Meet The Team

Monk Prawed was ordained as a Buddhist monk in Thailand 24 years ago, after he graduated from Burapha University with a degree in Education. He came to the United States as an instructor of meditation classes. He was very excited about his work, which has taken him from Massachusetts to Colorado, Georgia, and California; in June of 2023, Monk Prawed relocated to Chicago, Illinois.

​He loves meditation and practices at least three hours daily. His firm belief is that meditation helps people to do good deeds, foster understanding, and develop their mental and spiritual abilities. His wish is that peaceful individuals and communities will eventually result in world peace. He is grateful for the awareness that he is not walking alone in the path of goodness.

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Monk Piya was born into a Thai-Chinese family in Chiang Rai, Thailand in 1975. He graduated with First-Class Honor from Chiang Mai University with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. He also completed an executive MBA course from the University of Thai Chamber of Commerce. He has previously worked as a Maintenance and Production Engineer at Michelin and Siam Cement companies.

He has been practicing meditation since 1998. Then, he entered the monkhood at Dhammakaya Temple in Thailand in 2001. Since then, he has been teaching the practice of meditation to people from all walks of life around the world.

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Monk Sophon Panyasopanoe has been meditating for over 25 years and ordained as a Theravada Buddhist monk since 2014. He has a Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from Chiang Mai University in Thailand (1997). Monk Sophon used to reside at the Meditation Center in New Jersey and Meditation Center of D.C. where he volunteered and helped to teach meditation to students from all walks of life. 
       

Monk Sophon has devoted himself in teaching meditation at Dhammkaya Int'l Meditation Center in Azusa CA. for 7 years.
He currently resides at Meditation Center of Chicago, IL where he teaches meditation to spread peace to all people regardless their faiths and backgrounds.

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Originally from Thailand, Pranee Ruangmalai has been working at the Meditation Center of Chicago since 2010. For over 10 years, she has served as an organizer of Youth Camps promoting mindfulness practice in a fun way. In 2015, she began working as a coordinator of meditation programs and a meditation trainer for adults and has done so since. She was also a founder and a president of Meditation Club at Wright College in 2017-2018.

As a long-term meditator and as one who has walked along many peace seekers for many years, she confirms that living in peace is possible if we truly believe and live it. 

More information: voyagechicago and Consciousness

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TBA