About Andrea Portenier

Andrea always had an interest in healing.  She pursued this interest in college majoring in Psychology (BA) and Public Health (MSPH) at UCLA.  She followed her time in college teaching health education at the junior college and university levels.

She then moved into the private sector, working as a commercial property and casualty insurance broker.  She was making good money but becoming burned out, wondering if there wasn’t more to life than than looking to close the next deal and climbing some indefinable ladder that was supposed to bring a better quality of life.   She asked God for a way to bring more meaning into her life.

This was at a time when smoking was still allowed in the workplace.   She was diagnosed with a lung disease as a result of working in a smoking environment.   The smoke was so bad in the office, it actually set off smoke alarms.  No amount of negotiating or letters from doctors would persuade her employer to move smoking out to the balconies, of which there were several.  At that point she realized she had a calling to take on the tobacco industry and stand up for the right to simply breathe.

Along the way she helped create smokefree airports and athletic venues while co-founding a non profit, Smokefree Air For Everyone, dedicated to clearing our air of secondhand smoke.  She participated in getting Los Angeles to pass its smokefree restaurant ordinance back in the early 90’s which helped get California to pass its smokefree workplace and restaurant laws.  She has also been involved globally with the Framework Convention Alliance which helped pass the world’s first public health treaty, created to deal with the global destruction caused by the commercial tobacco industry.

All creation is sacred and interrelated.  Misuse of any of creation reverberates throughout creation.  The commercial use of tobacco is a misuse of a sacred plant, putting it on the altar of profit rather than as an offering to carry prayers to spirit.

Seeking some “secret sauce”   that could further advance positive change in the world she stepped into the world of the Shaman who dreams the world into being.   She received training through several shamanic programs and holds an Advanced Practitioner certificate from The Four Winds  where she received most of her training.

Her mission these days is to help restore balance to our planet through the healing of individuals and the community.

Contact Andrea for an assist in increasing the light in your life.