Administrative Structure and Council Members

• Our Council is basically a board of directors.
• As a council we operate by a consensus rather than majority rule policy.
• Important concerns and voices of the minority are equally represented as those of the majority.
• The Council consists of 5 positions. There is also a president and vice president, executive officers who facilitate the meetings, but do not vote.

To download a copy of the AHG By-Laws, click here.

 AHG Board of Advisors

Amanda McQuade Crawford
Victoria Fortner
Charlene Muhammad
James Snow
Lesley Tierra
Michael Tierra
Roy Upton
Christopher Hobbs
David Winston
Susan Wynn

 AHG Council & Officers

Karta Purkh (“K.P.”) Singh Khalsa, Yogaraj, DN-C, RH,  
AHG President
integrative_education@msn.com  
KP mentored in Ayurveda with Yogi Bhajan for 32 years. Along the way, he incorporated deep studies in Western and TCM herbalism. His school has been training professional herbalists for over 30 years. Karta Purkh has presented over 150 times at professional conferences, has written over 3,000 articles on health topics and is the author or editor of 30 books on health, including his latest, The Way of Ayurvedic Herbs. He is curriculum director and lead instructor in the Portland Community College Nutritional Therapy Program and heads the herbal education department of the Northwest Institute of Ayurveda. He lives in the Northwest with his family.

Bevin Clare, M.S., R.H., CNS
AHG Vice - President
ahgvicepresident@gmail.com
Director of Education
Symposium Committee Chair
Bevin Clare is a clinical herbalist and nutritionist with a deep love of plants. She is the Clinical Division Chair of the Masters of Science in Herbal Medicine Program at Tai Sophia Institute in Laurel, MD.  Bevin has studied herbal medicine around the world and blends her knowledge of traditional uses of plants with modern science and contemporary healthcare strategies. Her clinical practice focuses on wellness, nutrition, infection, and women’s health. She holds a MSc in Infectious Disease, serves on the faculty of the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and the New York Chiropractic College and lectures nationally. Bevin is the director of the Herbal Clinic for All program, a program offering cost free clinical services to the population in need in DC, Baltimore, and Laurel, MD. She is a board member of the United Plant Savers, a group working to protect at-risk medicinal plants in North America. Bevin has been a professional member of the AHG for nearly a decade, on the governing council for 7 years and the vice president since 2010. She is grateful to be of service to the herbal community, both within and beyond the AHG.

David N. Harder, RH (AHG)
AHG Treasurer
david.harder1@gmail.com
David practices Clinical Herbalism at 143 Northampton Street in Easton, Pennsylvania. He is active as an educator in his community, a co-founder of “Herbal Exchange” the NJ AHG Chapter and “Changewater Wellness Center”, a clinic that provides clinical experience to advanced herbal students, while serving individuals needing low cost counsel and herbs. David has been a professional member of the American Herbalist Guild since 1999. He and his wife, Linda has owned and operated Nature’s Way a natural foods store in Easton since 1975.  On play days with mild weather, gardening, herbal wild crafting and cycling, take him out doors. Inclement weather allows time for research, woodworking and music. 

Warren Gohl, MA, Council Member
wcgohl@msn.com
Advisory Board Liaison
Warren Gohl is a certified medical herbalist graduate of IIEI and a traditional medicine plant ethnobotanical presenter. He founded Bearforce Learning, a medical herbalism information resource activity. He is chaplain of the Inter-Tribal Warriors Society, an American Indian veterans support organization and is a member of the Joint American Indian Veterans Advisory Committee to the Veteran's Administration.  He represents the United Indians of All Tribes Foundation as spiritual leader to the American Indian inmate sweat lodge circle at a Washington State corrections facility and to American Indian mental health residents of Washington State's Western State Hospital.  Warren received Masters of Arts degrees from the University of Southern California and Chapman College of Los Angeles in international relations and criminal justice.  He enjoys presenting herbal medicine topics by weaving traditional practice and modern application. He is active in sustainable permaculture and works for Northwest coastal creek restoration and the renewal of traditional Northwest coast Indian medicine gardens.

Mimi Hernandez, MS, RH (AHG), Council Member
mimi@owhai.com
Outreach Committee Chair  
AHG Facebook Admin
Volunteer Task Force Coordinator
Mimi Hernandez is a clinical herbalist and herbal educator whose courses balance traditional reverence with scientific understanding and intuitive awareness. She is the Director of the Appalachian Center for Ethnobotanical Studies at Frostburg State University in Maryland.  Mimi received her Master of Science in Herbal Medicine from the Tai Sophia Institute where her research focused on natural approaches to cardiovascular inflammation.  With roots in Asheville, NC, Mimi is a founder of the One World Healing Arts Institute.  Mimi also developed the herbal formulations at Mortar & Pestle Apothecary.  As an herbalist, Mimi draws upon her rich ethnic background & the Granny healers in her life. 

Patricia Kyritsi Howell, RH (AHG), Council Member
pkh@wildhealingherbs.com
Annual Symposium Committee
Chapters Liaison
Mentoring Committee Chair
Patricia has more than nineteen years’ experience as a clinical herbalist and teacher. Her book, Medicinal Plants of the Southern Appalachians (2006) is one of the foremost resources on the topic of regional native plant medicines. She is founder and director of BotanoLogos School of Herbal Studies, (www.wildhealingherbs.com) located in the mountains of north Georgia.  A third generation chef, Patricia is passionate about cooking, and specializes in wild foods and the traditional cuisine of Crete, Greece. She is co-owner of Wild Crete, a small tour operator that specializes in unique custom travel experiences on the Greek island of Crete that emphasize the connections between art, culture, history, cuisine, archaeology and native herbs.  Patricia is currently serving her second term on the Governing Council.

Sheila Kingsbury, ND, RH (AHG), Council Member
skingsbu@bastyr.edu
Council of Students Advisor
Herb School Outreach
Symposium committee
Liaison to the Admissions Committee
Sheila Kingsbury is a Naturopathic physician and Associate Professor of Botanical Medicine and Pediatrics at Bastyr University, where she has taught for the last 9 years. She has trained and mentored a variety of clinical herbalists in her private practice, where she focuses mostly on pediatrics.  Her background includes work in Anthropology and Ethnobotany and American History.  She is a mother of 4 young children and enjoys gardening, hiking and knitting.  

Nicholas Schnell, RH (AHG), RD, LMNT, Council Member
spiritbear4@msn.com   
Chair Professionalism Committee
Nicholas began studying herbs at the age of 12 in rural Nebraska.  His family lineage includes root doctors and Eclectic Medical Doctors.  He is a graduate of East West School of Herbology.  His teachers include Michael Tierra, Matthew Wood, Pete Medicine Eagle, Dr. Qi Jun Chen and Master Yun Xiang Tseng.  He runs a thriving herbal clinic/dispensary in Omaha called the Four Winds Natural Healing Center.  He also runs an herb school in Nebraska, Prairie Star Center for Herbal Studies.  He is passionate about plant conservation and prairie restoration.

Alexis Durham
2012 Symposium Coordinator
symposium@americanherbalistsguild.com
Alexis' interest in plants began with the cultivation of a container garden on the patio of her apartment inAustin, Texas. This little garden brought such joy and abundance, and she realized that this was, in fact, our oldest form of medicine. Curiosity piqued, she moved to Seattle and enrolled in Bastyr University's Herbal Sciences program.  After graduating, she further developed her skills in a clinical internship and in the dispensary at the Bastyr Center for Natural Health. Alexis discovered her love for teaching while working for the American Botanical Council, educating university pharmacy and dietetic students about herbal medicine and speaking to various gardening groups and local organizations.  Her heart stayed in the Northwest, though, and she returned to Southern Oregon to work for Horizon Herbs, where she spent the happiest part of each day with her hands in the dirt. She is currently teaching a series of medicine making and body systems classes for Herb Pharm's Herbaculture Residential Study Program and coordinating the 2012 Symposium for the American Herbalists Guild.

Deserie Valloreo
Volunteer Coordinator
Deserie@herbalwise.net
Deserie is a Natural Health Advisor and Certified Clinical Herbalist. She completed the Professional Herbalist Program at Acupuncture & Herbal Therapies where she studied Traditional Chinese Medicine and Chinese herbs with Robert “Bob” Linde, AP, RH. Deserie also studied western herbs through the Science and Art of Herbalism program offered by Rosemary Gladstar. She is the President of the West Coast Florida Regional Chapter of the American Herbalist Guild and also operates her own company, HerbalWise, whose mission is to empower people to take control of their health naturally. She works toward this goal by offering educational workshops, private consultations, and her own line of herbal remedies.