Meet Our People
INQUIRE. EXPAND. RELAX
Our Founder
Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche
Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche is a widely celebrated Buddhist teacher and the author of Emotional Rescue, Rebel Buddha, and other books. A lover of music, art and urban culture, Rinpoche is a poet, photographer, accomplished calligrapher and visual artist, as well as a prolific author. Rinpoche is the founder, president, and spiritual director of Nalandabodhi, an international community of Buddhist centers.
Rinpoche is acknowledged as one of the foremost scholars and meditation masters of his generation in the Nyingma and Kagyu schools of Tibetan Buddhism. He is known for his sharp intellect, humor, and easygoing teaching style, for launching the kindness initiative #GoKind and for his outreach to communities internationally.
Executive Directors
Cindy Shelton
General Operations
In addition to her role with the CRC, Cindy is a board member of the nonprofit charity Causa.international, and serves in the office of Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche as chief of staff. For 10 years, she worked as managing editor for Bodhi Magazine, a publication of Nalandabodhi, a nonprofit Buddhist network of meditation centers. She currently serves as the primary editor of Ponlop Rinpoche’s commercial books. Cindy is a practicing Buddhist and has been a student of Ponlop Rinpoche since 1996.
Cindy earned a BA in English from Rollins College, an MA in Secondary Education from Florida International University, and an MA in Contemplative Religious Studies from Naropa University. After many years in Boulder, Colorado and Seattle, Washington, she now resides in Sarasota, Florida, with frequent stays at the Contemplative Resource Center in Bandera, Texas. She has a keen interest in community outreach programs for youth and families and in environmental education.
Cindy Shelton
In addition to her role with the CRC, Cindy is a board member of the nonprofit charity Causa.international, and serves in the office of Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche as chief of staff. For 10 years, she worked as managing editor for Bodhi Magazine, a publication of Nalandabodhi, a nonprofit Buddhist network of meditation centers. She currently serves as the primary editor of Ponlop Rinpoche’s commercial books. Cindy is a practicing Buddhist and has been a student of Ponlop Rinpoche since 1996.
Cindy earned a BA in English from Rollins College, an MA in Secondary Education from Florida International University, and an MA in Contemplative Religious Studies from Naropa University. After many years in Boulder, Colorado and Seattle, Washington, she now resides in Sarasota, Florida, with frequent stays at the Contemplative Resource Center in Bandera, Texas. She has a keen interest in community outreach programs for youth and families and in environmental education.
Mitchell Owen
General Operations, Facilities
Mitch is an expert in architectural design and offers customized, integrated solutions across the country for people who are conscious of how their lifestyle choices affect the world around them. He is the owner of MOD LLC, MOD Lodge LLC, and Mitchell Owen Architecture PLLC based in Woodstock, New York, and New York City. He holds a BS in Architecture from The Georgia Institute of Technology and a Masters of Architecture and a MA in Architectural History, Theory, and Criticism, both from Princeton University. Mitch is also a part-time Assistant Professor at Parsons School of Design in New York City, where he has taught architectural design, history, and theory since 2000.
Mitch enjoys the benefits of Iyengar yoga, meditation, and the natural environment in all its forms and has been a student of Ponlop Rinpoche since 2010. He is currently involved in developing multiple visions and projects that serve and support the contemplative community.