Born and reared in San Francisco, Calif., Olivia’s work in holistic wellness grew out of her early quest to solve problems related to social inequities and the miseducation of Black and indigenous children. Her work began in school settings and eventually evolved to higher education research. She received her Doctorate in Education at the University of San Francisco in 2001. As the universe would have it, the influence of her students, along with unresolved family illnesses, prompted her to purposefully link the dynamics of holistic wellness with equity-themed education and culture. Hence, The Goddess Commune was created in January 2019 as a model for a unique wellness movement to address bias in healthcare and sustain Black and Brown lives and their cultures. Since womyn are the carriers of the culture of wellness, Dr. Shakir brings together other local womyn healers and wellness advocates to provide healing experiences and ancestral wisdom to local womyn