TIDBITS about Elaine from Elaine

I have been a coach in one form or another most of my life, and was thrilled to discover a career which embodies my approach to the world. Over the years, I have:

• worked in in Education, Counseling and Listening, Social Work, Public Health and Public Policy.
• been an educator, a facilitator and a trainer.
• worked for 7 years as a Pregnancy and Post-partum yoga teacher, and Labor and Delivery class instructor for couples.
• been a facilitator for Body and Soul, an organization designed to help women and girls find the beauty in themselves, in a spiritual context.
• started a mother-daughter group at the Epstein School which is now an 'institution' there.
• started a Healthy Lifestyles initiative at Greenfield Hebrew Academy.
• served for seven years on the Executive Committee of the Governor’s Council for Maternal and Infant Health for the state of Georgia.
• appeared on CNN as a young woman advocate on behalf of the pro-choice movement
• been interviewed by Georgia State's Oral History Project for my role as an Activist in the field of women's rights and reproductive health.
• established the Taylor Speaker Series at the Amit Program, designed to educate parents, teachers and professionals about a broad range of issues, often though not exclusively for the special needs audience.
• Received, along with my husband and parents, the Amit Program's Shorashim award for outreach and education on special needs issues.
• discovered that my children and husband are gluten intolerant, and have managed a gluten-free household for many years.
• been constantly educating parents on the hidden impacts of nutrition and allergies, which led me to my current career.
• been best at helping people see the big picture of their lives, and use that perspective to inform their decision-making.
• been married to my first husband for nearly 18 years, though we’ve only had 4 anniversaries.
• been a mother for 15 years. I have 3 children, 7 nieces and nephews, 3 god-children, 2 'adopted' god-children, 6 extra pre- and teenage girls whom I claim as "mine, too," one cousin who is an 'adopted niece,' and more than 2 dozen children whose lives matter to me as if they were my own.
• become a Jewish mother (I’m not sure when this happened, but I definitely want people to put on sweaters when I’m cold, and I’m constantly pushing food. I can't help it, really ... it must be genetic.)
• played many roles in my life. Currently, I am a parent, a spouse, a daughter, a grand-daughter, a sibling, a partner, a friend, an Aunt, a 'surrogate' Aunt, a board member, a coach, an advocate, an educator, a facilitator, a volunteer, a business owner, and a consultant. Oh yeah, and a professional coach.
• enjoyed being an Atlanta native.
• been a college student in Connecticut and a CORO Fellow in New York City. But that was a long time ago.
• been married to a (fabulous) man--now my business partner, too-- I met in Sunday School as a child, re-discovered as an adult, and with whom I am raising 3 children.
• expertise in raising children with special needs and advocating for their parents. I see a place for nutrition, medication and behavior modifications in treatment, and have some understanding of a wide range of available therapeutic approaches.
• a basic knowledge of nutrition, the impact of environmental and food allergens, and the management of living with chronic illnesses and diseases.
• experience managing the care of an elderly (grand) parent.
• supported friends through illnesses, loss of loved ones, cancer, divorces, mental illness and depression, coming out, sobriety, and the traumatic process of standing up for a sexually abused child in court.
• had numerous other jobs, careers, work and volunteer experiences. I have been a social worker, a researcher and writer, a political organizer, a facilitator, a trainer, a fundraiser, a program developer, a community builder, a Board development trainer, a Board member, a public health advocate, a public policy participant, a sexual assault crisis counselor, a reproductive health educator, an excellent student, and a Sunday School teacher.
• served on many Boards of Directors, including Planned Parenthood of Georgia, Cliff Valley School and Congregation Or Hadash.
• served on the Governor’s Council for Maternal and Infant Health for the state of Georgia.
• helped to establish several non-profit and political organizations or programs.
• developed a small, in-fill residential subdivision in the City of Atlanta.
• been a change agent.
• one of the best coaching voices my first supervisor has ever heard. I think it comes from the years of teaching yoga, and trying really hard to keep my cool around my kids. I constantly get positive feedback on how the presence of my voice puts clients at ease and instills trust.  For some strange reason, I get a kick out of that!