VOYAGER LECTURE SERIES

Train the Mind, Open the Heart

with the Mindfulness Center of Southern Utah

Tuesday, May 26, 7:30pm | Social Hour Begins at 6:30pm

The Lorraine Boccardo Theater

Join us for the final Voyager Lecture of this season, Train the Mind, Open the Heart. This lecture brings together three distinguished experts from the Mindfulness Center of Southern Utah—Dr. Ginamaria Foglia, DO, MPH, FACP, Dr. David Tate, and Kirk Benson, JD—for an engaging exploration of mindfulness and its real-world impact.

This presentation goes beyond theory, revealing the clinical evidence behind mindfulness practices and how training the mind can unlock profound benefits for the heart—improving physical health, emotional resilience, mental clarity, and social connection. Part of this event will invite you to experience mindfulness firsthand through guided, interactive elements designed to help you immediately connect with these transformative techniques.

Whether you’re curious about the science, seeking stress relief, or looking to deepen your well-being, this evening offers practical tools you can carry into everyday life.

Ginamarie Foglia, DO, MPH, FACP has over 30 years of healthcare experience as an internationally known subject matter expert and speaker in infectious disease, internal medicine, public health, clinical trial research & development, medical education and wellness. She is an Adjunct Professor at Rocky Vista University College of Medicine and lecturer at Utah Tech University. Certified as a personal/group fitness trainer, she has completed several endurance and strength-training activities to include marathons, cycling tours and the Ironman70 triathlon. More recently, she held the position of Adventure Guide and Wellness Consultant at Red Mountain Resort in Ivins, UT. Dr. Foglia is a board member of the Southern Utah Mindfulness Center and volunteers for the Southwest Utah Medical Reserve Corps and the Southern Utah Veterans Home. She served in the U.S. Army Medical Corps for 8 years, achieving the rank of Lieutenant Colonel.

Dr. David Tate, PhD, is a psychologist in St. George, Utah, where he has been in private practice for 27 years. He serves on the Board of Directors for the Mindfulness Center of Southern Utah.

He has taught Mindfulness-based Stress Reduction (MBSR) classes for over 30 years. He was one of the founders and teachers of Intermountain Healthcare’s Stress Reduction Clinic (1990-1995), where his doctoral dissertation was the first replication study of research conducted by his mentor and originator of MBSR, Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn, at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center Stress Reduction Program. In 1995 Dr. Tate helped develop the first “mindfulness-based” health and wellness resort in the United States, Miraval, Life in Balance, being the initial Lead Mindfulness Instructor and later the Program Director.

He has taught mindfulness seminars for many businesses and organizations including Nike, Ernst and Young, New Line Cinema, Abbott Laboratories, AT&T, the National Make-A Wish Foundation, Zion National Park, and the NCAA.

Kirk A Benson, JD, is a retired businessman who has been practicing mindfulness for over ten years.  He has received mindfulness training from Brown University, Mindful Schools, Mindfulness Meditation Teacher Certification Program (associated with Jack Kornfield and Tara Brach), and the Mindful Eating Training Institute.  He is a co-founder, along with his wife, Gael, of the Mindfulness Center of Southern Utah.

The Voyager Lecture Series is generously sponsored by Voyager Wealth Advisors, Proven Law, and Cache Valley Bank.