Your Hosts
Gwen
Gwen Gardner has been the High Priestess of the Garden of the Crescent Moon Coven since 2007, when the Coven was first birthed. She is a 3rd Degree Witch in the Fellowship of the Elder Path, which is an offshoot of some of the Reconstructionist groups out of Berkley, CA in the 1970’s. She holds Bachelor’s Degrees in Psychology and Wiccan Ministry and has 4 years of study towards two different Master’s Degrees, in Counseling and Interfaith Communications. She has 4 years of study in Ceremonial Magick, which makes her an Adeptus Minora in that path. She has studied Shamanism with Sandra Ingerman, Norse Shamanism with Cissi Williams and most recently Celtic Shamanism with Jane Burns.
Gwen considers herself a Hedgewitch, which means a witch who travels the liminal spaces, the hedges and edges, the boundaries between worlds and realms, seeking healing, guidance, knowledge and wisdom from those who dwell there. She has been dedicated to Freyja, the Norse Goddess who is a teacher in the ways of Seidth, Norse magickal practice, since 2017. Gwen also loves hiking, camping, gardening, singing, drumming, reading books and communing with nature, along with her dog.
“Not all who wander are lost”.
Logan
Logan Nickel is studying the history of religion at the University of Montana with a minor in Anthropology. He served as Speaker of a local Norse pagan group for 7 years and was considered one of the most knowledgeable members when it comes to spirituality, paganism, and history. Last year he traveled to Germany and Scandinavia for the first time to begin training under several highly respected shamans and has continued this training with them since. Logan has hosted many study groups relating to these topics.
At age 17 Logan began working with wild and domestic animals at Wolfkeep Wildlife Sanctuary, including wolves, lynx, coyotes, foxes, and wolfdog hybrids. He continued working with dogs (and cats to a lesser degree) over the next decade. Specializing in communicating with aggressive animals, Logan has helped many wounded dogs learn to trust again and find healing.
Having grown up in Montana, Logan is a lifelong backpacker and has a deep relationship with this land. His family has a long history of hiking and backpacking, including Sir Edmond Hillary, first modern man to summit Mt Everest. His father has over fifty years of experience exploring the wilds and has passed this knowledge on. Logan has taken many people on their first backpacking trip. He loves hearing the voice of nature and is eager to share this experience with those who can be quiet enough to hear it.
"You can't Google 'where's my screwdriver?' "
Ashes
Ashes has been working in the realm of tattooing and body modification for eight years, both participating and facilitating in ceremonial tattooing and ritualized body suspension. Hailing from the mountain peaks of northwest Montana, she’s made her home among the forest there. Weaving a deep and integral relationship with the land in which she was born.
A passion birthed through the benevolent reverence found within our ancestral ties to old ways, an interconnection to the natural landscape, and the sanctity of death cycles and ceremony lead her through many of the experiences she continues to learn from today.
Shamanic and indigenous perspective has deeply influenced her practice. Traveling abroad to work and study under wisdom keepers and well respected teachers, to revive and rebirth shamanic practices and more ancient ways of tattooing. Gracing the lands of Norway, Germany, Sweden, and Scotland.
Learning and participating in the practices of core shamanism under Kai Uwe Faust as well as courses provided by Sandra Ingerman ‘A Shamanic Approach to Death as a Rite of Passage’, and ritual support through death courses offered by end of life doula Bree Rose. She also continues to learn from her close friend and mentor Gwen Gardner.
An alchemist and weaver of ink, Ashleigh spends most of her time deeply rooted in artistry. A witness to the fluidity of emotion and the ever-changing cycles of the landscape. A vessel of movement and conduit of creation.
“The Well is within you..”