In Memoriam

Toby Weiss

1944 - 2017

       Although Toby majored in English literature at Williams College, he turned to psychology and philosophy in graduate school. Subsequently, he obtained a Fulbright fellowship with Professor Viktor Frankl in Vienna, where Toby assisted in the translation of Frankl’s The Unconscious God.

        Toby was married in 1967 and his daughter Rebecca was born in 1969.  He received a Ph.D. in the History of Consciousness (psychology) from the University of California at Santa Cruz and though Toby spent a few years in academic life, he found traveling the world far more exciting. Eventually, he created a travel company, Power Places Tours, which brought thousands of visitors to Egypt, India, Peru, and other countries over many years. Toby was remarried in 1982 to Teri Dominguez, who became his partner in the business.

       A highlight of Power Places Tours was the 1996 international conference in New Delhi with the Dalai Lama, who Toby and Teri had met privately at his home in India in 1980. The business was featured or mentioned in many media outlets and in 2006 National Geographic’s Traveler Magazine called Power Places Tours “the granddaddy of Spiritual Tours.”  Power Places Tours operated in many countries all over the world -- Egypt, Peru, Brazil, Israel, India, Tibet, China, Nepal, Australia, France, Germany, Spain, Greece, Turkey, Holland, Switzerland, Italy, Malta, Ireland, England, Mexico, Argentina, Morocco, Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Kenya, Singapore, Bolivia, Jordan, and the USA.

       Toby loved swimming in the warm ocean waters off St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands and renovated a home on the beach, planting numerous palm trees to create a beautiful property. He passed away at his St. Croix home on July 22, 2017, survived by his wife Teri, daughter Rebecca Dieringer, and brothers Ron and John.

Teri with His Holiness the Dalai Lama at his home in Dharmsala, India, 1980.