Palatine wellness expert finds herself in pilgrimage to India, Tibet
Inverness resident Mia Scheid, owner of Palatine-based Fitness Arts, said she had a life-changing trip to India and Tibet.
She received a healing bowl, participated in a Himalayan meditation maze and other sacred ceremonies with experts.
Most of all, she rediscovered who she was on this spiritual journey, she said.
"I truly learned that everything in life is transforming and it made a lot sense," said Scheid, 56. "It was truly a spiritual journey."
Scheid's journey actually started when she was 10 when she and her parents, both doctors, left Korea and settled in Madison, Wisconsin.
"Coming here (to the United States), was like coming to Shangri La or heaven," she said.
As she grew up, she wanted to explore bigger cities and settled in Chicago. She married, moved to Arlington Heights and raised three children.
"But I needed my own purpose in life," she said.
She sought part-time work that was more meaningful, at a nearby wellness center. She learned about and taught Pilates and soon expanded by certifying others in the physical fitness arena.
She expanded her services further with detoxing, personalizing nutrition and supplements, yoga and meditation and founded Fitness Arts in 1999.
She also studied under Deepak Chopra, an Indian-born author and speaker of alternative medicine and spirituality. She studied under David Frawley, an American expert on Hindu, author of 30 books and director of the American Institute of Vedic Studies.
In addition, she earned a 5th degree Black Belt and is a three-time national Taekwondo champion. She even helped to train the 2008 U.S. Olympic Freestyle Wrestling Team, she said.
In March, her spiritual journey continued when she participated in a trip to Tibet and India.
"Going back and seeing people and how they lived, I thought I had forgotten what it was like for me," she said. "The experience of living in privilege, you somehow lose that sense of benevolence or humility. So it was good to see where I came from."
Where she came from referred to her poverty as a youngster in Korea, compared to the poverty she saw in India and Tibet and what some people were earning in that part of the world.
"Yes, I was shocked, I thought it was $750 a month, and they said no, it was $750 a year," she said.
That's when she noticed how people could still be happy or content, regardless of their economic circumstances.
"I go to India and observe how spiritual they are. They have to find peace. Seeking spirituality is attainable," she said.
She also experienced the so-called singing bowl or healing bowl made by monks in the Himalayas during a full moon. The bowl was placed over her head and was tapped to ring and vibrate for healing.
"There is so much going on in the brain, that we get too lost in many of those thoughts," she said. "But once that bowl comes off, you are just free from stress."
Scheid plans to return to India in March to be cleansed in a river and participate in other ceremonies and learn from experts, she said.
"I love to listen to their wisdom."
From movies to gaming
Brett Morris, president and chief operating officer of Super League Gaming, was on hand last week for the Super League Gaming launch of its interactive, in-theater video game league in partnership with AMC, Regal and Cinemark theaters nationwide. He's in the middle of a 23-city summer tour to launch the league in more than 80 theaters by September. Kids come to the theater with their laptops, hook up to the Wi-Fi, and play the popular game Minecraft in teams on their computers in the first person view, while watching an aerial third-person view on the big screen. Essentially, these theaters are turning into social gaming arenas. Theaters include iPic South Barrington and Bolingbrook, AMC South Barrington 30, Cinemark Century 16 Deer Park and Regal Cinema Lincolnshire 21 Imax.
Finally open
James Lukose, Wayside Cross Ministries executive director, cut the ribbon of the Aurora-based ministries' new facility in Aurora. After four years of planning and two years of construction, the building is 47,000 square feet and cost about $8.6 million.
FastTracks
Burke Groom, senior vice president of Barrington Bank & Trust Company N.A., is the new president of the Barrington Noon Rotary. Groom was installed, along with other officers, during an installation dinner at Francesca's Famiglia in downtown Barrington. ... Dan Fogarty is the new senior vice president of development at Becknell Industrial. Fogarty had been the vice president and market officer at Conor Commercial Real Estate in Rosemont and as vice president of Insite Real Estate in Oak Brook.
Rafael Manjarres Dickson said his Crave Pizza will have its grand opening Tuesday after expanding and doubling its space into a modern sports bar in Mount Prospect. ... Steven Culos is the new controller for ML Realty Partners LLC in Itasca. ... Carrie M. Buddingh of Naperville has been named partner at Bellock & Coogan Ltd. after five years with the Oak Brook firm.
Doug Owens is the store manager of the new AT&T authorized retailer in Lake Bluff. The store, owned and operated by Spring Mobile, will offer the latest devices and services. ... Dan Walsh, vice president of development at Ryan Companies U.S. Inc. in Naperville, said Ryan with partner Lincoln Property Company have broken ground on a luxury apartment tower on Chicago's Gold Coast. ... Christian and Christina Aponte, owners of the new Smallcakes Cupcakery & Creamery, host a grand opening Aug. 14 at The Arboretum of South Barrington.
Katlyn Eggar of Allstate-Eggar Insurance Agency Inc. in St. Charles, was recently on WGN Radio speaking about Allstate's work with cancer patients and their families. ... Robert and Beckie Untiedt own Graham's 318 Coffeehouse in Geneva, which was named No. 5 in the Top 24 Independent Coffee Shops to Visit in America by People Magazine. ... Pat Gibbs, who acquired FASTSIGNS of Carpentersville in June 2010, said the sign and graphics provider has moved to a larger facility on Western Avenue in Carpentersville.
• There's more to business than just the bottom line. We want to tell you about the people that make business work. Send news about people in business to akukec@dailyherald.com. Follow Anna Marie Kukec on LinkedIn and Facebook and as AMKukec on Twitter.