Blessings. My name is Kai Delgado Pfeifer (they / them pronouns).

I am descendant of ancestors from the Philippines, China, Ireland, Germany, and Lithuania. I was raised in the United States, in Jersey City, New Jersey which are the ancestral lands of the Harsimus Lenni-Lenape (NJ). I currently reside between the Philippines & the Bay Area in California, on the lands of the Ohlone peoples.

One of my life callings is to create safe spaces for our communities to reclaim our freedom, wellbeing, and relationship with the Earth. In my childhood upbringing, I was deeply aware of intergenerational struggles in my family including chronic illnesses, addictions, relational abuse, and more. With roots in my early 20s as an organizer for Philippine liberation movements, I was able to understand my family experiences within collective conditions of capitalism, white supremacy, and patriarchy that exploit our relationships with the Land and each other.

While living with Lumad (indigenous) communities in the Philippines in 2018 and then learning from teachers from other lineages, I was shown that communal practices of grassroots organizing and healing are crucial to transforming our personal lives, lineages, and society in lasting ways. Agriculture, food, medicine, ceremony, and oral history are some of the many cultural mediums that help us renew our collective sense of sovereignty, belonging, and inter-connection.

These learnings led me on a path to reclaim Philippine plant medicine (food & herbs), Hilot (Philippine bodywork & ritual), natural agriculture, and ancestral lineage healing that are intertwined with my community work. The practices of Buddhism in my Chinese ancestry also continue to be fundamental for grounding my committments to community. As a diasporic settler on Turtle Island, I honor my Indigenous & African diaspora teachers who generously share their political struggles & ancestral medicines in ways that orient towards shared paths of healing, justice, and liberation.

It is my prayer that what I have been taught and given permission to expand upon can be resources for liberation of our lands and communities. I bridge these gifts and teachings in the following offerings:

Filipinx Food as Medicine— seasonal virtual courses and in person workshops where we reclaim ancestral foodways, herbalism, and spiritual healing practices through a decolonial, anti-imperialist analysis of Philippine and Amerikan society.

Hilot - In person and virtual healing support that draws from many modalities including divination, astrology, massage therapy, cupping, emotional release rituals, shamanic meditation, spiritual baths, smoke cleansings, and protocols for dietary and herbal healing.

Acknowledgment of Mentors and Organizations that have guided me on my path

Apu Rolando Gomez & Lakay Magbaya - Hilot Academy of Binabaylan

Mamerto Lagitan Tindongan - Ifugao Mumbaki

Phra Ajahn Poonsak Suwadhano — Monk of Wat Chom Thong Monastery

Don Luis & Dona Zaray - Witoto & Yagua Curanderos

Esperanza Martell - AfroTaino healer/organizer

Nay Melay - Subanen Farmer, educator, and organizer

Owen Taylor - Seed keeper & owner of Truelove Seeds

Urban Atabex Healing in Community Network

Farm School NYC

Soul Fire Farm

Sama Sama Cooperative

East Bay Meditation Center

Spirit Rock Meditation Center

Anakbayan & Migrante