Richard Katz & Patricia Kaminski Bios

by Richard Katz & Patricia Kaminski		print version
		print version (graphics)

Richard Katz and Patricia Kaminski are married and professional partners, and directors of the Flower Essence Society since 1980. Through the Society they organize and inspire many educational, research, and publishing efforts throughout the world.

Richard and Patricia are authors of numerous articles and books about flower essences, including the best-selling Flower Essence Repertory, now in its fifth edition and translated into six different languages around the world.  Richard and Patricia have traveled extensively, giving seminars throughout the world on flower essence therapy. They also manage Flower Essence Services, which produces flower essences and herbal products at Terra Flora, their 17-acre Biodynamic / organic garden and wildlife sanctuary in the northern Sierra Nevada foothills of Nevada City, California.

Richard's early background was in mathematics and physical science. He was awarded a scholarship to attend Brown University's mathematics program. His considerable questions about the nature of science and scientific research then led him to a deeper study of the human being, and he completed a psychology major at California State University at Sonoma in 1974. He went on to study widely in several different apprenticeship programs in the fields of herbology, plant science, and meditation.

All of these various strands of knowledge culminated in his research of flower essence therapy as a "living science of Nature," requiring an accurate understanding of subtle qualities of plants, and also of the mental and emotional realms within the human being. After working extensively with the original English repertory of Dr. Bach, Richard went on to pioneer, since 1978, the development of flower remedies from North American plants, which are now recognized and used throughout the world. He specializes in FES botanical studies, and photographs many of the FES flowers.

Patricia's love for plants and animals began during childhood, where she was raised on a prairie farm in central Nebraska. At the University of Nebraska she helped design, and majored in, the first Women's Studies Program, and helped found a unique counseling center for the school's women students. She went on from there to be active in many areas of teaching, social service, and community organizing.

Patricia first discovered the remarkable effectiveness of the English flower remedies in helping children with learning problems such as dyslexia, and then in a counseling program for juvenile offenders. She has studied widely in the fields of teaching, healing, and plant science, including Waldorf education and Goethean plant science. Patricia is currently active as a flower essence teacher and counselor, and administrates the Society's research and practitioner training programs. She is the author of Flowers That Heal, which describes the fundamental principles of flower essence therapy.

Flower Essence Society

The Flower Essence Society (FES) is an international membership organization of health practitioners, researchers, students, and others interested in deepening knowledge of flower essence therapy.

Founded in 1979 by Richard Katz, FES was incorporated as part of the non-profit organization Earth-Spirit in 1982. Since 1980, FES has been co-directed by Patricia Kaminski and Richard Katz, who are married and professional partners.

The Society has four major goals:

1. To promote plant research and empirical clinical research on the therapeutic effects of flower essences;

2. To conduct training and certification programs for active flower essence practitioners, and seminars throughout the world;

3. To disseminate publications about flower essence therapy to practitioners and to the general public throughout the world; and

4. To provide a communication and referral network for those who are teaching, researching, or practicing in the field of flower essence therapy.

The Society is in touch with an estimated 50,000 active practitioners in approximately 50 countries, who use flower essence therapy in their healing work.


See what articles from the Flower Essence Society are reprinted with their kind permission at SatyaCenter.com on the Global Visionaries page.