RI Family Gets Word that Family Member in Nepal is OK

Friends and family of Luke DeStefano are feeling relieved Monday morning upon news that the Thai massage master, artist and world traveller is alive and well in Nepal after the devastating earthquake that has killed thousands.

DeStefano was leading a trekking expedition in an area northwest of Katmandu close to the epicenter, family members said. He was in a very remote area and family didn’t expect to hear back from him for quite some time before the terrible quake.

In the hopes of making sure he survived the disaster, his mother, Diane DeStefano, posted his information on Google Person Finder, which helps people ask for and deliver information about loved ones during disasters and emergencies.

According to the post, the group left on April 7 and were due to return on May 7. He, along with Kaline Alayna Kelly were leading the group through the Tsum Valley, a sacred Himalayan pilgrimage site with a strong Buddhist heritage.

The post was made on Saturday night and at 1:33 a.m. on Monday, Macarena Losada, the sister of a woman in the group said that according to a friend that left a week before, they should be around Jagat or Philim in Tsum Valley.

Eight hours later, Katharina Gollonitsch said the group had been contacted near Ranchen Gumpa monastery in Tsum Valley.

Diane DeStefano has since offered an update this afternoon: they’re still in the valley, waiting for rescue and have plenty of food.

Originally from Rhode Island, DeStefno moved to Southeast Asia in 2008 and recieved training in meditation and healing arts, eventually meeting his master in Vietnam where he was initiated into the Sangha of the Dharma Mountain Sect as a student of Dharma and an “adept practitioner of Tantric Martial Yoga and Khi Cong (Qi Gong),” according to a biography on the heARTbeat collective website. “The tradition of Dharma Mountain has a long lineage of healers and medicine people, and 3 years of intensive study provided a foundation to branch out into more hands-on healing modalities. Relocating to Thailand, he began studying, assisting, and eventually teaching the art of Traditional Thai Yoga Massage under the guidance of Ajarn Pichest Boonthume, Itzhack Helman, and Khun “Jack” Chaiya.”

The trek DeStefano was leading intended to offer bodywork and healing to people living in the remote areas of the valley who don’t have access to those things.

“Although many people we meet along the way will be very happy to receive our healing work, we are not visiting these communities to impose our will to be “healers”. Our “work” will flow naturally and may come in the form of massage, medicine, songs, smiles, or even just helping out with simple tasks. Whenever opportunities arise for us to be in service during this journey, we will aim to do so with grace, humility and gratitude,” according to a description of the journey posted on The Sacred Dance blog.

While they are relieved that Luke is OK, the family reminds us that there is much to grieve about following the earthquake.

Photo caption: Luke DeStefano offers theraputic massage to a woman during the trek in 2014. Photo courtesy: The Sacred Dance