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Picture of Rita Andriello - Aly Oltman

Rita is a writer, spiritual practitioner and a teacher. She was born in New York City, and says she was raised on pasta and Italian opera. She went on to study opera professionally; but, eventually made the decision to get married and raise a family instead of pursuing a career in this field.

However, family life did not keep her from her passion and she has spent most of her adult life,singing and acting while raising her three children in Albuquerque, New Mexico. She attended the University of New Mexico, and graduated with a BA in Secondary Education and Communications and a MA in Theater Education and Directing. She spent several years working at the Albuquerque Academy, where she developed and taught a mid-school interdisciplinary curriculum and directed and taught theater to mid and high school students.

After raising her children, Rita re-located to Los Angeles. She wrote and toured with her own successful one-woman show with TOMATOES ON A WINDOWSILL for over three years, writing a cookbook and recording a CD based on this work. Rita also wrote and produced a successful Christmas play, BUON NATALE! CHRISTMAS EVE ITALIAN STYLE for three consecutive holiday seasons in Los Angeles. Rita is now working as a professional writer at the Dohring Corporation.

Rita is also a ministerial student at the NoHo Arts Center for New Thought. She is Outreach Director, Labyrinth Facilitator and Pastoral Care Practitioner. One of her ministries is sharing spiritual workshops and bringing the labyrinth into the California Prison System. She and her fellow practitioner and friend, Lynn Klein, recently facilitated the building a permanent classical labyrinth at CRC in Norco California. Rita received a Humanitarian Award in 2009 from the NoHo Arts Center for her work in the Prison system.

Rita and her husband Patrick Feren have a company called Partners in Empowerment Now. They develop and teach empowerment workshops to children and adults. Their most recent workshops are "You're the Boss," a workshop about eating consciously; and "Coming Home," a workshop about uncovering and releasing negative beliefs and welcoming in a new spiritually healthy way of thinking. Their book "You're the Boss" will be published this Spring.

You can learn more about Rita Andriello on her website: www.younmeprod.com