Helen Bonny as Teacher, Mentor and Supervisor

Abstract

Six individuals who trained with Helen Bonny over the years were asked to reflect on their perceptions of her as as a teacher, a mentor and a supervisor. The experience of these individuals spans the time period of Helen's training, from her first training sessions to her retirement from training. At the Bonny Foundation, they took a three level training; Helen Lindquist Bonny was Director of the Bonny Foundation; Lisa Summer was Director of the GIM Training; Frances Goldberg was Primary Trainer.

We asked each person to address several topics specifically, with some general reflections and memories which the author synthesized into an overview. 

What has emerged from the memories of the seven people contributing to this reflection is a picture of a multifaceted person and her style of teaching, including three outstanding characteristics of Helen. Their valuable insights were in relation to Helen in three roles: teacher in the training seminars, individual supervisor and individual mentor.