A significant personal experience set the path for founder and principle formulator Shannon Schroter during his college years when two of his sisters died from cancer in their 20's. This initiated a strong desire to try and understand the essentials of healing. Thus began years of intense study of the Traditional Chinese, Ayurvedic, Tibetan and western herbal medicine systems, which included the great good fortune of studying with extraordinary teachers and masters, all guiding the way towards a more comprehensive understanding of true holistic principles.
Shannon created his first apothecary and healing recipes in Northern California around 1982. His first herbal company was Middle Path Herbals, founded in 1984 in Seattle and offering a wide variety of medicinal herbal preparations. In 1998, Grateful Body was created; an inspiring adventure based on the wish to create vital formulas that could genuinely support the skin and body. Grateful Body was a long standing creator of fresh, organic, botanical products before there was a 'green' movement. Shannon chose the name Grateful Body to indicate his desire to be more grateful for the body we are given and for life all around us. Grateful Body will always hold a firm commitment to the health of people and the environment.
Grateful Body moved to northern Virginia in 2022 looking for land in the country so we could grow more of the plant medicines that we use in our formulas. We found the perfect spot in Castleton, VA; a beautiful slice of heaven nestled between the forests of the Blue Ridge Mountains and the fertile uplands of the Piedmont. The soil is great, the air is delightfully fresh, the water is pristine and we loved the opportunity to start our new gardens and build the new kitchen/lab.
Our designer, Mary has chosen the graceful and elegant Cliff Swallow - that delightful feathered friend darting among the rocks as the sun sets - to express the fresh and confident feeling of our business. And in such a beautiful and fun way, she has visually captured the dynamic botanical abundance of each Grateful Body product.
