Directors and Instructors

Susan Hamadock is the founder and former Director of Silver Lotus Training Institute and continues to be an important part of its teaching and leadership community. Her years of experience in Tai Chi, Qigong, yoga, and mind-body practices have shaped Silver Lotus and its approach to health and wellbeing.

Susan is especially passionate about adapting Tai Chi and Qigong to meet the individual needs of her students and continues to teach community classes, work with people with movement challenges, and contribute to Silver Lotus teacher training.

Meet Susan →

Janet DeFeo’s lifelong interest in health, wellness, and movement began during her career in the medical field, where she worked as a radiology and ultrasound technician. As a military spouse, she had the opportunity to live and travel throughout the United States and abroad, experiences that helped shape her appreciation for people, community, and the many different paths we take through life.

Throughout those years, horses and horseback riding were also an important part of Janet’s life, offering a sense of balance, connection, and resilience.

After retiring to Delaware, Janet was introduced to Tai Chi when she and a friend walked into a class taught by Silver Lotus founder Susan Hamadock. Although she knew very little about Tai Chi at the time, she quickly felt she had found something special. What began simply as an interest in movement gradually became a much deeper exploration of Tai Chi, Qigong, and the connection between body, breath, and awareness.

Meet Janet →

Deb Hunt discovered Tai Chi when she joined her mother for a class and quickly experienced the sense of calm, focus, and wellbeing the practice could bring. That experience inspired her to explore Tai Chi and Qigong more deeply and eventually to share these practices with others.

A retired Special Education teacher and certified Health Coach, Deb brings a patient, positive, and encouraging approach to her classes. She enjoys helping students of all levels discover greater balance, strength, body awareness, and tranquility through their practice.

Meet Deb →

Marc Andonian, PhD, is an exercise physiologist and gerontologist who has studied and taught Tai Chi and Qigong for more than 25 years. What began as a search for greater balance, ease, and wellbeing developed into a lifelong path of practice, study, and teaching.

Marc brings both his professional knowledge and his extensive experience in Tai Chi and Qigong to his classes. His teaching emphasizes steady, mindful practice and helping students develop greater confidence, balance, and a grounded sense of wellbeing.

Meet Marc →

After more than 25 years of practicing Karate, Pat Bower discovered Tai Chi as a way to continue her lifelong martial arts journey while adapting to the changing needs of her body. She found in Tai Chi a balance of movement, strength, mindfulness, and wellbeing that allowed her to remain active while working comfortably with past injuries and physical limitations.

A certified Silver Lotus instructor, Pat enjoys helping students discover greater balance, flexibility, coordination, and confidence through Tai Chi and Qigong

Meet Pat →

Gary Tompkins is a retired registered nurse who has been practicing Tai Chi since 1987. Through many years of study and practice, he has experienced firsthand how Tai Chi can support coordination, balance, strength, energy, confidence, and an overall sense of wellbeing.

Certified in Tai Chi and Qigong through Silver Lotus and the Tai Chi for Health Institute, Gary enjoys sharing the practice that has been such a meaningful part of his own life and helping others discover what it may offer them.

Meet Gary →

Rosemarie stepped into the world of Tai Chi after relocating to Delaware. What began as an interest in the practice grew into a desire to understand its principles more deeply and eventually led her to teacher training through Silver Lotus Training Institute, here she earned her teaching certification.

She is deeply passionate about health and mobility, having completed Dr. Paul Lam’s internationally recognized Tai Chi for Arthritis and Fall Prevention training.

Meet Rosemarie →

Scott Allen began his Tai Chi journey in 2017 and discovered not only greater strength and calmness, but also a welcoming community of people. As his practice deepened, he found that sharing Tai Chi with others became an important part of that journey.

Certified through Silver Lotus Training Institute and the Tai Chi for Health Institute, Scott enjoys introducing new students to Tai Chi and helping them discover what the practice may offer in their own lives.

Meet Scott →

After retiring from a career of more than 40 years teaching worker safety, Laurie deLaski discovered Tai Chi when she moved to Lewes, Delaware. Through the practice, she experienced greater calm, clearer thought, and a sense of inner peace that inspired her to deepen her studies and share Tai Chi with others.

Certified through Silver Lotus Training Institute and Dr. Paul Lam’s Tai Chi for Health Institute, Laurie brings her many years of experience as an educator to helping others discover the benefits of their own practice.

Meet Laurie →

Joanne Howell is a retired physical therapist and educator whose interest in Tai Chi began while exploring ways to help her patients improve their balance. What began as a professional interest soon developed into a personal practice and a desire to share Tai Chi with others.

Joanne has continued her studies through Silver Lotus Training Institute and Dr. Paul Lam’s Tai Chi for Health Institute and is also an accredited Tai Chi Chih instructor. She enjoys helping students experience mindful movement in ways that are accessible, supportive, and meaningful.

Meet Joanne →

Martrise began practicing Tai Chi and Qigong with Silver Lotus Training Institute after retiring to Delaware in 2005. What began as a personal practice grew into years of study, teacher training, and a passion for sharing these arts with others.

With extensive training in both Tai Chi and Qigong, Martrise is especially dedicated to making the practices accessible to older adults and people with movement disorders and disabilities. She brings many years of experience teaching seated and adaptive Tai Chi in community and senior living settings.

Meet Martrise →

After retiring from a career as a middle school teacher and relocating to the Lewes area, Maryann discovered Tai Chi through classes with Silver Lotus founder Susan Hamadock. She found in Tai Chi for Health a practice that supported health and wellbeing while fitting naturally into her lifestyle.

Certified in the Yang Style 24 Form through Silver Lotus Training Institute, Maryann continues to deepen her practice through Tai Chi and Qigong.

Meet Maryann →

Ellen began her serious study of Tai Chi in Virginia before moving to Delaware, where she continued her training with Silver Lotus Training Institute and became a certified instructor. She also holds certifications in Tai Chi for Arthritis and Fall Prevention and Seated Tai Chi through the Tai Chi for Health Institute.

Today, Ellen shares Tai Chi with beginner and intermediate students in the Ocean View community, bringing years of practice and a lifelong interest in the connection between movement, energy, and wellbeing to her teaching.

Meet Ellen →

Linda Rolla is a fourth-degree Black Belt and Master Instructor in both Tae Kwon Do and Haidong Gumdo, the Korean art of swordsmanship. With more than 15 years of martial arts teaching experience, Linda brings a deep understanding of movement, discipline, and lifelong learning to her practice.

Her Tai Chi journey began more than 20 years ago in Virginia and continued after moving to Delaware, where she trained with Silver Lotus Training Institute and earned her Tai Chi instructor certification.

Meet Linda →

Gretchen Wolfe is a retired first-grade teacher who began Tai Chi as a way to relieve stress and improve her flexibility and balance. Along the way, she discovered something more—a genuine joy in the practice that inspired her to share Tai Chi and Qigong with others.

Certified through Silver Lotus Training Institute and Dr. Paul Lam’s Tai Chi for Health Institute, Gretchen brings her years of experience as an educator and her enthusiasm for the practice to her teaching.

Meet Gretchen →

Marianne Walch, Ph.D., is a longtime Silver Lotus instructor and former Co-Director who has helped develop and lead Institute programs and teacher training for many years. She is also a Master Trainer with the Tai Chi for Health Institute, training and certifying Tai Chi for Health instructors throughout the United States.

Marianne brings extensive experience in Tai Chi, Qigong, and yoga to her teaching, with a particular interest in adapting these practices to support health, stress reduction, recovery, and lifelong wellbeing.

Meet Marianne →