Women Walking

Send us Fan Mail Amber Kelly, a craniosacral therapist based in England, joins me for a conversation about what our bodies hold — tension, old experiences, stress we didn’t realize we were carrying. Amber works with gentle, hands‑on approaches to the nervous system, and she has that steady presence you can feel even through a screen. I recently tried her embodied energy healing offering — and as s...

Send us Fan Mail In this conversation, we explore Forest Therapy as a research-supported practice that helps regulate the body, quiet the mind, and create room for reflection. My guests, Darlene Rooney-Keller and Lori Ventimiglia, both certified guides, talk about what a walk actually looks like, how it supports people in times of transition, and why this slow, intentional time outdoors can shift...

Send us Fan Mail Today, we're joined by Robyn Hubbard, a grief therapist whose work feels like an exhale. Robyn meets grief in the body, in the nervous system, in the places we tighten and brace, in the places that long for softening. She reminds us that grief isn't something to push past, it's something we walk with, slowly, honestly, at the pace our bodies can hold. This episode i...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Women Walking, we speak with my longtime friend and global health colleague, Saiqa Panjsheri, about walking through some difficult life transitions. Saiqa shares her family's extraordinary story of fleeing Afghanistan, growing up with a visible physical difference, and the resilience woven through generations of her family. She also speaks with honesty and...

Send us Fan Mail After months of talking with women navigating transitions, Courtney and I decided it was time to get back to what started Women Walking in the first place: actually walking. In Episode 17, Courtney and I take on the NYC  Tip-to-Tip Challenge—a 15-mile walk  from Inwood Hill Park to Battery Park, inspired by the Broad City route. One day. One power bar. Park to park, river to river...

Send us Fan Mail In Episode 16 of Women Walking, I’m joined by Grace Tran, a global health professional whose steady thoughtful voice you may already know from LinkedIn posts.  Grace opens up about what happened after the Trump Administration’s executive orders that dissolved USAID and the long humbling  journey that followed: 400 job applications, 19 interviews, rejection, uncertainty, and the ve...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Women Walking , I sit down with Lillian Cotter — a neonatal intensive care nurse, mother, and wife — for a conversation that is as tender as it is instructive. Lillian opens the door to her family’s journey through her husband Michael’s dementia, a path that ultimately led to his death in 2024. As someone who walked through a similar road with my own mother, who...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, we walk alongside Dr. Farrah Daly , one of the first neurologists in the U.S. formally trained in palliative medicine and a leader in the growing field of neuropalliative care . Her work sits at the intersection of medicine, compassion, and transition, making her an ideal guide for a conversation about how we care for people living with serious neurologic illness,...

Send us Fan Mail Elizabeth Jere spent two decades leading global health programs across Africa — balancing leadership with single motherhood and a deep commitment to women’s empowerment. But after federal cuts abruptly ended her USAID contractor role, Elizabeth found herself adrift, grieving in Spain and searching for a new path. In this episode, she shares her journey through loss, healing, and r...

Send us Fan Mail This episode of Women Walking brings together two lifelong friends—Claudia Vondrasek and Lynn Malooly—who each found themselves at major crossroads this year. Claudia, a longtime USAID contractor, was swept up in the abrupt RIF that halted global health programs across the world. Lynn had just stepped into retirement after leading Water for South Sudan for more than a decade. Both...

Send us Fan Mail When the wave of public sector layoffs ended Denise Mortimer’s long career at USAID, she turned loss into creative renewal. In this episode, we explore how her RocketBear Project began with sketches of her dog and grew into portraits of colleagues’ pets paired with heartfelt narration. By celebrating the humanity behind public service, Denise offers a fresh and inviting perspectiv...

Send us Fan Mail This week on Women Walking , we talk with Lenoure Mullaney , a longtime global development professional whose career began in the Peace Corps and spanned more than twenty years across Africa, the Middle East, and beyond. Like so many in our community, Lenoure faced the upheaval of USAID cuts in early 2025—an abrupt loss that felt like losing more than just a job. In this conversat...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Lisa Neuberger Fernandez shares how walking with women—across continents and life stages—has shaped her journey through motherhood, leadership, and reinvention. From the Camino to community circles, Lisa reflects on how movement and mentorship help us find our next why. The Next Chapter Accelerator —a retreat and reflection program for senior women leaders—starts...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, we talk with Fiona Macaulay—CEO of the WILD Network and co-founder of the Next Chapter Accelerator, a bold program helping women leaders step into what’s next. As part of the experience, participants walk and talk along the Camino, using movement as a catalyst for reflection, clarity, and connection. We also hear from Lee Ann De Reus, CEO of Badass University and...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, we meet the youngest pilgrims we interviewed—two 19-year-old women navigating gap years with backpacks, curiosity, and a willingness to walk into the unknown. One studies at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, the other is a student at Bates College. On the Camino de Santiago, they encountered physical exhaustion, emotional solitude, and moments of unexpected joy. From...

Send us Fan Mail In Episode 6, we welcome Megan Maclaggan , a true solo Camino walker whose quiet presence carries a deep, healing energy—something you sense long before she speaks. Based in Mexico, Megan is a doctor of traditional Chinese medicine and a licensed acupuncturist, blending ancient wisdom with modern practice. In this episode, she shares the highs and lows of her Camino journey—from t...

Send us Fan Mail Step into the raw, unfiltered reality of the Camino with two incredible women—a spirited Aussie and a resilient Kiwi—as they share the highs, lows, and unexpected twists of their journey. From emergency room visits and stubborn blisters to contagious laughter and the kind of deep friendship only the Camino can forge, this episode peels back the layers of an adventure that didn’t g...

Send us Fan Mail Women Walking co-hosts, Courtney and Debbie chat with fellow pilgrim Una Smyth from Belfast, Ireland about her experience walking the Camino Frances solo in April-May 2024. She discusses safety, hostels, and offers a short, personalized history of Irish politics, culture, and religion.

Send us Fan Mail Two Australian perigrinos join Women Walking co-hosts, Debbie and Courtney to share their experience walking the Camino Frances. They share tips from foot care to daily routines to caring for one another throughout the journey. They discuss some of what they untangled along the way, what they took from the Camino, and what they left behind.

Send us Fan Mail Women Walking co-hosts Debbie Ventimiglia and Courtney Park-Jamborsky talk to fellow Camino de Santiago pilgrims Cindy Conquer and Dana California about their experience walking the Camino Frances April-May 2024. Listen in as they share how their relationship transformed from acquaintances to deep friendship along the way. They discuss their diverse faith backgrounds and how the t...

Send us Fan Mail Women Walking co-hosts, Debbie Ventimiglia and Courtney Park-Jamborsky, life-long friends from Reston, Virginia open up about their trek along the Camino Frances in 2024 - a 500 mile pilgrimage across Northern Spain. They offer listeners their tips and tricks to walking 500 miles in 30 days, advice on building and maintaining their 40-year friendship over the miles, and their expe...