Yuliana Kim-Grant’s New Medium
Like the Greek mythology of the Phoenix rising from the ashes, women live a multitude of lives in one, never ceasing to amaze us in displaying their strength, transforming their situation, usually in the face of challenges. Whether it is career setbacks, resets, or true personal transformation, each story adds to the tapestry of what is Phoenix Tales, a new platform to empower women in understanding the power of their stories, the power of their own lives.
As a woman who loves to hear stories, I thought it would be an honor to sit with some of these incredible women to hear them tell their tales of facing challenges; and like the Phoenix to rise out of the ashes, remaking their lives, and perhaps finding a moment of clarity of self. I am humbled by the number of women I know, many I am proud to call a friend, whose tales have inspired me through the years. I am also excited to talk to those I’ve admired from afar, perhaps to learn from their courage, their ability to blaze a trail when others might not have thought possible, to share in the power of the collective as we try to build a strong community of women inspired and women being inspired by other women.
Phoenix Tales on Instagram Live @YulianaKimGrantOfficial was a huge success in 2020 and I am extremely thrilled to share that you can now hear the tales of trials and triumph on major Podcast channels such as Captivate, Spotify, Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts.
All of these stories are real and Yuliana starts each interview with one question: “what defining moment or challenge, that you faced, re-shaped your life to where you are today?”
Let them take you back to the most difficult times of their lives and how they approached each day, each moment - a Phoenix Tale Moment.
For social media updates on Phoenix Tales, follow us on Facebook and Instagram @phoenixtalespodcast.
premier episode:
ginger McKnight-Chavers, yuliana kim-grant’s first guest on phoenix tales
In this episode, she recounts the challenges she faced in one harrowing year. Hear how unflappable she was as she faced taking care of an aged parent, taking care of an in-law suffering dementia, taking care of her husband facing life-threatening cancer, and taking care of her young daughter. Yet it was amid all of these challenges that reshaped the course of her life.
I hope you get a chance to listen to Ginger’s story.
When ‘Life Threatening’ Becomes ‘Life Altering’ with
Mary Cerdeiras
Faced with a diagnosis of Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma in 2009, Mary decided to complement the traditional Western treatment she was receiving with alternative treatments, a decision which would ultimately shape her life from that moment forward. Today, we are all so very privileged to listen in as she shares her inspirational tale of courage, commitment, and renewal.
Overcoming an Eating Disorder in the Fitness Industry with Amanda Murdock Global Head of Content at FitXR
This episode of Phoenix Tales comes with a trigger warning, as we will be discussing eating disorders. Amanda Murdock, former Senior Director of Fitness at the Daily Burn and now Global Head of Content at FitXR shares her candid story about struggling with an eating disorder while working in the wellness industry, what prompted her to finally seek help, and how this experience ultimately made her stronger and more resilient.
Navigating Post Traumatic Growth with Eden Grimaldi
Eden Grimaldi, founder and owner of PR and branding company, MediaCraft, joins Yuliana on Phoenix Tales. She describes her journey of the most challenging year in her life and to demonstrate how she became unstoppable after facing those challenges. Her fearlessness, resolve and optimism, despite going through a traumatic period, is so inspiring especially when she speaks about how her post traumatic growth involved developing these very qualities.
Living a Regret-Free Life with Erica Mather
Erica Mather, author of Your Body, Your Best Friend. Hand-selected by Ana Forrest to become a lineage-holder (called “a Guardian”) in the Forrest Yoga system, Erica is also the founder of ‘The Adore Your Body Transformational Program’, a 7-step system for getting a handle on body image challenges, as well as ‘The Yoga Clinic of NYC’. In this episode, Erica shares the story of how losing her dad at a young age propelled her into making certain life decisions and taking responsibility for herself.
Heeding the Calling to Serve with
Dana Slamp
Joining Yuliana on this episode is Dana Slamp, Founder and Director of Prema Yoga Institute. Having started teaching Yoga in 2005, Dana is currently a therapeutics educator and teacher trainer who consults on wellness programs for clinics, doctor's offices, condominiums, and corporations is a member of IAYT, and teaches clients on an individual basis in New York City. Hear Dana’s story as she discusses her upbringing as a preacher’s kid, the event that redirected the course of her life, and her transition into the Yoga profession.
Learning Lessons for Life Through the Tragedy of Death
with Patricia Ruiz
Yuliana is joined by Patricia Ruiz, the owner of three Pilates Studios in New York City called Moving Strength. A lifetime dancer, Patricia has performed and toured with some of New York City's most renowned dance companies, has choreographed Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, and continues to judge dance competitions throughout the country. She is also certified as a Personal Trainer through the American Council of Exercise (ACE), and holds certifications in Pilates, Power Plate, Yoga, Resist-a-Ball and Healthy Moms Perinatal training. In today’s episode, she discusses her journey from Manhattan, Kansas to Manhattan, New York, and her inspiring story of caring for her dying brother, raising her daughters, and building a business.
Overcoming Challenges to
Pursue Your
Passion with
Nancy Castle Donahue
Joining Yuliana today is Nancy Castle Donahue, a model who rose to the top of her field in the 70’s and 80’s, becoming one of the most successful fashion models of her time. During her reign in the fashion arena, Donahue’s face was on the cover of virtually every fashion magazine in the world, and she also led several significant cosmetic campaigns for brands like Helena Rubenstein, Avon and Clairol. She has now devoted herself to fitness with certifications that include National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) and American Council on Exercise (ACE) Certified Personal Trainer, 200 hr. Registered Yoga Teacher through Yogafit, and Standing and Mat Pilates through Physical Mind Institute of New York. She joins our host today to discuss the significant challenges she faced as well as different redirections she has had in her life and how they have shaped her into the success that she is today.
Finding Your Own Path with Carolyn Waters
Carolyn Waters recounts the big moment of crisis when she realized the career she had spent 20 years building may not have been the life she was meant to live. In spite of her fears of leaving an established career behind and the fear she may never find her path, in this episode, you’ll hear the outcome of how this one step into the unknown, ended with her finding a surprising new career and life, both of which may have been what was intended for her all along.
Lifting Yourself Up and Starting All Over Again with Hourig Messerlian
Hourig Messerlian, Senior Director of IT Business at Computing and Information Services - The City University of New York, joins Yuliana to tell her remarkable and truly inspiring story of how she got to where she is today. Starting with how she fled a country ravaged by Civil War, crossing continents and countries, facing many life-altering changes along the way, Hourig now finds herself living an incredibly successful life far from the rubble of a country destroyed by war. She goes far beyond simply surviving, and proves herself to be one who thrives wherever life takes her, defying all odds with her unstoppable spirit and steadfast resolve to never give up.
Honoring the Fragility of Life with Jimin Han
Today Yuliana is joined by Jimin Han, the author of the novel, A Small Revolution. Born in Seoul, Korea, Jimin grew up in the United States, eventually attending Cornell University and earning an MFA from Sarah Lawrence College. Her writing can be found in a number of publications, and A Small Revolution, her first novel, has appeared on many ‘Best Fiction’ and ‘Must Reads’ lists. Jimin currently teaches at The Writing Institute at Sarah Lawrence College and Pace University, and today she takes us on the journey of how the passing of her mother left her heartbroken but still gave her the strength to continue writing.
Overcoming Feelings of Abandonment
Ji Young, the Founder of the TIDE FILM FESTIVAL. An Attorney turned non-profit Executive, Producer, Writer, Speaker and Facilitator, Ji is the Founder of DreamMaker DreamDoer DreamSupporter, inc. (3D) and is the Creator, Producer and Host of the web series ‘Not Your Average’ for koreanamericanstory.org as well as Founder, Co-Creator, Former Co-Producer and current Advisor to ‘$6.99 Per Pound’ podcast.
At the age of 3, Ji was adopted from Korea by an Italian and Irish-American family, grew up in upstate New York, and in this episode, she shares the story of her adoption, the battle with her identity, and the impact of reuniting with her Korean birth family.
Forging a New Path to Pursue Your Passion with Wati Grossman
Yuliana is joined by Wati Grossman, a fashion designer who gave up a law career to pursue her passion and love for fashion, and who now has over 30 years experience as a fashion professional in New York and San Francisco. In addition to her own design pursuits, Wati provides mentoring and consulting to fashion-related start-ups, garment designers and manufacturers in Silicon Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area, and is also a passionate supporter of the visual arts.
Expressing the Fullness of Who You Are with Kim Thai
Joining our host, Yuliana Kim-Grant, on Thursday, October 14th is Kim Thai, an Emmy-award-winning producer, writer, activist, and mindfulness teacher. She is the founder of GaneshSpace, a community organization dedicated to creating spaces to dismantle internalized oppression and explore identity through the lens of intersectionality. Kim shares her Phoenix Tale today of how she rediscovered herself after her divorce.
Leaving Law for the Spiritual Awakening of Yoga with
Yanti Amos
Yanti and Yuliana begin the conversation by talking about the events that reshaped her life - her divorce and an accident – as well as leaving the legal profession, finding solace in yoga, and coming to understand what yoga truly is about. She goes on to discuss the hardships that came with running a small business and how she was able to overcome them, how she got into karate and her taekwondo background as a child. Yanti also offers her advice to do what is right for our bodies and to truly listen and confront our inner critic when in self-doubt, and the episode comes to a close with Yanti describing the one song that resonates with her life.
Finding Peace and Purpose in a Journey through Healing with Dana Heller
Holistic self-care specialist Dana Heller joins Yuliana on Thursday, October 28, 2021. In this episode of Phoenix Tales, Dana shares her inspiring story on life-changing doctor’s visit where she found out she had a brain tumor, to her experiences going through multiple surgeries, Dana has come out the other side to help others going through what she did and helping them to feel empowered and healthy once again.
Forging Your Own Path to Happiness with Carly Hunter
On Phoenix Tales this Thursday, November 4, 2021, Yuliana is joined by Carly Hunter, a passionate yoga practitioner specifically in Ashtanga Yoga and a private yoga instructor in New York City. In this episode, she shares her story of how she left her career in advertising and found yoga, which to her surprise came with power dynamics she had seen in her previous career. She also relates how she summoned up the courage to leave that particular yoga studio and build a practice of her own.
Life Lessons Learned through
Immense Loss with Judy Glassman
How does the death of a parent redirect the course of one’s life? Listen to Yuliana Kim-Grant’s interview with Judy Glassman on Thursday, November 11, 2021. In this episode, Judy recounts the painful experience of losing her mother to brain cancer, the joy of finding yoga, and transitioning into a new career at a later age for a meaningful life.
Creating a Happy and Purposeful Life with Meta Wagner
Joining Yuliana on the show this Thursday, November 18th is Meta Wagner, the author of What's Your Creative Type: Harness the Power of Your Artistic Personality, and an instructor of creative and communications writing at Emerson College. In addition to her writing and teaching careers, Meta has held executive positions in the marketing and public relations fields, receiving multiple awards from professional organizations for her work. In Thursday’s episode, Meta recounts her tale of losing her mother as a teen and how that shaped her into creating the happy and purposeful life she desired.
Stepping Out of the Shadow of Tragedy with Liz Bailey
Losing a parent has a devastating effect, and losing the parent to suicide can bring compounding grief and anger. On Thursday, November 25, 2021, Liz Bailey, a solicitor living in London, joins Yuliana to discuss losing her father to suicide and how the work she put into dealing with it gave her the courage to step outside the shadow cast by this tragedy and forge a solid path to an inspiring life filled with purpose. Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.
Having the Courage to Make a
Life-Altering Sacrifice with Coco Cohen
Joining Yuliana this week is Coco Cohen, a leading fitness professional based in New York. Coco tells her courageous story of giving up her daughter for adoption to give her daughter the wonderful life that she, herself, was unable to provide. As any mother would testify, this has to be the most painful sacrifice a parent could make, and on Thursday, December 2, 2021, Coco reveals how she made this supremely difficult decision out of love and selflessness – a decision not for herself but for her child.
Developing a Life-long Devotion to Nurturing Others with Dr. Karen Lee
Chiropractor, Cookbook Author, Food Blogger, and Healthy-living Proponent, Dr. Karen Lee, joins Yuliana on Thursday, December 9, 2021, to share her story of how she navigated being a child immigrant in a new country and having to take on the responsibility of caring for her brothers at a young age. This caring nature, developed over the years, helped form Dr. Karen’s love of caring for people which manifested itself through the work to which she has devoted her life.
Thriving After
Illness with
Dr. Susan Lovelle
Functional medicine practitioner, Dr. Susan Lovelle, joins Yuliana today for a truly fascinating conversation. Currently the Founder and CEO of Premiere Wellness, Dr. Susan spent 14 years as a professional ballet dancer after which she became a physician specializing in plastic surgery. In her current role with Premiere Wellness, she is thrilled to now be supporting women to heal from the inside out. In this week’s episode, she shares her tale of how she made life changes and regained control of her health after landing in the hospital multiple times, and how these events propelled her into finding a new purpose in helping others and making a difference in their lives.
Emerging from Challenges with Courage and Resilience
with Roni Jackson
Roni Jackson, Co-Founder of Red Flag Mania, will join me on Phoenix Tales tomorrow, December 23, 2021. Roni identifies and expands upon two inflection points in her life that altered her trajectory considerably. The first, losing her mother at a young age, and the second, being forced to give up her long-time career, both had significant impacts upon her life, helping to shape her and become the resilient and courageous phoenix she is today.
Becoming a Vessel of Compassion and Understanding with Sari Velar
Joining me on Phoenix Tales this Thursday, December 30, 2021, is Sari Velar, a Yoga Teacher and Yoga Therapist. Over 20 years ago, Sari turned to yoga as an alternative therapy after a life-threatening cancer diagnosis and a subsequent battle with an eating disorder and addiction. These days, Sari facilitates classes at local cancer and mental health treatment centers, hospitals, and with Warrior Flow TV whose Foundation she also works at as the Director of Training and Education. In this episode, Sari credits the struggles she has worked through in her life with shaping her to become the remarkable woman she is today.
Rising Above Life’s Challenges to Follow a New Passion
Kathy Casey sits down with Yuliana on Thursday, January 6, 2021, to share her own Phoenix Tale of how she reinvented herself and followed her passion after losing a part of herself to her divorce and forced retirement. Both of these life events naturally had significant impacts upon Kathy and the path her life was following. Through courage and compassion, Kathy overcame these obstacles and today shares how this has fueled her to become the woman she is today.
Approaching Your Fears with Courage and Stretching Yourself with Christina Chiu
What does it take to nurse a child with special needs? Author, shoemaker, and health advocate Christina Chiu knows just what it takes as her son was born with a rare syndrome. She joins me on Phoenix Tales to share how she takes on the challenges that come her way and how she continues to do what it takes to give her son the best life possible.
Moving Beyond Surviving to Thriving with Yolanda Colon
Yolanda Colon, an executive in the fintech industry, joins me on Thursday, January 20, 2021, to share the tragic story of the stillborn death of her son and also how she found the strength and courage to take back her life after the brutal end of her 24-year marriage. Her story is one of courage and self-awareness which, as you will hear, has made her the phoenix that she is today.
Starting Life Over with Ellen Greenberg
My guest, Ellen Greenberg. a designer and the owner and director of Quick Culture, a global, art tour and cultural travel company. Among her other roles, Ellen has also been an instructor at the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising, has guest lectured at UCLA, holds Docent Program certificates at both The Getty Center and LACMA, and is the author of Inside Chocolate, a pictorial art book. In this moving episode, she shares her Phoenix Tale of how she realized she was meant to be more than just a wife and a mother, and how that became a catalyst for her divorce. Notwithstanding, Ellen never quit and her incredible story here today is one that is sure to inspire and motivate.
Surviving Trauma and Fueling Yourself to Help Others with
Gina de la Chesnaye
In today’s episode, Yuliana is joined by Gina de la Chesnaye, who shares her phoenix tale of surviving parental sexual abuse to become a humanitarian worker with traumatized communities. In her work, Gina draws on her own painful past to teach these communities how not only to survive their traumas but to thrive beyond the boundaries set by their experiences. She is the Founder and Director of The Nachan Project, an NGO that brings mindfulness-based practices to the women and children living in the Katwe and Kisenyi slums of Kampala, Uganda.
Finding The Strength to Survive Cancer and Help Others with Michelle Lepp
My next special guest is Michelle Lepp, a fully accredited NASM personal trainer and 500-hour yoga instructor with an emphasis on yoga therapeutics whose passion is helping others improve their physical and mental health. Michelle is also a cancer survivor, and today she shares her inspiring phoenix tale of how she was faced with her cancer diagnosis just weeks into her marriage, was unwilling to go down with her illness, and ultimately found the strength to become the powerful mother and yoga therapist she is today.
No Colon,
Still Rollin' with Rebecca Babcock
Rebecca Babcock, CPC, ELI-MP, CLDS, a career, and executive leadership coach has an advanced degree in Human and Organizational Development and Group Dynamics from Vanderbilt University and over 20 years of experience as a Sales and Marketing Executive at global blue-chip companies and tech startups including Conde Nast (VOGUE, GQ, LUCKY and Glamour), eBay, Taboola and Shutterstock. Her Phoenix Tale, which she shares here today, revolves around her battle with an autoimmune disease from her teenage years on, and how she has persevered and thrived despite the significant impact this illness has had upon her life and career.
Finding Balance and Resilience While Caring for a Parent’s Mental Health with Rahshaana Green
Rashanna Green joins Yuliana Kim-Grant on Phoenix Tales. As the pair discuss Green’s mother and her life-altering battle with late-onset Schizophrenia. A Dartmouth graduate turned nonprofit executive and forest yoga lineage guardian, Rashanna details the moment she decided to institutionalize her mother, how that choice impacted her own psyche, and the stigma surrounding mental health in the black community.