Tonja Snyder

Tonja Snyder

Tonja Snyder, PhD began Tai Chi and a soft style martial art in 2009 to help her balance and coordination negatively impacted by Multiple Sclerosis. She earned a 1st degree Black Belt and Instructor Certification in Kajukenbo Tum Pai – a soft style kung fu that emphasizes internal energy development. She taught Tai Chi and KJKB Tum Pai before COVID.  She has studied and practiced Qigong since 2017 and is a certified instructor in Wuji Hundun Qigong.

Tonja has a Master of Counseling degree and a Doctorate in Learning and Instruction. Her journey with MS and through the martial arts has brought an appreciation of how prayer can be deepened through the mind/body/spirit experience of meditative movement. And, she loves sharing this with others.

Retreats and workshops

In 2018 Tonja created a Mindful Meditative Movement class that is offered through St. Mark Lutheran Church in Salem, Oregon (currently via Zoom). It combines mindfulness techniques with meditation, and movements from Tai chi and Qigong. Taizé music enhances the experience.

Tonja, along with colleagues Jim Hanson and Elaine Averitt, leads the retreat Prayer: The Practice of RE-membering at Spirit in the Desert in Fall, 2022.

HOM Retreat Leader
Audrey Lukasak
Retreat Leader
Elaine Averitt