Our Hive

Shanti Volpe
Queen Bee
Shanti Volpe has a passion for helping people unearth their purpose and discover their own healing and peace. In March of 2017, she solidified her vision and founded Shanti Elixirs. As owner and CEO, she loves bringing joy to the world through her nourishing elixirs. She is a devoted wife and mother of three fabulous boys, RN, and lactation consultant. In her free time she enjoys hiking, traveling, reading self-help books, and playing games with her family.
The one thing I can’t resist is... listening to self-help books on audible.
I’ve always wanted to… travel to Africa.
My desired super-hero power is… to have time expansion abilities.
I love traveling to… Cat Island.
My favorite Jun flavor is… Chai Spice.

Meredith Allen
Brewing Bee
Brewing Bee
Meridith Allen has a longstanding enthusiasm for making ferments and infusions. She joined the hive in October of 2017, and soon after became head brewer at the Junery. She prepares each small batch with intention, imbuing the Jun with love and peace. She is a mother of three wonderful boys, and is passionate about tea, gardening, beekeeping, yoga, and wellness.
The one thing I can’t resist is... tater tots from Asheville Pizza and a good hug.
I’ve always wanted to… go to Hawaii and learn more about tea.
My desired super-hero power is… to give healing hugs.
I love traveling to… Pai, Thailand!
My favorite Jun flavor is… Lemon Lavender or Orange Roselle.

Sophia Phillips
Sales Bee
Sophia Phillips is passionate about promoting a company that offers a product that positively impacts her community and enjoys supporting her fellow sister bees. She joined the team in August of 2018, assisting with administrative tasks and building relationships with the community through her work in events and sales. She is a published nature photographer and writer. And huge fan of her two grandchildren.
The one thing I can’t resist is… touching and photographing nature.
I’ve always wanted to… swim with the dolphins and stand with the Sequoias and Redwoods!
My desired super-hero power is… to stop the suffering of the planet.
I love traveling to… Seabrook Island in SC. It’s such a magical place teaming with dolphins and nature’s children and sunsets that will take your breath away.
My favorite Jun flavor is… Blueberry Basil.

Michelle Mortensen
Administrative Bee
Michelle has a passion for positivity and sharing the importance of self care with her community. She joined the hive in August 2019, excited to share probiotics with people through education and tastings while running markets, she now helps with administrative duties. In her spare time she loves cooking wholesome & healthy meals, yoga, and spending time in nature.
The one thing I can’t resist is… chocolate.
I’ve always wanted to… enroll in a cooking class in Europe.
My desired super-hero power is… to heal others.
I love traveling to… the beach.
My favorite Jun flavor is… Ginger.

McKenna O'Connell
Marketing + Design Bee
McKenna loves local food systems, collective healing and providing true nourishment for her community. She joined the hive in 2020, first as a buzzing bee then found her calling in marketing and design. She loves traveling and camping with her partner and pup in their VW van. She is passionate about herbalism, foraging, cooking and gardening.
The one thing I can’t resist is… Flowers!!
I’ve always wanted to… Be(e) a beekeeper.
My desired super-hero power is… Morph into any animal! Travel through the ocean as a humpback whale. Fly high above the desert like a hawk. Mosey about like a sloth. You get it...
I love traveling to… rivers and waterfalls!
My favorite Jun flavor is… Today, Tulsi Rose. Tomorrow, Pineapple Turmeric. There's a Jun flavor for every mood!

Kim Lanzarotta
Floater Bee
Bio coming soon.

Colleen Byrd
Packaging/ Maintenance Lead Bee
Colleen joined the hive in 2021. She is an avid motorcycle and classic car enthusiast. You can catch Colleen around the hive, packaging cases for deliveries and coordinating tasks. She's best known for her humor and entertaining her co-workers with animated stories or off-the-wall comments of her perspectives. She enjoys anything vintage related from motorcycle jackets, albums, books, antique tools and her latest interest, bourbon whiskey bottles. In her off time, she can be found hanging with her animal friends, building bird houses or adding custom details to her Moto Guzzi motorcycle. She spends the majority of her days off in the outdoors or hanging with any 4 of her animals at home.
The one thing I can't resist is… the urge to pet baby animals.
I've always wanted to… attend the skip barber racing school for sport bikes.
My desired superhero power is… to be able to communicate with all animals & be seen as a welcomed species in their flock, herd, pod etc...
I love traveling to… Costa Rica to volunteer with local nonprofit organizations.
My favorite Jun Flavor is… Orange Roselle & the Cranberry Sumac Fine Dining Series.

Nyoka Pierce
Research/Quality Assurance Bee
Nyoka Pierce joined the hive in 2021. She is equally passionate about acquiring and sharing information, especially knowledge about the natural world, her words can be found in many Shanti Elixirs blogs and research articles. More than her love for mycelium and microbes, Nyoka thrives in creating efficient systems for the benefit of her work community. She can be found buzzing around the hive, ensuring that every bottle of Jun is at its highest standard or on the sales team building relationships with the community. She is a writer, a partner, a guardian, a companion to 1, 2 and 4 legged friends, a nerd, a giggler at the silly and mundane, a traveler, an introvert, a student and a lover of pinecones and acorns.
The one thing I can’t resist is... singing my own version of popular songs out loud and laughing at myself, repeatedly.
I’ve always wanted to… be one of those people who really and truly loves chocolate.
My desired super-hero power is… to be able to send hugs to people and have them feel it!
I love traveling to… I LOVE TRAVELING... even running errands is a treat.
My favorite Jun flavor is… Paw Paw (Available thru CSA).

Ari Hanson
Jack-of-all Bees
Ari Hanson is the resident nerd at Shanti Elxiris. He loves learning new facts, playing strategy games, and soaking in information from various disciplines. Ari has worked part-time since 2021 while enrolled in the AB-Tech Social Work pathway. At Shanti Elixirs, Ari is a Jack-of-all-bees, working mainly in Sanitation in the kitchen, cleaning bottles, slinging kegs, and washing dishes; however, he also works in the Delivery, Packing, and Market departments.
Ari’s primary goal is to bee a connector and pollinate community members as a Social Worker and counselor. Ari believes that empathy, connection, and design are the ways to support a community and make it healthy.
The one thing I can’t resist is... three-hour video essays on game lore.
I’ve always wanted to… be involved with a purpose-driven community.
My desired super-hero power is… teleportation
I love traveling to… cool temperate rainforests.
My favorite Jun flavor is… Lemon Lavender

Krista Slavik
Floater Bee
Krista has been with Shanti Elixirs since 2022. She works in many areas of the hive from the farmers market, to the kitchen, to bottling, to the garden. She loves singing and dancing with others while working and gets very excited about digging in the garden. She is grateful to be apart of such a loving crew.
The one thing I can’t resist is... puns.
I’ve always wanted to… live in a full singing commune with a shared farm.
My desired super-hero power is… to shoot plants out of my hands and make them grow as big as I want, such as: shooting vines from my hands and swinging on them.
I love traveling to… the mountain sides.
My favorite Jun flavor is… Chai.

Heather Ward
Innovation/Development/Market Bee
Heather Ward joined the hive in 2022. She reaches out to the community and to the hive to create programs and structures that highlight Shanti Elixirs amazing products. Her goal is to help bring Jun to new spaces and bring the experience, the healing and the uplifting benefits of Jun to more people.
Her background is in art, craft, education, dance, and business. She is a parent to two amazing daughters, a partner in gratitude and life to her beloved, a suburban homesteader, a creative spazz, and lover of truth and wisdom in its many languages and forms. She gets excited about nature, mindful nourishment, creative reuse, being helpful, simplicity, growing things, the stars, the endless universe and light.
The one thing I can’t resist is… dancing to anything with a beat.
I’ve always wanted to… learn to surf.
My desired super-hero power is… to show people their light
I love traveling to… the ocean.
My favorite Jun flavor is… Ginger/Siberian Rose.

Susan Lippold
Office Manager Bee
Susan Lippold joined the hive in January 2023 as our new Office Manager. Susan enjoys navigating the day-to-day details, while creating systems and processes that will support Shanti Elixirs during its stages of growth. In her free time, she loves to read magical stories, study and learn new things, care for her houseplants, work on craft projects, jog on local greenways, cuddle with her pup, and experience the natural world in a state of wonder, awe, and curiosity.
The one thing I can’t resist is… identifying insects, birds, plants, fungi, trees, and flowers and look up their symbolism and meaning.
I’ve always wanted to… go for a hot-air balloon ride.
My desired super-hero power is… to live for as long as I desire so that I can explore the entire planet and experience all of the beauty, flora, and fauna that is here.
I love traveling to… any place I’ve never been to. I love setting my eyes upon new things and having new experiences.
My favorite Jun flavor is… Orange Roselle, Mango Habanero, and Cranberry Sparkle.