Meet The Team

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 Andrew has been a monk for nineteen years and has over two decades of meditation experience. Before entering the monkhood, Venerable Andrew received his master’s degree in Computer Engineering at San Jose State University in San Jose, California.

Ven. Andrew has over ten years of experience in teaching meditation in a variety of settings, including universities, schools, hospitals, and in meditation centers in the US, Denmark, South Africa, and many countries in Asia. 

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Monk Klint Kunachawo was born and raised in the United States.  Grew up learning and practicing Buddhism and meditation from a young age.  Until finally making the choice and ordaining as a monk since January 5, 2010.  He now teaches meditation at the Meditation Center in Chicago.  

While ordained as a monk, he studied at Drew University and got a bachelor’s degree in psychology.  He continues to practice meditation and does his best to help those around him and share happiness and peace to the world one person at a time.

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Monk Sophon Panyasopanoe has been meditating for over 25 years and ordained as a Theravada Buddhist monk for the past 7 years. He has a Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering from Chiang Mai University in Thailand (1997). Ven. 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. 
       

Since he became a monk in 2014, he 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.

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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Graduate from Kasetsart University, Bangkok, Thailand. Being as Dhammakaya foundation Staff since 2009-now. She has trained to organize meditation session and meditation mentor’s assistance. She had observed the other meditation sessions in Malaysia and Canada.

Rujira loves to do meditation because meditation can clear her mind and make her choose to be positive than negative point of views. She believes that when we create peace within our-self then we can share to others

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