Johnny (aka John) Manzon-Santos (he/him/his) is a curator of leadership practices. As a coach, trainer, mentor and facilitator, he partners with individuals, teams and networks to unleash our power and redirect the privilege from which we benefit, thereby transforming our systems toward greater interconnectedness, liberation and healing. His work sources in part from his intersectional experiences as a cisgender queer man of color raised in a Filipino immigrant, working class family. He is co-principal of pearldiving LLC, co-founder of the With/In Collaborative, and faculty member with Leadership that Works.
Johnny is a fost-adopt co-parent to a spirited child, Andrés, and primary caregiver for his 90-year old mom living with Alzheimer’s. Both of these humbling roles provide him with windows on our underresourced systems of care and our human capacities for connection and creativity. Johnny is also a mindfulness practitioner in the Zen tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh and carries the dharma name, Pure Intention of the Heart. An avid adult figure skater, he trains in singles freestyle, same-sex pairs and ice dance.
For Johnny, What I Miss? is part love letter to his cherished B.Michael and part telenovela — with a potentially infinite number of episodes! — for the fierce “we” who are still here. That we continue to share our stories of hope, of hurt, of healing with each other and with all our relations and Village People, current and future. That we continue to tell B.Michael, and all of those on whose shoulders that we stand, what they’ve missed. Photo: Laura Turnbow
Johnny is a fost-adopt co-parent to a spirited child, Andrés, and primary caregiver for his 90-year old mom living with Alzheimer’s. Both of these humbling roles provide him with windows on our underresourced systems of care and our human capacities for connection and creativity. Johnny is also a mindfulness practitioner in the Zen tradition of Thich Nhat Hanh and carries the dharma name, Pure Intention of the Heart. An avid adult figure skater, he trains in singles freestyle, same-sex pairs and ice dance.
For Johnny, What I Miss? is part love letter to his cherished B.Michael and part telenovela — with a potentially infinite number of episodes! — for the fierce “we” who are still here. That we continue to share our stories of hope, of hurt, of healing with each other and with all our relations and Village People, current and future. That we continue to tell B.Michael, and all of those on whose shoulders that we stand, what they’ve missed. Photo: Laura Turnbow
Sheilah Mabry, LCSW-R, CPC (she/her/hers) is a consultant, facilitator, leadership coach, licensed clinical social worker, writer, artist, and B.Michael Hunter’s favorite cousin. Grounded in curiosity, creativity, and joy, Sheilah believes in the inner resourcefulness and resilience of people to work collectively to transform systems. As a bisexual woman of color, she centers equity and anti-racism in all of her work.
Sheilah received her professional coach certification from Leadership that Works, and is a past board member of the National Association of Social Workers-New York City Chapter. She is a proud member of the National Queer and Trans Therapists of Color Network. Sheilah is a graduate of the Ackerman Institute for the Family’s Foundations of Family Therapy and Gender & Family Project. She holds a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Massachusetts Boston and a Master’s degree from the Hunter College School of Social Work.
Sheilah received her professional coach certification from Leadership that Works, and is a past board member of the National Association of Social Workers-New York City Chapter. She is a proud member of the National Queer and Trans Therapists of Color Network. Sheilah is a graduate of the Ackerman Institute for the Family’s Foundations of Family Therapy and Gender & Family Project. She holds a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Massachusetts Boston and a Master’s degree from the Hunter College School of Social Work.
Joseph Samuel Quisol (he/him) is a Bay Area-based artist, educator, and organizer with roots in North Carolina, The Philippines, and Puerto Rico. Joseph worked closely with Johnny Manzon-Santos in envisioning and building this site.
Since 2012, Joseph has been composing music as Quisol, performing and producing QTPOC-centered events in underground art spaces around the Southeast United States. Quisol’s music merges his Filipino and Puerto Rican cultural roots with electronic production and acoustic sounds, incorporating themes of queer love and decolonization.
Quisol released his debut album REVELATIONS in 2019 with a series of music videos. For more information and to connect, visit http://www.quisol.co
Since 2012, Joseph has been composing music as Quisol, performing and producing QTPOC-centered events in underground art spaces around the Southeast United States. Quisol’s music merges his Filipino and Puerto Rican cultural roots with electronic production and acoustic sounds, incorporating themes of queer love and decolonization.
Quisol released his debut album REVELATIONS in 2019 with a series of music videos. For more information and to connect, visit http://www.quisol.co
Nadia Wynter (she/her/hers) is an editor, writer and critical thinker from Queens, New York, an area of land where more languages are spoken than anywhere in the world. It was in this environment of global embrace that Nadia fostered her love of people, culture, interconnectedness and inclusivity. Ubuntu. Not to mention her love of delicious food and the power of subtle engagement with one another on the street, the soft universal language of acknowledgement.
In and out of her irregular meditation practice, Nadia reflects mostly on the quotidian, what we humans do every day. What are we feeding on? Is it actually nourishing? Nadia’s reflections acknowledge the good, the bad, and the ugly of our daily diets as well as the painful cracks in our rote ways that allow magic (change) to seep in. As a Black, bisexual daughter of immigrants, Nadia is proud of her fair share of cracks, which help her to better connect with spirit, the ancestors, other living beings and herself every day.
Throughout her career, Nadia has ensured that writing is clear, engaging and typo-free. That it’s right and tight. She has thought about the “cleanup” nature of her role, and what that means as a Black queer woman, but mostly, she relishes the trust. Nadia never had the privilege of knowing B.Michael Hunter in life, but she feels very much connected to his spirit and energy to keep it joyful and sorrowful, and everything in between. That is, to keep it poetic and real. Photo: JJ Harris
In and out of her irregular meditation practice, Nadia reflects mostly on the quotidian, what we humans do every day. What are we feeding on? Is it actually nourishing? Nadia’s reflections acknowledge the good, the bad, and the ugly of our daily diets as well as the painful cracks in our rote ways that allow magic (change) to seep in. As a Black, bisexual daughter of immigrants, Nadia is proud of her fair share of cracks, which help her to better connect with spirit, the ancestors, other living beings and herself every day.
Throughout her career, Nadia has ensured that writing is clear, engaging and typo-free. That it’s right and tight. She has thought about the “cleanup” nature of her role, and what that means as a Black queer woman, but mostly, she relishes the trust. Nadia never had the privilege of knowing B.Michael Hunter in life, but she feels very much connected to his spirit and energy to keep it joyful and sorrowful, and everything in between. That is, to keep it poetic and real. Photo: JJ Harris