Elaanie S

As a Witch, High Priestess, healing facilitator, herbalist and teacher, the focus of Elaanie's work is to serve through education and building bridges of love, balance and tolerance within her community - wherever she might find herself. Elaanie believes that everything we think, say and do is an act of magick and serves whether we do those things with conscious intent or not - but the Witch knows she is responsible for it all.

Elaanie is educated, and initiated, as a High Priestess in the Temple of Witchcraft Tradition; she served the Temple’s Sagittarius ministry as an online mentor, ordained minister and teacher of in-person Mystery School classes from 2011 until her resignation from the Temple in June of 2019. Her magickal education began in 1986 within the context of energy work in the Eastern philosophy of traditional Japanese and Okinawan martial arts training. This early training was heavily influenced by the Gnostic practices of Maestro Pietro Zaupa of Vicenza, Italy. She now identifies her spiritual path and practice as that of Akashic Witchcraft - and it as a philosophy rather than a tradition. Her practices are eclectic and pulled from the many teachers and resources which have presented their lessons to Elaanie throughout her lifetime.

Elaanie is an independent author preferring to retain full control of the content she writes. She has published a number of articles under her pseudonym, Elaanie Stormbender, with the Jackson Free Press in Jackson, Mississippi and, at the time of this writing, she has published three books including "The Witch's Journey: Cutting the Cords of Christian Dogma,” “The Witch’s Weeds: the sacred work of plant healing and magick” and “Audrey’s Special Secret,” the first of a series of magickal lessons for young children.

Elaanie’s teaching background includes twenty-seven years of martial arts training and coaching experience, thirteen years as a SCUBA instructor, and twelve years of teaching workshops as well as extended year-long classes in Witchcraft. Though no longer active in the profession, Elaanie, by education, is a Registered Nurse. She shares her spiritual path, passion and work with her husband and partner, Rowann. Her birth name is Melanie Seward Patterson, and she is a native of Asheville, North Carolina.

A word about the craft name, Elaanie Stormbender

Her craft names and pseudonym “Elaanie” and “Stormbender” were gifts. Shortly after confirmation from a spirit guide that a name would be forthcoming, Elaanie's oldest daughter, Sarah, suggested that a craft name should retain some of the energy of her birth name, Melanie, but should also reflect the newly awakened being she had become. Something should be removed, something should be added and something should be changed in her given birth name! The "M" in Melanie was dropped, an "a" was added, and the pronunciation was changed! It felt right, and, additionally, Elaanie checked its numerology, and it was the same as her life path number.

The second part of the name, "Stormbender," was a gift from her husband. He suggested this part of her name should reflect that she had used her magickal ability to first change her own life by "bending the storms" of her early life into something beautiful, and she continues to help others do the same through her work. Again, the numerology checked out and thus, Elaanie Stormbender was born.