Michaela O'Connor Bono

Reverend Michaela O'Connor Bono is a Zen Buddhist priest, meditation teacher, and the leader of Mid City Zen, a sangha in New Orleans, LA. She trained at San Francisco Zen Center's locations Tassajara Zen Mountain Center and Green Gulch Farm, and her teacher is Ryushin Paul Haller. She is a restorative justice practitioner who created Louisiana's first restorative program for youth as an alternative to the legal system. She also teaches meditation in prisons in Louisiana. She believes everyone has a mystic heart and she loves sharing the practice of meditation, especially with those who think they are bad at it. She currently works at a criminal legal reform organization focusing on bail and prosecution reform.