About Kirsten Kristensen

Kirsten Kristensen, Tea Coach and Certified Tea Specialist, offers educational and entertaining programs on tea. The subjects include a variety of tea related themes such as
- the history of tea,
- health benefits of tea,
- tea traditions and cultures,
- tasting of teas from around the world, and
- tea events for children and adults, including
- Bridal Teas, Baby Showers, Birthday Parties and Girl Scout Teas.

Kirsten is certified at the highest professional level by and a member of STI, the Specialty Tea Institute of Tea USA, (Level 1, 2, 3, and 4) and has spent several years living in China and Denmark. She has an Associate Degree from Brookdale Community College in Lincroft, NJ, and a B.A. in Psychology from Thomas Edison College, NJ with special studies in health and science of nutrition. In June 2009 and October 2011 she attended the Taiwan Oolong Study Tour, sponsored by the Taiwan Tea Manufacturers Association and learned hands-on how to manufacture several kinds of oolong tea.

She has had a number of articles on tea published in professional tea magazines, such as Tea A Magazine. She is the owner and editor of the educational publication "The World of Tea". She has developed a variety of Girl Scout Tea programs and have had had more than 400 Girl Scouts attend her educational teas.

While serving as 1st Vice President on the board of the Brookdale Community College Alumni Association (2003-2008), she initiated and successfully completed the two-year College Project (2006-2008) together with the honor society Alpha Pi Theta, "Knowledge is Power - Three Cups of Tea." The purpose of the project was to promote awareness of the situation in the Karakoram region of Pakistan/Afghanistan and to raise $35,000 to humanitarian, Nobel Peace Prize nominee, and author of NY bestseller "Three Cups of Tea",  Greg Mortenson of Central Asia Institute to build a school in the Baltic area of Northern Pakistan in the name of Brookdale. The fundraising part was completed in June 2008 and the school was named the Brig Agha School, Qurmara.

Kirsten graduated with honors from Brookdale in 2005 with an Outstanding Student Award in Social Science. She was President of the Honor society Alpha Pi Theta of Phi Theta Kappa (PTK), the international honor society for two-year colleges from 2002-2003, and is a co-founder of Brookdale's chapter of Psi Beta, international honor society for psychology. She was bestowed with the International Distinguished President Award from PTK and has received several other significant awards.

She is a published author of "When Penelope travels along" (published in Denmark in 1998, Når Penelope rejser med), a practical book about expatriation, cultural adjustment and assimilation. She has a 20-year background in human resource and personal development as an Executive Assistant, Personnel Manager, Human Resource Manager, professional Business Coach and Management Consultant. As a Danish citizen she was born and lived in Denmark until 1998 when the family settled in the U.S, except for 3 years expatriation in Hong Kong from 1991-1994. She is married on her 23rd year to Per, and together they have two daughters, Maj Kristina (21) and Lin Pernille (19).

Kirsten is a professional business networker and an active member of Shore Women's Business Network and is the current president of the Mid-Atlantic Tea Business Association. She has served as Service Unit Manager of the Ocean/West Long Branch Service Unit of Girl Scouts of the Jersey Shore and has been a Girl Scout Leader for a decade.

In 2005 Kirsten founded and owns the business Tea 4 U, LLC, which carries a selection of quality loose teas - specialized in flavored green and organic teas. Teas and accessories are sold online and at special events. In 2011 Kirsten and her husband Per acquired a 150-year old house, which they have restored into The White House in Oakhurst on 45 Monmouth Road and recently opened for tea events and a tea shop.