When Life Changes Course: Purpose, Poetry, and Possibility
Sat Feb 07 2026
🎙️ New Episode: Healthy Living with Yoga Anita
This week, I sit down with Derek Craig, owner of Canvas and founder of the nonprofit Coff33 Corp. Derek is a Leominster native, LHS football alum (Class of 2006), whose journey took him from Central Massachusetts to Texas and into a career in specialty lighting—working on major projects including the African American Museum in Washington, DC.
After a life-altering eye infection that led to near-total vision loss, Derek returned home and transformed adversity into purpose. Through Coff33 Corp, his mission is to cultivate creativity, innovation, and community by creating an inclusive space for artistic expression and collaboration.
We’re also joined by Ascenzio Valeri, a friend of the program—musician, poet, and published author of My Descent Before Ascension. Ascenzio recently recited his poetry on WGBH (PBS), sharing powerful words rooted in resilience and self-expression. 🔗 Learn more about Ascenzio: https://respectedrejectz.com/
This episode is a heartfelt conversation about creativity, community, overcoming challenges, and the healing power of the arts.Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/healthy-living-with-yoga-anita/id946777214
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3svd2Z30ttYt1n25vg8C8h
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@HealthyLivingYogaAnita
or your favorite podcast station
#HealthyLivingWithYogaAnita #PodcastInterview #CommunityHealing #CreativeCommunity #NonprofitSpotlight #Resilience #OvercomingAdversity #ArtAsHealing #LeominsterMA#CentralMass #PoetryAndPurpose #InclusiveSpaces #CreativeExpression
More
🎙️ New Episode: Healthy Living with Yoga Anita This week, I sit down with Derek Craig, owner of Canvas and founder of the nonprofit Coff33 Corp. Derek is a Leominster native, LHS football alum (Class of 2006), whose journey took him from Central Massachusetts to Texas and into a career in specialty lighting—working on major projects including the African American Museum in Washington, DC. After a life-altering eye infection that led to near-total vision loss, Derek returned home and transformed adversity into purpose. Through Coff33 Corp, his mission is to cultivate creativity, innovation, and community by creating an inclusive space for artistic expression and collaboration. We’re also joined by Ascenzio Valeri, a friend of the program—musician, poet, and published author of My Descent Before Ascension. Ascenzio recently recited his poetry on WGBH (PBS), sharing powerful words rooted in resilience and self-expression. 🔗 Learn more about Ascenzio: https://respectedrejectz.com/ This episode is a heartfelt conversation about creativity, community, overcoming challenges, and the healing power of the arts.Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/healthy-living-with-yoga-anita/id946777214 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3svd2Z30ttYt1n25vg8C8h YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@HealthyLivingYogaAnita or your favorite podcast station #HealthyLivingWithYogaAnita #PodcastInterview #CommunityHealing #CreativeCommunity #NonprofitSpotlight #Resilience #OvercomingAdversity #ArtAsHealing #LeominsterMA#CentralMass #PoetryAndPurpose #InclusiveSpaces #CreativeExpression