Interim Chair

felicia@cloudsinwater.org

Dr. Felicia Washington Sy is honored to be of service as a board member at Clouds. She is a licensed independent clinical social worker and a practicing Buddhist for 15 years. As a licensed psychotherapist, she combines mindfulness-based social work practice and intercultural theory to train practitioners to work with diverse populations across the Twin Cities Metropolitan area. At Clouds, as part of a team, she also helps co-facilitates the BIPOC sitting group.

Secretary

yuho@cloudsinwater.org

Yūho Dick McMullen arrived at Clouds in Water Zen Center the first Sunday of November, 2017 a stranger to Buddhism but with an intention to find a life-way rooted in goodness. Since that Sunday, Yūho has attended classes and meditation retreats, found friendships, served in volunteer opportunities, and received the precepts in Jukai from Sosan Theresa Flynn. Yūho served for a short time on our Ethics and Reconciliation Committee. Yūho is currently a member of the Temple Stewards ryo and volunteers during Sunday morning services. Yūho is also a member of one of the Racial Awareness Groups for White practitioners formed by Clouds in Water members and others after Ruth King's visit to Hamline University in 2019.

In 2022, Yūho retired from a career in Information Technology that began in 1980, before "personal" computers, long before the Internet, and even longer before smart phones and streaming video. For most of his career he worked as an IT manager in various industries, finally in Higher Education.

His university studies focused on the experiences of colonized, Indigenous peoples in the Americas. His master's research and writing illuminated a causal relationship between American Christian theology and the racialized public rhetoric that inspired the now-infamous Indian Boarding Schools in the U.S. and justified the wholesale theft of Native lands in the catastrophic Dawes Act of 1887.

Yūho and his wife Karen live in Stillwater, Minnesota where they raised their three children. Yūho has become the gardener and the bread-baker in their home since retiring in 2022.

Board Member

martin@cloudsinwater.org

Martín discovered Clouds in Water in 2017 when he first moved to St. Paul from Los Angeles when his spouse accepted a new job. He was impressed with Clouds commitment to racial, gender, and social justice after attending a workshop by the Rev. angel Kyodo Williams. Since 2019, he has been a Clouds Board Member and served as vice-chair and chair. Since moving back to Los Angeles in 2021, Martin continued to serve Clouds as board secretary, is active in Clouds’ BIPOC sitting group, and has served with others in crafting the recent Statement of Non-Harming. His past employment has consisted of fourteen years at L.A. County’s Department of Public Social Services, serving marginalized county residents. Prior to that, he was an organizer for eight years with the Labor/Community Strategy Center (L/CSC), a civil rights/environmental justice organization in Los Angeles.

Board Member

ray@cloudsinwater.org

Ray was introduced to Clouds in Water by Fukutoku, attending Sunday Service in person and via zoom. He hopes to contribute in any way he can to the Clouds in Water Zen Center.

Ray was born In Chicago IL. He was a member of the Buddhist Temple of Chicago due to his father and his family were members there since relocating from the internment camps to Chicago. They attended services which also included holidays, weddings and funerals. From 5 to 16 years of age, Ray practiced Judo at the temple three times of week and competed in many tournaments. He has run six marathons and many different running races. He attended the University of Wisconsin Madison majoring in Economics and Political Science, minoring in International Relations. This is where he met Ann Mako or Fukutoku. They married her 6 years later and have a son named Kyle who also live in Minnesota. He worked in management and sales in international transportation for 26 years at a Japanese company, travelling domestically and internationally frequently.

Board Member

sharon@cloudsinwater.org

Sharon joined Clouds in Water around 2015 and has attended several classes, sesshins, and retreats. She received Jukai in 2020 and received the Dharma name, KanKai - Generous Ocean, from Rev. Onryu Kennedy. After a retreat with Rev. angel Kyodo williams, she promised herself to “do the work” that BIPOC sangha members were asking of white people. She participated in Dismantling Whiteness and has been a member of a White Racial Affinity Group for the past 4 years. Sharon graduated from the University of Georgia where she studied Geography and was a Distinguished Military Graduate. After she jumped out of a perfectly good airplane, it was determined that she was crazy enough to be a US Army Maintenance Officer. For most of her post Army career, Sharon has avoided jumping from planes by working in various manufacturing roles leading diverse groups of people.

In 2004, she co-led an all-volunteer political group in Georgia that operated without soliciting monetary donations. The group ran Get Out the Vote canvassing and phone banking. They also organized a rally which included participation from local political leaders. In Minnesota she served on the Membership Committee of the 1006 Summit Society which raises money for the upkeep of the interior public places of the Governor’s Mansion.

Board Member

nicole@cloudsinwater.org

Nicole joined Clouds in Water in the late 1990s, and attended classes and Sunday morning Dharma talks. She became a board member around 2010 and served on the board until resigning for health reasons.

Nicole graduated from St. Cloud State University where she studied French and Secondary Education. After college, she found herself working for corporations in the financial industry and in healthcare. She worked as a trainer, instructional designer, editor, and writer.

Now that she has returned to Clouds in Water Zen Center, Nicole hopes to continue learning about impermanence and radical acceptance with the hope that someday, she will be able to live a more peaceful life that can benefit everyone. She believes in the inherent worth of every individual, as expressed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 1, which states that “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.” (Nicole also believes that if this declaration were written more recently, it would include sisterhood.)

Nicole lives in Inver Grove Heights with her husband, two cats, one dog, and many kinds of wildlife who live in the nearby woods.