Ronya Fakhoury Banks, LCAS, LCSWA
Founding teacher of Asheville Insight Meditation, Ronya Fakhoury Banks is a Vipassana (Mindfulness or Insight) meditation instructor who has been teaching meditation to individuals and groups for 15 years.
Ronya Fakhoury Banks, LCAS, LCSWA
She began meditating daily in her 20’s, and has been practicing for 39 years. Ronya has sat nearly two years on silent Vipassana meditation retreats, and has received instruction from over 30 different Vipassana teachers including Jack Kornfield, Joseph Goldstein, Goenka, and Chanmyay Sayadaw.
As the founder and lead teacher of the Asheville Insight Meditation group in Asheville, NC since 2010, Ms. Banks has been instrumental in providing instruction and resources for individuals and groups to enhance their lives with the many benefits meditation provides.
Ronya received weekly Buddhist dhamma transmission and instruction for 5 years from Burmese monk and Buddhist scholar Bhante U Jotika Bhivamsa. She also spent time as a Buddhist nun renunciate with Serenity Insight monastery. She is in the present joint IMS/Spirit Rock Teacher Training Program, as well as a graduate of Spirit Rock’s Community Dharma Leadership training program. She has served as a mentor for the Jack Kornfield, Tara Brach Mindfulness teacher training program for nearly 8 years, and as a Vipassana teacher for Banyan meditation platform. She has also given presentations and provided instructions for groups including professional organizations, university presentations, and businesses.
As a social worker, Ms. Banks provides individual trauma-informed therapy to clients, weaving in wisdom teachings and mindfulness meditation instruction upon request. With training in EMDR, ACT, IFS, and Somatic Experiencing, she weaves in the appropriate healing modalities to best serve each client.
Ms. Banks also has an extensive background in entrepreneurial business and served as a coach and consultant for business owners, CEO’s, developers, and other leadership professionals to help them maximize their results.
Ronya is a proud mother of two grown children Vince Horn and Ashley Wigginton, grandmother, 5th degree black belt instructor of Traditional Tae Kwon Do, and a certified energy healer.
Born in Kuwait, Ronya is of Middle Eastern descent and was raised in the Islamic faith. She has experienced the pain of the discrimination from fellow Americans. As a result, she is passionate about treating each person as a unique, valuable, and loved member of the human race, regardless of race and
country of origin.
Wallace Bohanan
Wallace Bohanan was born in 1946 in Brooklyn, NY. As a Boy Scout he
endeavored to live up to the codes of “Be Prepared” and “Do a Good Turn
Daily”. He was raised, with four siblings in a loving, supportive family.
Wallace Bohanan
Wallace joined the Army after graduating from High School and served in Combat during the Vietnam War. The trauma of war led to him seeking relief in drugs and religion. It was as a member of the Universal Hagar’s Spiritual Church that he was introduced to meditation in 1975. He left the church in 1983, but continued to meditate sporadically. Shortly after retirement in 2010, Wallace finally began working through Post Traumatic Stress at the VA Medical Center in Asheville, NC. It was here that he was introduced to Mindfulness Meditation. After meeting his teacher, Ronya Banks at a Whole Foods, Plant Based special interest group, he decided to join the Asheville Insight Meditation Center. The Buddhist practice of mindful meditation, coupled with loving kindness and equanimity presented an achievable path to peace, and freedom from the psychic trauma of war. Wallace’s studies with Ronya included classes for instructors and silent retreats. He started leading half day meditations and giving lectures at the Sangha in 2017. He continues to practice being mindfully present and often tells stories of his success (or lack of it) when he gives his lectures. Wallace authored an out of print book titled “Why Not Be Happy” – “How to Get Along With Self and Others”.