Introducing Core Faculty Graduate: Nini Gridley

Greetings everyone, and Happy New Year!

To begin the year, we’ll be sharing periodic spotlights on the remarkable teachers and staff of Sacred Centers Academy—people whose dedication and depth help make this work so powerful. There is no better place to start than with Nini Gridley, our longtime SCA Coordinator for the Certification Program, who has worked alongside Anodea for decades.

Nini’s steady presence, deep knowledge, and devotion to the integrity of the teachings have helped shape and strengthen the Sacred Centers Certification Program. Under Anodea’s supervision, she has guided and supported every Sacred Centers Teacher and Healer, ensuring a solid understanding of the chakra system while encouraging each student to expand the work through their own unique expression.

Nini Gridley, MS Ed, BFRP

Nini Gridley, MS Ed, BFRP

Sacred Centers Teacher and Healer

NiniGridley.com

I first met Anodea in 1992 at the New York Open Center in Manhattan when she taught her workshop Seven Windows to the Soul. Having read Wheels of Life, I was eager to meet her. During a grounding exercise, I volunteered as a demonstration—and experienced something profoundly transformative. That moment became the catalyst for fully awakening my path as a Sacred Centers Teacher and Healer.

The following year, I wrote Anodea asking permission to offer “a small workshop or study group” on the chakras, describing myself as “the tall, thin, ungrounded woman with no boundaries”—hoping she might remember the demo. She wrote back immediately, and I’ve been teaching the chakra system ever since.

In 1994 and 1995, I attended the weeklong Advanced Chakra Training with Anodea and Selene Vega on Martha’s Vineyard—a course that later evolved into Psychology of the Chakras, now foundational for Sacred Centers trainees. I was also honored to proofread Eastern Body, Western

Mind (1996), which deeply resonated with my professional background. I hold an MS Ed. in Child Development and spent ten years working as a Child Life Specialist in Pediatrics.

In my late 30s, the structure of my life unraveled. I faced sudden unemployment, the loss of my

mother, and the end of two marriages. I moved alone to the countryside to grieve and heal, diving deeply into Jungian therapy, energetic medicine, Reiki, and the Bach Flower Remedies to support emotional balance.

My yoga practice led me to a month-long teacher training at Kripalu in 1998. Living nearby allowed me to attend—and later assist—Sacred Centers Certification courses while earning over 500 hours of Kripalu Yoga Teacher Training. I joined the Guest Sadhana team and taught 90-minute Retreat and Renewal chakra workshops, ultimately working at Kripalu for nearly 15 years.

For my Sacred Centers certification project, I created the MoonWish Meditation CD and offered free New Moon meditations aligned with the Manifesting Current of the chakras—with powerful results. Encouraged, I went on to teach a biannual seven-week series, Full Spectrum Healing, which helped establish my private practice in Norfolk, CT. The Sevenfold Journey became my go-to text for introducing students to the chakra system.

In 2002, I became a Bach Foundation Registered Practitioner, integrating flower remedies into my work to support clients in resolving emotional patterns often rooted in childhood. These tools blended seamlessly with my yoga classes and chakra workshops, sustaining my practice for decades.

Holding safe and sacred space—whether in private sessions, yoga classes, workshops, chakra series, or MoonWish meditations—is at the heart of my work. My training with Sacred Centers has given me profound tools to support others on their healing journey. It is my deepest honor to teach people how to heal. As Coordinator of the Sacred Centers Certification Program, I am grateful to guide students toward the courses and resources—online and in person—that illuminate the path of spiritual embodiment.

For more information: www.NiniGridley.com