Shalina Nicohl Rankin is an herbalist, reflexologist, natural health advocate, and the Founder of Fiery Maple Wholistic Healing, Inc.—a holistic herbal medicine practice that serves the Ypsilanti and Ann Arbor areas. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Sports Management and Communications from the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor and an Herbal Medicine Certificate from the Ann Arbor Habitat Reskill Center. Impressively, she also completed an Herbal Medicine Apprenticeship at the Scottish School of Herbal Medicine. Originally from Washtenaw County, Shalina has lived in Orange County, California; Chicago, Illinois; and Arran, Scotland before returning back to Michigan. She hopes to be buried in either Scotland (the Fatherland), West Africa (the Motherland), or Michigan (the newest homeland). She comes from a long line of activists and healers who used natural remedies to treat sickness. She is a descendent of the famous midwife Lenora Knapper Williams, as well as several Ohio-based abolitionists including Reverend John Rankin, who was one of the conductors of the Underground Railroad. Her grandma, Esther C. Hooks, instilled in her the importance of growing food and living off of the land, later inspiring her to become an herbalist and harness nature as a form of medicine. She grows vegetables at her home; flowers, herbs, berries, and food at her parents’ home in Ford Lake Heights; and wild flowers for pollinators along downtown Ypsilanti. Shalina’s two favorite things are to spend time outside appreciating nature, and to spend time inside reading. Another fun fact about Shalina is that she was an avid athlete when she was younger, as a classically trained ballet dancer (Cecchetti Method), four-time Women’s Track and Field letter winner at the University of Michigan, and finisher of several triathlons and 5ks. This background has in part contributed to her present-day discipline. She is currently working towards her next goal of becoming a Naturopathic Doctor at The Naturopathic Institute of Therapies and Education.
