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About the Presenters and Co-Founders
 Joan Shafer is an independent consultant who specializes in the design, delivery and implementation of group dynamics, executive development, and cultural transformation programs. The context from which she works is one of partnership and open collaboration where the parties involved co-create the solutions, actions and new directions to be taken.
Joan has worked with companies, NGO’s, communities, and non-profits in North America, Europe, South American, Asia, Africa, and Australia in group facilitation, culture analysis, values integration, and leadership enrichment for senior executives and managers. She has trained over 1000 consultants in values-based assessments and strength-based methodologies around the world.
During the 1984 Olympics in her hometown of Los Angeles, she hit her first perfect 7-iron, thus committing her to the pursuit of a happy life with no handicaps.
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 Vin Harris has lived in the South West of Scotland for the past 30 years as a member of the Samye Ling Tibetan Buddhist community and owner of a specialist woodworking company. He discovered golf just over 10 years ago and since then has been trying to make up for lost time. He is a Past Captain of Moffat Golf Club.
The ability to enjoy golf is often limited as we bring all our mental patterns and habits with us to the golf course. Vin believes that a meditative approach to golf is helpful since being truly present enhances both our ability to learn and our appreciation of the game. Vin is looking forward to continuing the exploration of endless possibilities.
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 John Talbott was first introduced to golf at the age of 12 by his Aunt Grace. No coincidence as grace became a quality that he would often associate with golf. On the third hole of a beautiful course on the slopes of Mt Hood in Oregon, he first experienced his ‘authentic swing’. In that moment of watching the ball rise magically upward into a deep blue sky, he experienced what could only be called pure spiritual transcendence. He was hooked.
He has pursued this quest for golf enlightenment ever since, taking him around west coast of America and then to Scotland and the Findhorn Community. In his 24 years there, building an ecovillage and his own house from a recycled whisky barrel, golf was his true spiritual practice.
He and his wife Samantha and young son Taran currently reside in Sydney, Australia. While the beach at Bondi has become his regular hang out, golf is never far from his mind.
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 Fairway to Heaven was born in the summer of 1996 when John and Joan were pursuing their weekly ‘spiritual practise’, playing the links at Forres golf course in northeast Scotland. They fantasized about running a workshop to share this passion and approach for the game that they had discovered. Their friend, Terry Neal, offered the name and the program was born. The initial publicity through the Findhorn Foundation’s workshop brochure led to a tidal wave of media attention as the story of ‘golf as a spiritual practice’ and ‘mirror of life’ was picked up by the news services and spread around the world. With interviews with the likes of Radio 4 in the UK and articles in many newspapers and magazines including Newsweek and The Times (London), they knew that there was a resonance in the world for Fairway to Heaven.
Over the years, Fairway to Heaven has evolved to welcome many different approaches through our guest presenters and participants. These have included Dada Atmacetanananda, Bill Meyer, Printer Bowler, Steve Pressfield and Andrew Greig in addition to Joan, John and Vin.
Above all, Fairway to Heaven has come to be about deepening our relationships with newfound friends who share this same love of the game passion for playing. Together, we create the space to share of ourselves, enjoy the journey and ultimately to know ourselves a little better.
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