Retreats and seminars that provide respite for caregivers need to incorporate opportunity to reflect, to be nurtured, and to rest. It is also a time in which caregivers can tell their stories in a safe and confidential environment. Dr. Nicki Verploegen, a Co-Founder of TATENDA International, has traveled widely throughout Africa and Asia, as well as the United States. She has been teaching and directing retreats for more than 30 years and brings with her knowledge of these cultures and caregiving.

Her work and her writings are recognized internationally by secular and religious organizations. She uses her own stories of personal transformation as a means for others to recall their lives and to explore their own call to service. Her four books include From Monks to Missionaries; Planning and Implementing Retreats: A Parish Handbook ; Organic Spirituality: A Sixfold Path for Contemplative Living; and Meditations With Merton.

Dr. Verploegen teaches courses in graduate schools around the United States, including College of Mount Saint Joseph in Cincinnati, OH, University of Dayton, and University of the Incarnate Word in San Antonio, Texas.  She holds a Ph.D. and M.A. in Formative Spirituality from Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and an M..A. from Gonzaga University, Spokane, Washington,

 Her books can be obtained by contacting Wipf and Stock, Eugene, OR at 541-344-1528or via email at  orders@wipfandstock.com.

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