ABOUT US
WELCOME TO THE LAND OF VERSE
Which we lovingly call Verse
OUR STORY
In 2018, the School of Traditional Healing Arts was born in the basement of The Scarlet Sage Herb Co. out of a desire to bring herbal medicine education into an urban setting. During this time, we had been able to serve our community through Scarlet Sage in the most successful way possible.
In March 2020, as we sheltered-in-place, we moved our certifications online and we were able to continue to provide empowering herbal medicine education to our community. We now have students from around the world joining our online learning community to become herbalists and we are excited to welcome more.
Land of Verse was born. This name stems from all people having a need to access their own traditional ancestral knowledge, often through story or song. If we could all be connected to our ancestral wisdom, there could be a bigger sense of belonging for each of us, carrying our lineage with us to heal ourselves and our community. Plants, are keystones to cultural heritage, and we honor that.
The name Verse comes from the history of all of our people. Information and knowledge were passed down through oral tradition, through song and stories, until recently. Many communities around the world still do not have a written language.
Each of us carry these stories from our lineage with us - and we encourage those stories and songs to be remembered. All of your ancestors had access to healing knowledge - it's in your DNA. The foundation of your education and journey with Verse is in your lineage, your ancestry, and your people. We are honored to hold you in the story of your family's healing and resilience.
Verse is here to support women (and brave men) in their adult years with all of the preventative medicine education they need to raise a family, manage their own self-care, and take care of their loved ones.
THE DREAM TEAM
Laura Ash
Verse Co-Founder and Director
Laura (she/her) is a clinical herbalist, a proud member of the LGBTQ+ community, a mother of two, a teacher, a dancer, a storyteller, and a social entrepreneur.
Laura has been enchanted by herbalism since 1999, and has dedicated her career to it. Her education was formalized at The California School of Herbal Studies in Clinical Herbal Medicine, and the Ayurvedic Institute.
Laura's renowned mentors and teachers include: David Hoffmann, Aviva Romm, MD, Dr. Vasant Lad, Matthew Wood, Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estés, and Andrew Weil, MD. Laura has also learned from Indigenous teachers and community members through her time traveling.
Building up to starting Verse, her entrepreneurial journey started with a medicinal chai tea company to put herself through herb school, Avra Organic Spa, Herbal Anthropology Project, 501(c)3 which preserves and protects traditional medicine around the globe with IP protection for Indigenous communities, and The Scarlet Sage Herb Co., a legacy herbal apothecary in SF. Laura currently works with the Beneficial Plant Research Association, a nonprofit supporting botanical research and preservation around the globe.
Laura focuses her work on women's health and family health, supporting parents and children to find balance and homeostasis with western herbs. Laura is also continuously researching her own herbal ancestral lineage of Sweden and England.
Laura's dream is to bring herbal medicine and holistic arts education to the world so that people know how efficacious natural medicine really is. Her current passions are in supporting feminist business principles, conservation work, the intersection of Climate and herbalism, and encouraging sound business education for herbalists.
- Rising sign: Scorpio
- Fav Herb: Lavender
- Family Ancestry: English, Swedish, French, American.
- Fav animal: Bear
Kelsey Barrett
Clinical Advisor for the School of Herbal Medicine at Verse
Kelsey (she/her) is a California based clinical herbalist.
Her mission is to foster intimacy with self, health and the natural world. Her herbal and environmental insights have been published in Vogue, Edible East Bay, GOOD Magazine and Gestalten, and she is currently the Herbal Education consultant at Verse.
- Rising sign: Leo
- Fav Herb: Linden
- Family Ancestry: Irish, Scottish, French
- Fav animal: Sea Turtle
Our Mission
To grant access to information and resources to keep ourselves healthy, vibrant and participating in our own wellness.
Verse guides customers to reclaim their agency and knowledge that has been lost or outsourced. We remind people that we used to know how to heal ourselves and our families — and we show them how to reclaim that power.
Our Vision
Verse connects peopwith traditional healing arts that empower everyday lives with purpose, physical well-being, and spiritual connection.
Verse infuses online learning with embodied experiences to create connection and wholeness, a missing component in most eLearning platforms.
Verse brings online healing arts education + trusted wellness products into your home and expands your global community of like-minded folks.
Our Values
- We celebrate diversity.
- The earth is a stakeholder.
- Our students are empowered through Interdependence.
- We all have ancestral remedies & traditions - we support our students to find them.
- We are connected to one another through our passions and curiosity.
- We uplift Indigenous teachers from around the world.
