This month’s issue features five more of OPA’s bright stars. Let’s appreciate them for their willingness to share a bit of their lives. Like so many of OPA’s members, they reflect the diversity and expertise of our profession. Please contact me to set up a time for a mini interview – to share your update and news with your astrological peers. Once again I want to thank those who contributed to this issue. 

Dr. Christoph Schubert-Weller I had the pleasure of meeting Christoph at UAC in Denver last May. He traveled from Lake Constance, Germany to Denver to attend the conference. Christoph maintains that “he does his vocation where others come to vacation”. Lake Constance is the third largest lake in Europe and is situated between Germany, Switzerland and Austria.

Christoph is the Chairman of the Deutcher Astrologen-Verband, (German Astrologer’s Association) with a membership of about 800 members. At UAC he realized how Germany has very little exchange with astrology in the United States. Christoph would like to see that change. Last year DAV celebrated its 60th Anniversary, with 400 members attending the festivities.

He asserts Germany still suffers from the restrictions of the Third Reich. Until the 1950’s there were severe consequences for practicing astrology. Today, dialogue between classic and traditional astrological models is the norm, similar to the exchange of ideas illuminated by the panel at UAC, From Ancient to Postmodern Astrology.

At an important moment of his life, Christoph discovered astrology at the age of twenty six. He became immersed in it, reading many books; no classes were offered at that time. Around that same period he took a job as a typist/transcriber for an older gentleman who happened to be an astrologer. Thus began his journey into professional astrology and a successful career.

Though he was brought up in psychological astrology in the tradition of Liz Green, Christoph is also well versed in other astrological techniques, such as Cosmobiology, Horary, Uranian, etc. In 1984 he became the press secretary for the Youth Association of Astrologer’s and in 1985 joined DAV as a member. Shortly thereafter he passed the DAV exams and became a professional astrologer. He has heard it said that the German astrology exams are amongst the most challenging and demanding.

When talking about current issues, specifically about the approaching Uranus-Saturn opposition, Christoph wisely stated that “If you want to make cake, you must beat the eggs!” Presently Christoph is compiling the first issue of the DAV newsletter. It is scheduled to be launched this Summer. We wish him much success and look forward to seeing him again in the near future!

Susan Miller It was a treat to meet Susan at UAC! She said it was wonderful bringing everyone in our astrological family together and strengthening out ties. Susan is a proud New Yorker who has lived in the city her entire life. She loves it. Susan is fortunate to have her two adult daughters living nearby.

Of course, many of us are familiar with Susan Miller’s work. She is especially remarkable for her contributions towards the mainstreaming of our profession. Her web-site Astrologyzone.com is widely used and very popular.

Susan has been a involved with astrology her whole life. Her mother, also an astrologer, mentored her in astrology, from the time she was a young person and on into adulthood. A mysterious illness as a child paved the road for her as a professional astrologer. Her personal story can be found in her excellent book, Planets and Possibilities. This is a book chock-full of insights and useful information.

Susan loves working with eclipses! She says that they’re the most dramatic and reliable tool the universe uses to create change. The truths they reveal need to be acted upon instantly. As for current events, Susan suggests that we take what is valuable from the past and apply that to all that will come next--no need to toss everything out and start from scratch. The coming years will mark a rough and tumble time similar to 1968, due to clashing outer planets. Those have a purpose, however, to awaken us, both personally and socially, to new realities that we need to address. 

Susan is passionate about learning and trying new mediums for promoting astrology. Maybe TV? All new digital forms continue to surprise and bring her delight. Susan can now be found on all cell phones, iTunes, etc. Where ever the universe takes her next Susan is sure it is going to be fun!

Gayla Pierce Gayla lives in San Diego, California. I had the good fortune of getting to know Gayla through our work together on the OPA Board of Directors, where she has served as treasurer for the past four years.

Gayla has been surrounded by astrology most of her life. Her grandmother was also a student of astrology. In 1997, while living in the San Francisco Bay area, Gayla began to take astrology classes from a teacher by the name of Ruby Holiday. She felt very lucky to find a teacher she could connect with and learn from. Gayla was like a sponge as she had no preconceived notions about astrology. The start of her astrological education corresponded with transiting Neptune opposing her natal Mercury in Cancer in the second house. How appropriate!

Gayla prefers working with astrocartography, relationship astrology and mundane astrology as reflected in the work of Richard Tarnas. She has also been a professional in the food industry for almost thirty years. Gayla’s attempt to combine the astrology of seasons, social functions and the cycles of life led her to Astro-Food.net. This is where “food and astrology meet for a tasty trip around the zodiac”. She is also the founder of the successful blog site: The Dining Diva. 

Gayla’s passion has led her to research pagan and wicka holidays relating to the cycles of nature. Her vision and hope is to transition into writing more extensively on astrology. She says astrology adds texture to life and transcends black and white interpretations. Currently Gayla serves as Vice President of the San Diego Astrological Society. We are fortunate to have Gayla as an associate!

Michael Munkasey Michael is a world-renowned astrological researcher and lecturer. His professional astrology career and research recently earned him the Regulus Award for Discovery, Research, and Innovation, an honor he surely deserves! Michael found his way to astrology in 1969 while working at IBM in Washington D.C. Still employed by IBM, Michael ran across Don Bradley’s book on Planetary Cycles. Being a scientist, Michael’s curiosity was piqued and he started his own analysis and research of planetary cycles. In the same year he was asked to speak at an AFA convention on his findings, though Michael had very little knowledge of astrology at that time. Within 18 months he became totally immersed in astrology, passed the AFA exam, and a successful career was launched. Shortly after, IBM relocated Michael to New York City, where he became a part of a progressive group of Uranian astrologers in NCGR. To this day Michael continues his work in computer programming. 

Michael has always been interested in harmonics and uses them extensively in his work and research. His work on this subject has popularized the use of harmonics. Today he spends most of his time researching the stock market, collecting and organizing information on companies. He is also working on a compilation of Key Words for publication. So far he has collected 80,000 word ideas for the language of astrology alone! His Astrological Thesaurus on House keywords is available through Amazon. Michael is also currently working with the seven Personal Sensitive Points and their applications. His contributions to the world of science and astrology are immense. He now resides in Southern California with his fiancée where he continues his research. I feel fortunate to call Michael a friend and fellow astrologer.

Jennifer Bobbit  Jennifer and I met at UAC last May when we both found ourselves in the same Consulting Skills Seminar. It was a happy coincidence. Though Jennifer has always been interested in astrology, she didn’t become totally immersed in it until Pluto transited her third house in 1993-94. Nonetheless, prior to that time she kept journals detailing her astrological discoveries, just as you would expect a Virgo Ascendant to do.

Jennifer loves psychological astrology. After reading Jeff Greene’s book on Pluto, she decided to write and tell him how much she enjoyed his book. To her amazement he actually wrote back! This spurred her interest in the deeper and evolutionary aspects of astrology. In fact, Jennifer says that she tends to draw deep, dark people to her looking for spiritual direction. She possesses a natural gift for making her clients feel comfortable. Nothing shocks her! She feels like she has found her niche. 

In 2006 Jennifer accidentally stumbled upon ISAR and decided to attend the conference in Chicago. There she was pleased to discover the “family of astrology”. She says being a member of this community is like a giant spring-board that will help illuminate the earth changes occurring. Jennifer believes that it is our responsibility as astrologers to use our intuition, compassion and knowledge for the benefit of others. Jennifer is from Texas where she lives and has a successful astrology practice.

Here is a note from our respected colleague, Dianne Eppler Adams, offered after the Denver UAC Conference: “UAC 2008 was more than just a major international astrology conference done well. It proved to be a gathering of wise, informed and conscious people from around the globe who care about the world, its people and its future. This “caring” sparked a sharing between astrologers young and old, traditional and modern, beginners and professionals unlike any other conference I have attended.” Well said, Dianne. Thank you for contributing!