OUR TEACHERS
Guiding Teacher Tiffany Lynn Wong (she/her) has been practicing Insight Meditation for fifteen years. She is currently enrolled in the two-year Spirit Rock's Community Dharma Leadership (CDL 7) program designed to cultivate the next generation of diverse Buddhist leaders and teachers, grounded in a combination of Theravada tradition, experiential practice, and engagement with modern life. She has practiced meditation at the Abhayagiri and Wat Metta Forest Monastery, and is greatly influenced by the work of lay teachers Larry Yang, Spring Washam, and Tenzin Chogkyi. She is a Cultivating Compassion Training (CCT) instructor and has received a Contemplative Fellowship from the Hemera Foundation for her work as an educator that supports initiatives that foster basic human goodness in individuals and society. Her primary mentor in the Insight Meditation tradition is Victoria Cary.
Tiffany leads meditation the 4th (and sometimes 5th) Thursdays at the Watsonville Yoga Studio and Watsonville Insight Women/Non-binary gatherings the last Saturday of every month. 💌 Email Tiffany.
Oscar Flores (he/him) gravitated toward mediation after searching for help to develop a healthier relationship to a speech stutter. He first practiced meditation as part of a Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) course, and shortly thereafter attended a 10-Day Vipassana Meditation retreat. These experiences opened his eyes to opportunities meditation offered to arrive at deep discernment and wisdom as it related to the stutter and life in general. He completed the MBSR Teacher Preparation Program, and is also certified in Mindfulness-Based Eating Awareness and MBRS for Teens. Oscar has extensive experience with somatic awareness practices and is intentional in creating trauma-informed spaces.
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Oscar leads meditation the 1st Thursday of every month the Watsonville Yoga. 💌 Email Oscar and visit his website.
Tamara Liu (she/they) offers teachings that center around self-compassion and the many ways meditation can help those who suffer from chronic pain and illness. Tamara began leading the Women/Non-binary gathering with Tiffany in 2024.
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💌 Email Tamara.
Paulina Serna (she/her)leads meditation every 2nd Thursday of the month at the Watsonville Yoga Studio. Her teachings focus on the subtle energetic nature of the mind on and off the meditation cushion.
💌 Email Paulina.
Phoenix Toews (he/him) has been practicing Insight Meditation for over a decade. His Thursday night teachings at the Watsonville Yoga Studio answers the question, "What does it mean to be an 'ally' in a dominate culture body?" He hopes to start a Men and Non-binary gathering once a month focusing on what it means to be a healthy masculine-identified person.
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💌 Email Phoenix.
GUEST TEACHERS
Montez Freewoman (she/her) owns and runs Closer to Fine Farms, which "is a living altar and home to an infinite chorus of plant, animal and earth spirits. It is a decolonized resting place on the spirit underground where BIPOC, queer and actively allied sojourners connect to the land while intentionally tending to heart, mind, body and spirit."
Montez is one of Watsonville Insight's most dedicated community partners in liberation. She guest teaches at our Thursday night Watsonville Yoga Studio offerings.
Caroline Durham (she/her) has led wellness trainings for public defender offices, bar associations and community social justice organizations. Having studied mindfulness and wellness practices for fifteen years, Caroline developed a comprehensive, thoughtful approach to understanding and resolving the impact of compassion fatigue.Caroline’s first silent meditation retreat was led by Cheri Maples and designed for social justice activists. Through the works of Mindful Justice, Caroline carries forward the commitment to healing, peace and mindfulness that was the core of Cheri’s teachings.
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Caroline traveles from New Orleans to guest teach at our Women and Non-binary gathering.
inabel Bee Deborah Uytiepo (they/isuna/siya) is a queer, pilipinx-chinese healing arts practitioner. An artist, teacher, animist and forever student. inabel has been studying death and meditation since they were a child. inabel is a certified clinical hypnotherapist. In collaboration with community, inabel offers deep collective care via personal sessions and holds co-creative careshops, events, community circles and retreats via somatic mindfulness and movement expressive arts and ancestral wayfinding journeies.
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inabel guest teaches at our Women and Non-binary gatherings.
RETIRED TEACHERS
​​​​Chris Basiletti (he/him) became interested in meditation in his late teens. Initially, he practiced in the Zen tradition and later Shambala Buddhism as taught by Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche. Around 1976 he attended a Vipassana retreat at the Insight Meditation Society in Barre, Massachusetts, and has primarily been practicing and later teaching in the Theravada tradition since that time. He began leading meditation groups and teaching in 2004 and completed Bob Stahl’s Community Teacher training program in 2014. His practice and teaching interweave many influences with an emphasis on integrating Dhamma practice into the daily life of a layperson as a path to awakening.
Chris retired from both Insight Santa Cruz and Watsonville Insight, June 2025.