"I had been a Buddhist for just a few years and found myself seated next to His Holiness at a dinner in California. His sister, Her Eminence Jetsun Kusho Chimey Luding, was seated across from us. I was thrilled that he could speak English and asked him many questions, which he graciously answered. But, the one I remember most was the answer he gave when I asked what happens after the 1000 Buddhas of this eon have appeared. Without a moment of hesitation, His Holiness answered, 'Oh, there are a 1000 more and 1000 more after that. There are sentient buddhas without end.' His characteristic good humor erupted spontaneously in a ripple of laughter and I sat, stunned, realizing I was in for a long haul. In the years that have followed, when I've been frustrated or discouraged, I think of the commitment His Holiness and other great bodhisattvas have made to relieve the suffering of sentient beings. It gives me courage and strength to continue whatever small part I have in this same undertaking. I know I'm in the very best of company."

Ani Gilda took her refuge vows in the Shampa Kagyu tradition, was trained and ordained in the Palyul Nyingma lineage, and, in the late '80's, after returning to Portland, reconnected with the Sakya Trizin and Jetsun Kusho.

It was through her professional career as a nurse, while working with critically ill and injured patients, that Ani Gilda noticed certain patterns of the dying process. In her search to understand what was happening, she explored many religious and shaministic paths, finding explanations in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition.

She has a book in process, giving useful and humorous anecdotes of her own experiences dealing with breast cancer. As a survivor, she brings an authenticity to the work she continues to do with chronically ill and dying people. "I told my children," she says, "if I should die of breast cancer, don't write in my obituary that I died after a long or heroic battle with cancer. I never saw cancer as an adversary. Quite the contrary. I learned a lot about myself, about the quality of life, about making choices and about assuming the responsibility for those choices."

Ani Gilda has three adult children and four grandsons. She has a wide range of interests and volunteer activities.