My Story
Hi there, I’m Donna Gentile (aka Joule). My life and work are guided by my values and a strong passion to empower, strengthen and transform. I help people who feel lost access creativity, nature, wisdom and positive mindset techniques so they can find peace and inspiration on their path to becoming. I’ve been on my own path to becoming. Thank you for coming here to read my story.
Journey to Freedom
I raised a daughter as a single mom and self-employed graphic designer, teaching artist, musician and photographer. Domestic violence derailed our lives for many years, but it didn’t break our spirit, and it doesn’t define us. It taught us, brought gifts… new connections, stories and songs like This Is Me. It shaped me like fire forges iron into something strong, powerful and resilient.
Kira and I rose from some pretty dark ashes, and we’re thriving today, but we didn’t do it alone, and neither should you. We found light to overcome darkness and pearls of wisdom from people along the way that helped us remember who we are, reclaim our sparkle, and find new ways forward. Today, I help others do the same.
A Gentle Birthing
During pregnancy, I retreated to Maine for peace and healing. While driving, I listened to an interview with a Cherokee trio band called Walela. They spoke about a “gentle birth song” tradition that would set me on a course of changing lives, including my own. Listen to “River Song for Kira” for the story and song.
Art Heals
Three years later, in 2002, I began teaching art workshops inspired by nature and sacred geometry at a local farm school, then landed a job teaching photography and art classes at a Montessori school.
In 2004, a friend told me The Bushnell of Hartford (CT) was looking for an artist to breathe life into a painfully boring art program for teaching “community” to second graders in three public schools. I pulled an all-nighter and created a rustic portfolio of real art projects I designed, mounted them on huge sheets of black paper, and bound it with twine so I could snag that gig. They hired me on the spot and the next day, the challenge commenced.
The first step was to research “community,” which led me to “circles,” which revealed the “mandala.” Mandalas (mahn-dáh-lahs) are an ancient art practice for healing that consists of patterns of designs radiating out from a unified center. They are everywhere in nature, and it was no coincidence that we found one another as it is said that people and mandalas come together in times of trouble for restoration.
While developing the first Community Mandala Collage workshop, I went all in and founded Community Mandala Project. For 20 years, I taught hundreds of meditative art workshops at incredible organizations. Thousands of people experienced profound healing because of it, including me! Art heals.
Music is Medicine
In 2006, music entered the scene. While photographing a band, I told Dan (jazz musician) about the birth song. He had a recording studio, and it was a tiny town, so every time we ran into one another after that he would ask, “when are we gonna record the birth song?” Eventually, I caved. We recorded it a cappella with only a mic and headphones. It terrified me, but I didn’t die.
Afterward Dan said, “I’m pulling together a band with you as the lead vocal.” I laughed thinking he was joking or had wax in his ears. It took 9 months (like birthing a baby) to believe I had a voice or anything to say. In order to communicate originals to the band, I taught myself guitar. By 2009 (just before 40), folks were paying me to perform live. It’s never too late to make big change! Music is medicine.
Big Dreams Come True
My lived experiences have shown me the importance of freedom, the power of stories, the many benefits of music and art, and that I could make big dreams come true. Throughout my healing journey, I often found it challenging to put myself out there and be vulnerable, but I’ve seen that when I do, people are profoundly impacted, and they remind me that I have gifts that can help others. You do too!
In the summer of 2021, Kira and I converted our vehicles for car camping and headed west to write a new chapter in our stories. We had the time of our lives for a season before she went north to live independently. I headed south with our cat Luna, discovered workaway and worked on family farms in order to learn lost skills so I may one day fulfill an old dream to steward a homestead.
Speaking of old dreams… in 2022, an 18 year-old dream to paint a massive mural with community came to fruition at Terrasante Village in the Sonoran desert of Tucson, AZ. Check out the Terrasante Nature Mandala Mural and contact me to talk about it.
The Art of Becoming
After several years on the road, the mountains of southwest Colorado called my daughter and me home — another dream coming true. To make ends meet, I worked in retail sales for 14 months and quickly became a “rockstar” (their words, not mine). I loved the job, but something was out of alignment and we parted ways. It’s important for me to do meaningful work that is aligned with my core values and ethics, so I’m exploring what that means and skilling-up for new possibilities.
These days, when I’m not designing Joule of Durango jewelry and art, I’m writing, taking leadership classes, attending speaker trainings, and mapping out my speaker mission and talk. Sneak peek, it’s called:
Lost & Found: The Art of Becoming
How loss helps us find our way
Stay tuned to see what’s in development!
Let’s Book Something Amazing!
In the meantime, if you’re looking for a resilient, positive, uplifting and inspirational female speaker, role model and workshop facilitator who leaves audiences with an elevated mindset and creative tools to make change and big dreams come true, let’s book something amazing!