Arnold Bustillo will share with us about his research and dedication to Santa Muerte, the Mexican folk saint whose name in English means Holy Death, as well as his publishing work. Arnold is also the founder of Santa Muerte Ministries, which allows members to recognize and elevate those who do good work in service to others and in the name of Holy Death. Apart from his spiritual work, Arnold is a gay military veteran of the Iraq war, having served in silence during the era of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, and today he holds a doctorate in business administration, which he was able to earn thanks to the military GI Bill.

Chas Clifton, Pagan author of Her Hidden Children, editor of The Pomegranate peer-reviewed journal of Pagan studies, editor of many outstanding books, and all-around fascinating person who has observed, documented and been part of many years of the evolving Pagan scene in the U.S.

Padraic Fitzgerald is an adjunct instructor at the College of Charleston in their Religious Studies department. He recently graduated from the University of Denver and Iliff School of Theology Joint Doctoral Program in Religious Studies (’23). His dissertation, titled Til Valhall!: The Formation of Nordic Neopagan Identity, Religiosity, and Community at a Norwegian Heavy Metal Festival, explores the Midgardsblot heavy metal festival as a temporary sacred space where people self-identifying as belonging to or adjacent to Nordic Neopaganism engage with manifold forms of Nordic folk symbolism to refine religious identities and achieve religious experiences. His research interests include material religion with an emphasis on the natural environment and religious musicology, the “greening” of religion, Northern European folk traditions, Neopagan movements, and the relationship between religion and popular culture.

Jo Carson seeks to create positive visions of the future through Feraferia, A Love Culture for Wilderness. She is Chair of the Board of Feraferia, which she joined in 1972. Jo holds a Masters’ Degree from UCLA in film production, and her professional life has included camera work on many feature films. She directed and produced the documentary feature Dancing With Gaia: Earth Energy, Sacred Sexuality and the Return of the Goddess, plus documentary shorts A Dance for the Goddess about Feraferian rites, and Himalayan Pilgrimage: A Visionary Journey. She authored Celebrate Wildness: Magic, Mirth and Love on the Feraferian Path, an introduction to Feraferia through art. She is currently working on a Feraferia Tarot deck and book.