Kara has been practicing meditation and studying Buddhism since 1993. She has been leading Vipassana meditation since 1996, originally with women in recovery settings. Kara practices the fifth precept of full renunciation from intoxicants and has twenty-five years in recovery.  In 2013 she helped start Buddhist recovery groups in Santa Cruz and had been a foundational member and mentor for the community. Kara attends multiple silent Vipassana retreats each year, has been empowered to teach by guiding teacher Bob Stahl, and is currently in the Dharmacharya teacher training with Venerable Pannavati. Kara teaches weekly meditation groups and daylong retreats at Insight Santa Cruz and online. She enjoys tea, cemeteries, new wave, jigsaw puzzles, and is completing a master's degree in Social Work.