Abbie Vianes, a native to Virginia, made Utah her home when she was hired by former Governor Mike Leavitt to direct the Governor’s Commission on Marriage, the Governor’s Commission for Women and Children, and the Governor’s Initiative on Families Today. Currently, Abbie works for the Salt Lake City Mayor, directing his substance abuse prevention coalition. Before coming to Utah, Abbie taught school, both public and private, in Virginia and in France, grades K-10 and adult learners.

One of Abbie’s core beliefs is that life is all about relationships. Our first relationship, beyond the one with ourself, is with God. The nearer we are to Him, the better we are able to love and develop healthy relationships with others. Frequent, heart-felt communication is crucial to building that intimacy. Abbie’s passion, in addition to her family, is the Gospel of Jesus Christ. She knows that it is His Spirit and His power that helps her strengthen others, that they might attain their highest potential, their greatest good. Her creed is: Encourage, Enlighten, and Edify.

Abbie has a Master’s Degree in Professional Counseling and is a certified facilitator for the 8 Habits of Highly Successful Marriages by Franklin Covey, the PREP Couples’ Communication Course, Love and Logic Parenting, Strengthening Families Program, Survival Skills of Healthy Families , Positive Indian Parenting, and Steven Stosny’s Bootcamp for Letting Go of Anger and Resentment. Abbie coaches individuals, couples and families, and frequently presents on topics such as: couple enrichment, the spirituality of sexuality, communication, pornography, substance abuse, blended families, mothering, fathering, spirituality, and others.

Abbie is a board member of the Worldwide Organization for Women, a pro-family NGO with UN Consultative Status, the Utah Family Network Partnership, the Utah Prevention Action Coalition, and SALT (a gang intervention program). Abbie is the mother of 2 extraordinary daughters and 5 precious grand children.

Melanie was born and raised in Ogden, Utah by parents who valued education and life-long learning. She earned a bachelor’s degree in Family Life and a master’s degree in Community Education Administration.

Throughout her life, she has worked to provide women and couples with opportunities to learn and develop skills to improve their lives, their relationships, and their families. Her most recent work has been with the Northern Utah Marriage Coalition.

As a speaker to women’s groups in both the US and Canada, Melanie has experienced firsthand, the deep longing women have to connect to their feminine heart. She is thrilled to be part of the “Heart of a Woman” retreat team.

Currently, Melanie is the national marketing director for Doug Nielsen—a nationally recognized speaker, author, trainer and coach.

She met her husband Murray (a Canadian) while they were both living in Austria. They have 4 children and 2 grandchildren. The things she is most passionate about are the gospel of Jesus Christ and her family.

Melanie has a deep love of music—playing, listening, and conducting children’s choirs. She has spent the last 3 years learning to garden and canning and preserving fruits and vegetables all summer.

Tina was born and raised in Salt Lake City, UT. She attended the University of Utah and Weber State University where she studied sales and Interior Design.

She loves to design and decorate and has a love of beauty. Tina also enjoys gardening, camping with her family, snow and water skiing, and doing anything creative. Tina and her husband Rob have been married for 18 years and have four young children.

Tina and Rob have a passion for sharing the message of healing hearts. They believe strongly in the healing and hope that only comes through the Savior and God’s love for us. Rob is part of the Warrior Heart team who host boot camps for men twice a year based on the book “Wild at Heart”.