual Memory for the Aging Brain: A Hands-on Experiential Class
As we become aware that vision is learned, our visual memory is what will support us during our aging years but only if we know what it is and how we can access it. We are surviving on rote learning which is not serving us. Come and learn how you can truly expand your visual memory capabilities that will serve you outside the Ranch and show you that as you tap more into the awareness of vision, your memory can expand and can support you more than you realized. Don’t wait to train your eyes and brain to have an enhanced visual memory.
Computer Vision & the Effects of Blue Light and Sleep
Come and learn how to enhance the comfort of your eyes in the ever-increasing world of computer exposure, the artificial light from screens, and the effects on our sleep. Enjoy an experiential lecture on learning how to increase comfort for your tired burning eyes, and how you can optimize good sleep during these times.
Visionary Health: Optic Intelligence – Feeding the Eyes to Fuel the Mind.
Hear about the Future of Sight with Dana Dean and Patti Milligan
In a world where digital strain, chronic inflammation, and nutrient deficiencies are silently eroding our visual health, it’s time for a paradigm shift. This talk explores how functional medicine can unlock the full potential of the human eye—going beyond symptom management to address root causes of visual decline. From macular resilience to optic nerve vitality, discover the cutting-edge nutritional strategies and lifestyle interventions that support optimal eye function across the lifespan. Join us as we trail blaze new territory in ocular health, where vision is not only preserved—but enhanced. Learn how supporting vision—from reducing digital eye strain to slowing age-related changes is the way of the future. Through a fresh lens of functional medicine, we’ll uncover how key nutrients, lifestyle choices, and root-cause thinking can transform the way we care for our eyes. Whether you’re staring at screens all day or simply want to protect your sight for the long haul, discover how to see the future more clearly—starting on your plate. Come treat your eyes to vision learning!
Dana Dean, OD, is a behavioral optometrist who specializes in holistic optometry and vision intelligence. Dr. Dean has had a private optometric practice in San Diego for the past 25 years. Originally from South Africa, she completed her studies in San Diego as well as attending the New England College of Optometry in Boston. She treats her patients holistically performing vision therapy on both children and adults. Her patients also include brain injuries, stroke victims and adults who want to achieve maximum success in life and reach their true potential. Not only does she see patients performing eye-brain-body connection and building visual efficiency, she also lectures on the topics of vision and brain integration, vision and the aging eyes, vision and spirituality, vision with balance and coordination, as well as vision intelligence. Dr. Dana Dean is also a passionate advocate for educating teachers on the importance of vision and learning in a school setting.
Peggie Dickens is a licensed counselor and life coach with a master’s degree in psychology and mental health counseling. Drawing on advanced training in somatic-based therapy, attachment-focused approaches, and EMDR, she specializes in helping individuals and couples navigate life transitions, heal from trauma, and move through anxiety and depression with greater ease and resilience.
Kathe Wallace, PT – Internationally recognized pelvic health clinician, educator, and author. She wrote Reviving Your Sex Life after Childbirth and numerous pelvic health resources. Since 1988, she has specialized in pelvic health and currently teaches at the University of Washington. Awards include the Washington State PT Association Clinical Excellence Award and the APTA Academy of Pelvic Health Elizabeth Noble Award.
Dawn Sandalcidi, PT, RCMT, BCB-PMD – Specialist in pelvic muscle dysfunction and orthopedic manual therapy. She has trained clinicians worldwide since 1992 and practices at Physical Therapy Specialists in Colorado. Board-certified in biofeedback for pelvic muscle dysfunction. Recipient of the APTA Section on Women’s Health Elizabeth Noble Award (2018).
Roberto Colangeli
Irma Sofía Poeter was born in Arcadia, California, in 1963 to an American father and a Mexican mother. She has lived on both sides of the Tijuana-San Diego border and currently resides in Tecate, Mexico, and San Diego, California. A multidisciplinary and self-taught artist, she works with textiles, painting, photography, architecture, and performance. Her artistic development, spanning over 30 years, has been through practice and participation in workshops, seminars, diploma programs, and artist residencies in Mexico and abroad. She won the San Diego Art Prize and the Baja California State Fund for Culture and the Arts Scholarship and was a founding member of Grupo Martes (Women in the Arts) in Tijuana. With over 30 years of experience, she has had more than 20 solo exhibitions and a 25-year retrospective of her artistic career in 2019-2020. This retrospective was presented simultaneously at the Tijuana Cultural Center and The Front Art and Culture in San Ysidro, California. In 2009, she presented a solo exhibition at the Museo Textil de Oaxaca, Mexico. During her stay in Oaxaca, she was known as Eduardo Poeter, a stage name she used as a performance piece during her time there. She has participated in national and international group presentations in the United States, Cuba, England, Poland, and Italy.
Lynda Reeves McIntyre, Ph.D., trained as a painter and a dancer at the University of Massachusetts, Hunter College and Yale University. Her doctorate is in Aesthetics. She weaves her training in painting, dance, Buddhist study and aesthetics into her teaching. Dr. McIntyre had her first major show in New York at 21. She has since received numerous awards, including those from the NEA, the MacDowell Foundation, the JFK Center, the ICCE, the VCCA and the Getty Foundation. She has been awarded art fellowships abroad to Australia, the former Soviet Union, China, Vietnam, Bhutan, Cuba, France and Italy where she often teaches painting in the summers and, most recently in Bonaire and New Mexico. Her work is shown throughout the U.S, Europe and the Pacific Rim and is in corporate and private collections in the U.S., Europe and Australia. Dr. McIntyre is Professor Emeritus in Studio Art and the former Chairman of the University of Vermont’s Department of Art and Art History. 
Clayton Merrell grew up in Pittsburgh, PA, and Puerto Ordaz, Venezuela. He holds an MFA from the Yale School of Art and received a Fulbright Grant for research and creative work in Oaxaca, Mexico in 1996-97. His work is exhibited widely, with recent exhibitions at: the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum; Penn State University; Concept Gallery, Pittsburgh PA; the A+D Gallery, Chicago; the Westmoreland Museum of Art, and the Strohl Art Center, Chautauqua NY. His work is in the collections of the American Embassy in Belmopan, Belize, the Smithsonian, the Anderson Museum of Contemporary Art, the U.S. Department of the Interior, and numerous private and corporate collections. He was the 2005 Artist of the Year at The Pittsburgh Center for the Arts, and in 2016 was named Creator-of-the-Year by the Pittsburgh Technology Council. He has received awards and grants from the Heinz Foundation, Virginia Center for the Creative Arts, Skowhegan, The Millay Colony, Mass MOCA, Vermont Studio Center, and the Roswell Artist-In-Residence Foundation. The Pittsburgh International Airport features a 69,000 sq. ft. terrazzo floor based on his design. He is currently the Dorothy L. Stubnitz Professor of Art at Carnegie Mellon University, where he teaches Color, Painting, Drawing and Concept Studios.
Susan McCandless, RDN, IFNCP, a Functional Dietitian Nutritionist, is a sought-after speaker known for her expertise in delivering engaging educational workshops. She is an effective health coach with a distinct ability to translate the science right to the plate and inspire powerful diet and lifestyle habits. Board Certified in Integrative and Functional Nutrition, Susan understands how body systems work together. She focuses on improving client function and performance by treating the root cause of nutrition imbalances. In her private practice with MINT Nutrition, Susan is delivers clients proven results through in-depth assessment, food-first solutions and a personalized nutrition toolbox. Susan holds advanced certifications in integrative and functional nutrition, digestive health, immunology, genetics, food sensitivities and intuitive eating.
Carrie Geraci, BA, is a plein air painter and public art curator based in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. She has been an active part of the Jackson art scene since 1995, showcasing work that blends intuition, expressive mark-making, and unexpected color juxtapositions. Specializing in soft Sennelier pastels for her plein air pieces, her studio practice also includes oils and acrylics. Geraci earned a BA in Visual Arts from Brown University, where she also studied printmaking and photography at the Rhode Island School of Design. She further expanded her artistic perspective during a semester abroad in Florence, Italy, immersing herself in sculpture, photography, and drawing while exploring the region’s rich art history. A dedicated arts educator, she has taught at Portsmouth Abbey Summer School, Snake River Institute, and the Jackson Hole Community School. Beyond her personal practice, Geraci is the founder and executive director of JH Public Art, a nonprofit she established in 2010. Under her leadership, the organization has commissioned dynamic, free, and accessible public art, enriching the cultural landscape of Jackson Hole.
Linda Weill’s beautiful ceramic mosaics can be found throughout the Rancho La Puerta property and Professor’s Park. A public school art teacher for 25 years, Linda pivoted from teacher to student when, at age 60 she enrolled in a mosaics course at the renowned Orsoni Furnice in Venice. Since then, she has worked with schools and community groups to create narrative ceramic mosaics. These detailed public art installations feature handmade clay pieces and depict cultural and ecological themes of the land they inhabit. Linda loves to teach at Rancho La Puerta and guests always enjoy her multi-media art classes.
Joy Khoo, a Master Certified Coach (MCC) through the International Coach Federation (ICF), is an executive coach and facilitator passionate about creating transformative, inspiring, and connecting experiences for her clients. In addition to her coaching expertise, Joy is certified in expressive arts facilitation. As an artist at heart, she has also designed greeting cards featured at prestigious venues, including the Art Institute of Chicago, the Seattle Art Museum, and the Seattle Symphony Gift Store. Joy was recognized by Secretary Colin Powell for her leadership work with the U.S. Embassy in Indonesia and spent a decade at the Gates Foundation. She currently leads development workshops for organizations such as the Gates Foundation and Stanford University. Additionally, she has been serving as a guest teacher at YTL Resorts, a 5-star luxury destination in Asia, where she leads immersive self-discovery and mindfulness workshops.
Jessica Colvin, MSW, MPH is a national leader in the school wellness movement, with over 25 years of experience supporting the health and well-being of youth. As the founder of SWELL – Schools Well, she has helped design and launch more than 90 school-based Wellness Centers across California and beyond, creating spaces grounded in student voice, wellness, and belonging. Within this work, Jessica has developed the Wellness Toolbox – a framework that invites youth and adults alike to recognize and name their emotions (“name it to tame it”) and build personalized tools for coping, emotional regulation, and self-care. Some of these tools include mindfulness, movement, and connection – and for Jessica, one of her most meaningful wellness tools has always been art. When she’s not working with schools, Jessica can often be found teaching arts & crafts workshops – a passion she’s pursued for over 30 years, blending creativity, mindfulness, expression, and play. She believes art isn’t just a hobby, but a meaningful way to support emotional well-being and reconnect with joy – regardless of experience level.
Brent Hedstrom
Karen Boren Gerstenberger is an artist who lives and creates by the shores of Puget Sound, Washington, using acrylic paint and mixed media. Her work is held in collections around North America, in Europe and South Africa, and is shown in her gallery in Kingston, Washington. She has a deep reverence for nature and its healing potential in our lives. A dedicated walker, she knows personally the solace, inspiration, freedom, and joy that strolling in nature provides because it helped to release her from 30 years of “artist’s block.” She co-facilitates the Stroll for Well-Being Program at the beautiful Bloedel Reserve on Bainbridge Island, Washington, which continually inspires her. In her memoir, Because of Katie, Karen tells the true story of her journey with her daughter and family through the world of pediatric cancer. She created and taught WORD SOUP© (a writer’s workshop). Karen founded & is President of Katie’s Comforters Guild and The Katie Gerstenberger Endowment for Cancer