Threads of Enlightenment

Interviewed Jason Carter. Jason is a podcaster, author, husband, father, and entrepreneur who struggled for decades with depression and alcoholism before beginning the journey to recovery. In his new memoir, To Hell I Ride: When a Life Examined Became Worth Living (Lioncrest Publishing, Jan. 2022), he takes an unflinching look into the darkest corners of his past and how he found clarity—and ultimately redemption—on a reflective road trip from Texas to Telluride.

Years ago, most people assumed Jason lived a normal, happy life. (And certainly, on the surface, this was true.) He had a remarkable wife, three great kids, and a spacious house near the country club. So, why was he engaging in suicidal ideation on his morning run? What no one realized was that, for 30 years, he had also lived with a combination of excessive drinking, deep-rooted insecurity, and depression that was taking a significant toll.

That is, until one fateful therapy session. After discussing his thoughts of suicide with his psychiatrist, Jason was forced to address his drinking head-on and reevaluate the effect it was having on his mental health—and the trajectory of his life. That’s when he piled his family into their Suburban for a 17-hour road trip to Colorado, simultaneously taking a parallel journey down memory lane to confront the memories that had influenced his descent into despair. This time, he would choose to take a different path.

In To Hell I Ride, Jason recounts how the insidious presence of alcohol crept into every fabric of his life, while also confronting personal demons that still haunt him today. Determined and darkly comedic, he bares it all with brutal honesty to dispel the taboo of speaking about alcoholism and empower others to know they are not alone in their struggle.

Jason is the founder and president of Pilot/Runner Communications, specializing in creating meaningful communication strategies and connective content for VCs, startups, and early-stage companies. He holds a B.A. in English from Texas Christian University and attended a graduate screenwriting program at UCLA. Jason currently lives in San Antonio, Texas, with his wife and three kids.

I encourage everyone to purchase his books, listen to his podcast, follow him, and be transformed by his insights.

Everyone has a story, and this is his story.

Below are the sites that house his work.

https://www.thejasoncarter.com/ (https://www.thejasoncarter.com/)

https://www.instagram.com/jdc_sa/?hl=en (https://www.instagram.com/jdc_sa/?hl=en)

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChhIlrEZ7BjehujmNspXKIA (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChhIlrEZ7BjehujmNspXKIA)

https://www.tiktok.com/@thejasoncarter (https://www.tiktok.com/@thejasoncarter)

https://www.facebook.com/jasondcarterSA (https://www.facebook.com/jasondcarterSA)

https://anchor.fm/jason-d-carter (https://anchor.fm/jason-d-carter)

https://twitter.com/thepilotrunner (https://twitter.com/thepilotrunner)

https://www.pilotrunner.com/ (https://www.pilotrunner.com/)

Visit our Threads of Enlightenment store:

https://threads-of-enlightenment.myshopify.com/ (https://threads-of-enlightenment.myshopify.com/)

We shop worldwide to find some of the highest-quality and some limited hard-to-find products online for you. We work closely with many suppliers to get the lowest prices. Enjoy our store!!!!!!.

I interviewed Andrea Lukac. Andrea is a life coach. Her desire is to assist people to take ownership of their life and learn how to set healthy boundaries based upon their needs and wants. Andrea Lukac entered the working world after studying economics, she noticed very quickly how unhappy she and other people around her were in their day to day lives. This awareness gave her the courage to follow her passion for inspiring people to live life to the fullest by communicating their needs and wants powerfully.

Utilizing her knowledge of human behavior, especially how we react from past traumas, shame and judgement. Andrea offers tools to assist her clients in overcoming their difficulties by letting go of their past to start living in peace, acceptance and love. She learned how our subconsious patterns run human lifes and how they can be changed for the better.

I encourage everyone to follow her and be transformed through her insights.

Everyone has a story, and this is her story.

Below are the sites that house her work.

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100006174106186 (https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100006174106186)

https://www.instagram.com/andrea_lukac__/ (https://www.instagram.com/andrea_lukac__/)

Visit our Threads of Enlightenment store:

https://threads-of-enlightenment.myshopify.com/ (https://threads-of-enlightenment.myshopify.com/)

We shop worldwide to find some of the highest-quality and some limited hard-to-find products online for you. We work closely with many suppliers to get the lowest prices. Enjoy our store!!!!!!.

I interviewed Kelle Sparta. Kelle is a spiritual coach, she stated that she came into this life with knowledge about the spirit world and gifts that were active in her. She confessed that she was blessed to have a mother who had grown up afraid of her gifts and was determined that her daughter would not be afraid of her gifts. They studied together some of the leaders in the self-development space such as Seth, Ram Dass, Abraham Hicks, J.C. Knight, psychic development, tarot, and palmistry. All the while she knew that her mother was looking for answers for herself as well, answers that would take her out of the pain she was in, out of the alcoholic haze that kept her on an even keel so she could (not) deal with the trauma of her early childhood. Kelle stated that she longed to heal her mother, to put her demons to rest. It was this reason that caused her to harder. Kelle continues her search for an answer, by enrolling in psychology classes in college, all the while reading self-help books, reading abnormal psychology books in her spare time.

At the age of 28, she was divorced and walked away from what we call normal life and went to live with shamans for 4 years to work on her personal growth path which led her to where she is today.

Kelle sees herself as a healer, channel, and psychic focused on supporting and facilitating people's transformation. She has been trained and certified as a trainer in many different programs over the years.

As a result of working with her mother and herself from a young age, Kelle developed her own programs to assist her clients to access their inner selves. Her her background in theater and improvisation allows her to blend entertainment, information, and transformation. Kelle has been working with retreat centers and retreat teams since 2003. She designed and run retreats from simple one-day events to weekend workshops, to multi-day transformational events.

I encourage everyone to buy her book follow her and be transformed through her insights.

Everyone has a story, and this is her story.

Below are the sites that house her work.

https://kellesparta.com/ (https://kellesparta.com/)

https://www.facebook.com/KelleSparta1/ (https://www.facebook.com/KelleSparta1/)

https://www.instagram.com/kellesparta/ (https://www.instagram.com/kellesparta/)

https://twitter.com/KelleSparta (https://twitter.com/KelleSparta)

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0jXbllhVlDcHRqMSQpR2DQ (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0jXbllhVlDcHRqMSQpR2DQ)

Visit our Threads of Enlightenment store:

https://threads-of-enlightenment.myshopify.com/ (https://threads-of-enlightenment.myshopify.com/)

We shop worldwide to find some of the highest-quality and some limited hard-to-find products online for you. We work closely with many suppliers to get the lowest prices. Enjoy our store!!!!!!.

I interviewed Dr. Paulette Evans. Dr. Paulette J. Evans, BSEE, MBA, SSBB, CPHQ, PMP, CKF was born in Georgetown, SC, a small coastal town where both of her parents grew up; after they both graduated from college, her father worked as an electrician for 33 years and her Mother taught Math for 36 years. Combining what she learned from both of them, she obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering, minoring in Mathematical Sciences, from Clemson University in 2001. Paulette also earned her Master of Business Administration degree from Stetson University in 2008, graduating Magna Cum Laude. She recently obtained her Doctor of Education degree, specializing in Performance Improvement Leadership, from Capella University; she was on the President’s List throughout her work for maintaining a 4.00 GPA and graduated Summa Cum Laude.

Paulette currently lives in Raleigh, NC, and identifies as a process improvement/project management expert who utilizes proven methodologies to effectively and efficiently solve problems at work, at home, and everywhere in between. Because this ability comes naturally to her, she recently launched Evans Efficiency Experts, a consulting firm focused on helping people convert chaos to calm before they burn out. Prior to founding her business, Paulette served as the Vice President – Enterprise Portfolio Management Office at Cardinal Innovations Healthcare in Charlotte, NC. She was responsible for overseeing the enterprise-wide portfolio of projects, and managing a dedicated team of professionals to ensure all components of projects and deliverables meet desired metrics and outcomes. Before transitioning to Cardinal Innovations, Paulette served as the Senior Business andamp; Quality Improvement Leader for the Revenue Cycle department at UNC Health. She was tasked with partnering with leaders and front-line staff to improve their processes, identifying ways to enhance project team performance, and serving as a key champion of the organization’s strategic priorities. Prior to relocating to Raleigh, Paulette was a Senior Project Manager at Cone Health where she led and managed the development, implementation, and coordination of projects for Reinventing Care, a collaborative process that combined architectural and health care experts from across the country to inform the design, construction, and renovation of Cone Health’s hospitals. In the last 9 years, she has obtained certifications in Kaizen Facilitation, Project Management, and Healthcare Quality. Before transitioning to the healthcare industry, Paulette held a variety of leadership positions at General Electric where she honed and cultivated her project and operations management skills and earned a Six Sigma Black Belt certification. As an Electrical Project Manager, she managed 430 projects totaling $13.4MM for the sales team in the North Florida district and helped the team reach $58MM for the 2006 budget year.

In 2017, Paulette was recognized as one of 40 Leaders Under 40 by the Triad Business Journal, and she was featured in the Clemson World Magazine as a “Tiger on the Move.” She was also awarded the 2019-2020 Foundation Award from the Junior League of Raleigh. Paulette also has a passion for empowering women to be strong, self-reliant, and successful in all their endeavors, so she spends any free time she has volunteering for organizations with this same focus. She currently serves in a leadership capacity with the Junior League of Raleigh, the Raleigh Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta, the NC Triangle Chapter of Ellevate, Soroptimist International of Wake Forest, and KNOW Cares. One of her most memorable life experiences occurred in 2001. While an electrical engineering student at Clemson University, Paulette led a project requiring a team to research, design, and install a water purification system at a clinic in an underdeveloped village in South Africa. To this day, Paulette looks back on this experience as the sole...

I interviewed Sylvia Worsham. Sylvia is an author, blogger, YouTuber, Keynote Speaker, and Coach who specializes in Empowerment, Sales, and Leadership.

Sylvia was a multiple award-winning hospital sales representative for Pfizer Pharmaceuticals. Currently, she conducts masterminds on leadership, sales, and personal growth all the while coaching individuals and organizations on creating compelling visions, purpose, and identities to get out of their own way and thrive while still maintaining balance and joy.

Her turning point was a life-changing journey about understanding how the unique gifts that God gave her fit in with the purpose of her life. She stated that most people aren’t currently daring to live out the life they were created for due to fear, based belief systems and habits which keep them stuck.

Sylvia believes that staying open to the possibility that change presents in our lives is key and believing that everything happens FOR us and not TO us is essential and. by applying the universal laws of Reflection and Focus this turning point can lead you from a life of Survival to a life of Significance in service of others

Sylvia also enjoys blogging and creating videos for her Focus Fridays series on YouTube which most of her readers enjoy watching and playing Pickleball.

I encourage everyone to buy her book follow her and be transformed through her insights.

Everyone has a story, and this is her story.

Below are the sites that house her work.

https://www.sylviaworsham.com/ (https://www.sylviaworsham.com/)

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9cCgUH9u_9aa9ZukqiUM8Q?view_as=subscriber (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9cCgUH9u_9aa9ZukqiUM8Q?view_as=subscriber)

https://www.facebook.com/coachsylviaworsham/ (https://www.facebook.com/coachsylviaworsham/)

https://www.instagram.com/worshamsylviavillalobos/ (https://www.instagram.com/worshamsylviavillalobos/)

https//http://www.linkedin.com/in/sylviaworsham/ (www.LinkedIn.com/in/sylviaworsham/)

Visit our Threads of Enlightenment store:

https://threads-of-enlightenment.myshopify.com/ (https://threads-of-enlightenment.myshopify.com/)

We shop worldwide to find some of the highest-quality and some limited hard-to-find products online for you. We work closely with many suppliers to get the lowest prices. Enjoy our store!!!!!!.

I interviewed Carrington Smith. Carrington Smith is a single mom, author, graduate of the University of Texas and Tulane Law School, entrepreneur, executive search professional, speaker, and blogger. Despite being born into a means and a family of high social standing, life served her some hard lessons. She has survived sexual assault, two divorces, piles of debt, abuse, religious mind games, the death of loved ones, and the loss of close friends.

Carrington spent a lifetime trying to be someone else, to fit in, to be loved, to keep the peace, and to make others happy. Until, she discovered that her own path to happiness wasn’t based on fitting in but on standing out, celebrating her uniqueness, and owning her past. From trauma to triumph, through the depths of sexual assault, religious manipulation family rejection, body dysmorphia, mid-life metamorphosis, physical scarring, and death into happiness, forgiveness, empathy, purpose, belonging, and joy.

In her debut best-selling memoir, Carrington combines wit and wisdom to share her journey through the shit, with a positive attitude and a shift of mindset, into a life bursting with joy, opportunity, and purpose. Blooming is a poignant, powerful account of finding your way through difficult times in life. A candid and raw, account, Blooming takes you on a treasure hunt to discover the gifts that are hidden within you. Carrington has come to believe, "It is in the messes, failures, trauma, and difficulties of life that we discover what we need to bloom into our greatness".

I encourage everyone to buy her book follow her and be transformed through her insights.

Everyone has a story, and this is her story.

Below are the sites that house her work.

https://www.carrington-smith.com/ (https://www.carrington-smith.com/)

https://www.linkedin.com/in/carriesmithtrabue/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/carriesmithtrabue/)

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5HWX6jTM_F-nZAaShyx8SQ (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5HWX6jTM_F-nZAaShyx8SQ)

https://www.instagram.com/carringtonatx/ (https://www.instagram.com/carringtonatx/)

https://www.facebook.com/CarringtonATX (https://www.facebook.com/CarringtonATX)

https://twitter.com/CarringtonATX (https://twitter.com/CarringtonATX)

https://www.amazon.com/Blooming-Finding-Gifts-Shit-Life-ebook/dp/B09JWWTX7Z/ref=sr_1_2?crid=1LLSVG0ITTQDVanddchild=1andkeywords=blooming%20carrington%20smithandqid=1635298445andsprefix=blooming%20carri%2Caps%2C189andsr=8-2 (https://www.amazon.com/Blooming-Finding-Gifts-Shit-Life-ebook/dp/B09JWWTX7Z/ref=sr_1_2?crid=1LLSVG0ITTQDVanddchild=1andkeywords=blooming%20carrington%20smithandqid=1635298445andsprefix=blooming%20carri%2Caps%2C189andsr=8-2)

Visit our Threads of Enlightenment store:

https://threads-of-enlightenment.myshopify.com/ (https://threads-of-enlightenment.myshopify.com/)

We shop worldwide to find some of the highest-quality and some limited hard-to-find products online for you. We work closely with many suppliers to get the lowest prices. Enjoy our store!!!!!!.

I interviewed Dr. Naeema Olatunji. Dr. Olatunji is a Chiropractor, entrepreneur, author and Podcast Host of Elevate NOW and a mother of three beautiful children. Dr. Olatunji book "Raised As A Lie", is a true memoir of racism, denial, family secrets, and freedom.

She tells her harrowing story of how she only learned she was a Black woman at 18-years old. Being raised in an all-white family while suffering to fit in every step of the way, Dr. Naeema shares how she navigated through understanding herself and her childhood traumas of hurt and lack of belonging. She takes us with her through her journey to meeting herself while continuing to build herself from the inside out.

Her journey is of profound importance in today's society. Here are some statistics to support my point. Approval of interracial marriage continued to grow in the U.S. in periodic readings Gallup took over the following decades, finally reaching majority level in 1997, when support jumped from 48% to 64%. Support has increased in subsequent measures, surpassing 70% in 2003, 80% in 2011 and 90% in the current reading. https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2021/02/25/in-vice-president-kamala-harris-we-can-see-how-america-has-changed/ (According to the Pew Research Center), at least 19 percent of new marriages in the U.S. now involve spouses from different ethnic or racial groups – up from 11% in 2000.

If you have friends and family who are from an interracial family, they need to here her story.

I encourage everyone to buy her book follow her and be transformed through her insights.

Everyone has a story, and this is her story.

Below are the sites that house her work.

https://www.raisedasalie.com/ (https://www.raisedasalie.com/)

https://www.instagram.com/naeemadc/?hl=en (https://www.instagram.com/naeemadc/?hl=en)

https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-naeema-olatunji/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-naeema-olatunji/)

https://www.instagram.com/elevatenowpod/?hl=en (https://www.instagram.com/elevatenowpod/?hl=en)

https://www.facebook.com/drnaeemawrites/ (https://www.facebook.com/drnaeemawrites/)

https://www.audible.com/pd/From-Raised-as-a-Lie-to-Speaking-Her-Truth-Dr-Naeema-Olatunji-Podcast/B09RZV86B7 (https://www.audible.com/pd/From-Raised-as-a-Lie-to-Speaking-Her-Truth-Dr-Naeema-Olatunji-Podcast/B09RZV86B7)

Visit our Threads of Enlightenment store:

https://threads-of-enlightenment.myshopify.com/ (https://threads-of-enlightenment.myshopify.com/)

We shop worldwide to find some of the highest-quality and some limited hard-to-find products online for you. We work closely with many suppliers to get the lowest prices. Enjoy our store!!!!!!.

I interviewed Nancy Pickard. Nancy is a Certified Integrative Coach through The Ford Institute for Transformational Training and the Levin Life Coach Academy. She is certified as a Breakthrough Shadow Coach, Empowered Parent Coach, Courage Coach, Healing Your Heart Coach, Leadership Coach, Holistic Lifestyle Coach, and Bigger Better Braver Coaching. She is the author of the international best seller, Bigger Better Braver: Conquer your Fears, Embrace your Courage, Transform your Life.

Prior to her work as a coach, she owned and operated a personal training gym called Tight Ends Inc. She knows what it takes to help people achieve big goals. She holds multiple personal training certifications and has focused on health and wellness for almost 20 years. Her path towards coaching was a natural evolution—she has a BS in Psychology and an MS in Education.

In 2017, she traveled alone in Thailand and Vietnam and undertook her biggest challenge, climbing Kilimanjaro at the age of 61. Coaching others to step out of fear and into bigger versions of themselves is her passion.

I encourage everyone to buy her book follow her and be transformed through her insights.

Everyone has a story, and this is her story.

Below are the sites that house her work.

https://nancypickardlifecoach.com/ (https://nancypickardlifecoach.com/)

https://www.facebook.com/Nancypickardlifecoach (https://www.facebook.com/Nancypickardlifecoach)

https://www.linkedin.com/in/nancy-pickard-771993a6/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/nancy-pickard-771993a6/)

https://www.instagram.com/nancypickardlifecoach/ (https://www.instagram.com/nancypickardlifecoach/)

https://twitter.com/cnancyrun (https://twitter.com/cnancyrun)

https://twitter.com/cnancyrun (https://twitter.com/cnancyrun)

Visit our Threads of Enlightenment store:

https://threads-of-enlightenment.myshopify.com/ (https://threads-of-enlightenment.myshopify.com/)

We shop worldwide to find some of the highest-quality and some limited hard-to-find products online for you. We work closely with many suppliers to get the lowest prices. Enjoy our store!!!!!!.

I interviewed Karen Maloney. Karan is a Certified Silent Counselling Practitioner, Certified Strategic Intervention Life Coach, Host and Producer of the ‘Curiosity and Consciousness’ podcast, Certified Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) Practitioner Certified Level 1 and 2 Reiki and Seichem Energy Practitioner, Certified Advanced Integrated Energy Therapy Practitioner, Events Manager, She was the host of a live monthly Book Club on the National Irish radio station, TodayFM.

Karen is a champion of ‘soul living’ and is passionate about helping people shift their inner world, believe in themselves and create new visions. She helps clients to uncover the subconscious beliefs that are holding them back and transform them. She believes the relationship we have with ourselves, is to key everything. When we shift this on the inside, the outside follows.

From her journey, Karen knows what’s possible for us when we do the inner work and transform how we think, feel, and believe about ourselves. Everyone has experienced challenges, but our healing and well-being are our responsibility, we owe it to ourselves! Karen is passionate about helping people embrace this journey and love themselves and their life again. It’s not always comfortable to work, but it is the most potent work a person can do.

I encourage everyone to follow her and be transformed through her insights.

Everyone has a story, and this is her story.

Below are the sites that house her work.

https://www.karenmaloney.com/ (https://www.karenmaloney.com/)

https://www.facebook.com/karenmaloneyinsideoutcoach (https://www.facebook.com/karenmaloneyinsideoutcoach)

https://www.instagram.com/karenmaloney_/ (https://www.instagram.com/karenmaloney_/)

https://linktr.ee/karen_maloney_ (https://linktr.ee/karen_maloney_)

https://open.spotify.com/show/1UhPID8m9HCWMcS6m1W9g5?si=kN7_SKYqSwy-P-po062yeQ (https://open.spotify.com/show/1UhPID8m9HCWMcS6m1W9g5?si=kN7_SKYqSwy-P-po062yeQ)

https://www.youtube.com/user/kazmalie/videos (https://www.youtube.com/user/kazmalie/videos)

https://www.linkedin.com/in/karen-maloney-5b58608/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/karen-maloney-5b58608/)

Visit our Threads of Enlightenment store:

https://threads-of-enlightenment.myshopify.com/ (https://threads-of-enlightenment.myshopify.com/)

We shop worldwide to find some of the highest-quality and some limited hard-to-find products online for you. We work closely with many suppliers to get the lowest prices. Enjoy our store!!!!!!.

I interviewed Brandon Leibowitz Brandon is a serial entrepreneur, blogger, and SEO course instructor. He has helped small and medium-sized businesses rank on Google for hyper-competitive keywords increasing sales and generating new business. He has over 14 years of digital marketing experience; specializing in SEO and social media marketing. Brandon's team is skilled in helping with search engine optimization, email marketing campaigns, creating an affiliate program, optimizing paid ads on Google AdWords, setting up social media profiles, and a bit of web design.

Brandon stated that in 2008, he realized that most businesses would need a website to stay competitive in the future. Having a website is only one piece of the puzzle. Ultimately, they need someone to help market their website to bring in traffic that will, in turn, convert to clients. He has always worked full-time at ad agencies helping their clients with search engine optimization. At night after work, he would work on my freelance clients from SEO Optimizers. Brandon was recently able to quit his daytime job to pursue my company full time.

His desire is to help small and medium-sized companies get ranked at the top of Google by using search engine optimization tactics and bringing in traffic via social media, paid ads, etc. He also publishes new digital marketing blog posts a few times a month.

I encourage everyone to follow him and be transformed by his insights.

Everyone has a story, and this is his story.

Below are the sites that house his work.

https://seooptimizers.com/brandon-leibowitz/ (https://seooptimizers.com/brandon-leibowitz/)

https://www.facebook.com/seooptimizers (https://www.facebook.com/seooptimizers)

https://twitter.com/seooptimizers (https://twitter.com/seooptimizers)

https://www.linkedin.com/company/seo-optimizers (https://www.linkedin.com/company/seo-optimizers)

https://www.youtube.com/c/brandonleibowitz (https://www.youtube.com/c/brandonleibowitz)

Visit our Threads of Enlightenment store:

https://threads-of-enlightenment.myshopify.com/ (https://threads-of-enlightenment.myshopify.com/)

We shop worldwide to find some of the highest-quality and some limited hard-to-find products online for you. We work closely with many suppliers to get the lowest prices. Enjoy our store!!!!!!.