Our Founder's Story

One Spirit co-founders Diane Berke and Michael Pergola first met at the University of Pennsylvania in the summer of 1972. Diane knocked on Michael’s door as he was moving into his dorm room, beginning a conversation about the meaning and purpose of life that has continued to this day.

Over the course of a conversation that has lasted decades, Diane and Michael came to realize that the wisdom accumulated by the wisest sages and saints has often been misused as a source of separation and hatred. They both agreed that there is a wisdom that: Shortly after 9/11 Diane and Michael realized that it was time to put these aspirations into practice. Circumstances provided the opportunity for their friendship, based on years of mutual support and deep conversation, to evolve a new form. That form became the One Spirit Learning Alliance, a container where all those involved have the opportunity for deep spiritual friendship, personal evolution, and selfless service.