SPEAKERS

Melinda Edwards, MD

Psychiatrist, Writer and Darshan Founder and President

Melinda is a mother and physician in Charleston, SC. She attended medical school at the Medical University of South Carolina and completed her residency in psychiatry at Stanford Medical Center. As a child of medical missionaries, Melinda grew up in a Mayan Indian village in Guatemala, Central America. Early in life she experienced an inner pull to a deeper truth. Her journey took her through various spiritual practices including meditation, guidance from spiritual teachers, travel to India and living in spiritual communities. Her quest led to the ongoing discovery of the divinity in all. She currently works with underserved adults in South Carolina and is completing a book, Psyche & Spirit: How a Psychiatrist Found Divinity Through Her Lifelong Quest for Truth and Her Daughter's Autism. For more information about Melinda, visit www.melindaedwardsmd.com.

Melinda’s daughter Saachi is the source of her greatest joy and her deepest spiritual unfolding. The visions for the Awaken Through Autism Conference and the 501c3 nonprofit organization Darshan were born out of their journey together.

Toni Boucher

Speaker, Writer and Consultant

Toni has been working with folks on the spectrum for 30 years. Her career started in college when she provided respite and emergency foster care for children with developmental delays and "fell in love with the families." On graduating from The University of Kansas with her BSW, she became the administrator for a residential and day service program for adults, where she ensured residents were safe and achieving their personal goals. Toni received training from the University of Utah through their addictions program and subsequently developed culturally relevant interventions for both addictions and autism, utilizing innovative approaches and community collaboration. Toni worked for the Autism Division through the State of South Carolina, first as a consultant and then as Director of the CARE Clinic, where she utilized the gold standard tools to provide autism evaluations, as well as training and consultation for families and professionals. In this capacity, she learned how the system works and had the opportunity to provide South Carolina teachers and administrators with behavioral training and autism-friendly teaching strategies, including ABBIS, the state's graduate-level-applied behavior analysis course.  Her book, Autism Translated, is the result of the wisdom and insights her clients have shared with her throughout these years. Today, Toni is a speaker, writer and consultant. Her articles on sensory integration are referenced worldwide by families, psychologists, teachers and therapists. She is often referred to as "The Autism Translator."