Merlin

Eric Reynolds, known as Merlin, was born in London at the beginning of World War II. His family left London during the Battle of Britain in 1940 and relocated to Wiltshire out of the range of the bombing. His older brother Charles had already been evacuated with his school. His brother later joined the Royal Navy, becoming a pilot officer in the Royal Naval Fleet Air Arm. The Reynolds family, like many displaced people in Britain at the time, cast around for suitable living quarters. The Fairies and the Goddess smiled on them when they found Cowage Cottage, Whetham near Calne, Wiltshire. It was one of two stone dependency cottages on the Manykryle Estate. Located down a field track and across several fields the family was far removed form the road, and the rest of the world. it was an ideal place for a boy to wander the woods and meet his spirit guide. Since his mother and sisters had been active in the Spiritualist Church in London, there was no one who would tell time not to trust his magical experiences. Merlin also was guided by Old Henry, a poacher who taught him the way of the woods.

Merlin was educated in Calne about 40 miles from Stonehenge at Fintraugh, Miss Stone's Dame School for the upper class, although his father Charles Reynolds ran a trucking business which was contracted to the war effort. Merlin then attended a public church school followed by Bentley Grammar School. Upon completion of the British equivalent of his secondary education he moved to the US to join his parent and other family in the 1950's and landed in Rochester NY near the sacred sites of Hiawatha which had gripped his imagination early in life. at the urging of his mother Edith Reynolds, Merlin attended John Marshall High School for a year and a half to become acclimated. There he struggled with American History, quite a different story than the one known in Europe, and excelled in soccer as a Democrat & Chronicle All Star.

Merlin has walked the woods with Queen Mab both here and in Britain for all his memory. He learned auto mechanics and carpentry from his father who had been trained by Rolls Royce, trained as an Army Operating Room technician at Brooke Army Hospital Base in San Antonio Texas during the Viet Nam era. He spent a year in Fort Hood, Texas giving direct assistance to surgeons Dr. Donovan, ophthalmologist; Dr. H, general surgery; and Dr. ?, general surgeon. Merlin was then assigned to Tripler Army Hospital in Honolulu, Hawaii. he spent a total of four years in Hawaii where he received his B.A. in Zoology from University of Hawaii in the 60's. His elder son Ric was born in Hawaii. Upon his return to upstate New York, he completed NYS teacher certification, pursuing graduate studies at SUNY Oswego & SUNY Geneseo. His younger son Keith was born in Red Creek NY.

Merlin is cofounder and priest of The Web PATH Center, Inc., a member of the Web Council of Trustees, and key developer of the current Web physical plant at his home on Galen Road. A healer, teacher, problem solver and all around magic man, Merlin has led ritual and teaching seminars with Anemone, his partner, since the Web founding in 1994.

His career experience includes being Head Start Director for six years in Sodus NY in association with the Sodus Central School District, working for the NYS Division Human Rights as a human rights specialist investigating complaints of discrimination based on race, creed, color, sex, disability, age, national origin, marital status and arrest or conviction record in the areas of housing, employment and public accommodation in the Syracuse Regional Office, representing the Public Employees Federation as chair of the Division of Human Rights State Labor Management Meetings with the Commissioners of Human Rights and their designees from 1984-1987.

In 1987 he joined the NYS Department of Health as a Civil Rights Compliance Officer for OHSM Rochester, conducted Patient Care Investigations & Long Term Care surveys. He is a federally certified surveyor. He joined the Office of Public Health as a health care administrator for the WIC programs for 13 different counties and directed the activities of two staff members. He was appointed by the Commission of Health to serve on the Affirmative Action Committee for the agency from 1996 to 2003.

Merlin retired in April 2003 to work on his farm in Clyde NY and continue his spiritual evolution with the Web. He continues his connection with the Department of Health by serving as an Advocate on the NYS WIC Association, Inc where he serves on the Board of Directors and the Fiscal Committee, Policy and By-Laws Committee and Consumers Committee. He welcomes you to his own sacred space where he still performs car magic as a mechanic, and works with the farm's bio-diesel reactor. He maintains a goal of establishing wind powered electricity and solar power for the physical plant. As a member of the Northeast Organic Farmers Association (NOFA) he looks forward to reclaiming the organic produce grown in the Doric Farm garden a few years ago.