Tamara is a mother, wife, and lifelong student of the sacred. She has spent the past decade partnering with CEOs and nonprofit executives to build values-driven startups that embody bold visions for a better world. As an editor and creative writer, she has contributed to the success of almost a dozen books including Most Likely To Succeed, What School Could Be, and The Lion Tracker's Guide to Life.

Inspired by her own experiences of pregnancy and birth, Tamara spent three years researching the history of birth across cultures and collecting stories from friends, elders, wisdom keepers, and midwives. These collective insights inspired her to co-found Tend as a way to invite more people into the wisdom of their bodies and the transformative potential of birth.  

Tamara holds a Masters in Humanities from New York University and is a KRI-certified instructor of Kundalini Yoga. When not creating for Tend, you can find her singing, tending her garden, and connecting with the keepers of ancient wisdom across the globe. She currently lives in the Hudson Valley with her husband and two young children.

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Sophia (she/her) is a mother, ritualist, and believer in the sacred power of life's transitions. Sophia supports bringing the vision of Tend to life by leading strategic planning, finance, and operations. She has spent the past 15 years working with paradigm-shifting social entrepreneurs as an operator and investor. Sophia is the Founding General Partner of Rites Ventures, the only fund in the world dedicated to investing in underrepresented, early-stage founders who are innovating rites of passage to support modern women.

Sophia lives in Durham, North Carolina, with her husband and young son. She is a passionate advocate for home birth, birth equity, and culturally appropriate care. She is currently advising the team behind the Southeast's first Black-led, scalable network of community birth and health centers. Sophia is the founding board Vice Chair of At The Well, an international organization of women's circles, and an advisor to a half dozen early-stage companies around the world.

Therese is a respected ceremonialist, transformational coach, and ancient traditions wisdom-keeper. She infuses her offerings with over 30 years of experience in therapeutic bodywork, energy systems, international yogic study, modern sciences and mothering. Her mission is to aid the embodied empowerment of each individual to awaken your dynamic connection with yourself, others, and the Earth. 

Darryl Slim is a healer and mentor. He is Tangle Clan on his mother’s side, Many Goat Clan on his father’s side, Bitter Water Clan on his paternal grandparent side, and Mexican Clan on his maternal grandparent side. He grew up on the Navajo Nation where he learned traditional Navajo medicine from his grandparents Danny and Aurora Joe. From a very young age, he was mentored into the wisdom traditions of our ancestors. He lives with his family in Mesa, Arizona.

I learned birth in the traditional midwifery model – by attending those families who were choosing home birth early in the movement. Most of the 40 years I have served as a midwife and family practice physician were spent in a rural, mountainous region that is far from any hospital with surgical capability or obstetric providers, leading to the development of a detailed understanding of reproductive physiology and the inter-relatedness of all parts of the reproductive process. The added experience of teaching – from home school with my children to medical students – has given me an ability to explain complicated concepts in understandable terms. Fueled by my passion for supporting healthy humans, I am excited to share my embodied knowledge with those who are on the same journey towards building thriving communities.

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Ash is a self-anointed street minister who goes wherever she is called.  She is also a theatre artist and former teacher at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts. She has extensive experience working with artists, addictions, mental illness, spiritual despair, and personal relationships. She is committed to helping others rekindle their inner divinity, grace, power, and wisdom. A lifelong learner, Ashley has studied at the Orphan Wisdom School, Richard Rohr’s Living School, and Byron Katie’s School for the Work. As a speaker, she has presented her hour-long "Fierce Embrace" talk on college campuses and theatre stages.  She has been married for more than two decades to a fellow artist and designer with whom she shares two irreverent and marvelous children. She is most at home by the sea, in an empty theater, or in the company of soul family.