Lady Rhea has been a Wiccan high priestess in the Gardnerian tradition since 1973, and since 1982 runs an occult shop in New York, with Lady Miw (aka Carol Bulzone). In 1992, she opened Magickal Realms (Enchanted Candle Shoppe Inc.) in Greenwich Village, later relocating to The Bronx, where she co-operates the shop with Lady Zoradia. Lady Rhea, who is openly lesbian, supported the Minoan Brotherhood with Lord Gwyddion (aka Edmund Buczynski), and later co-founded the Minoan Sisterhood with Lady Miw. On the Magickal Realms website, Rhea states that she is "of the Gardnerian and Welsh Tradition but considers herself and all of her children as Edwardians from her High Priest and teacher Edmund Buczynski (Lord Gwyddion)." Her children—that is, Wiccans who have studied under her and been initiated into the craft—include Lexa Roséan. Throughout her career, she has mentored and educated New Yorkers on witchcraft and occult practices spanning multiple generations. A permanent fixture in New York culture, Lady Rhea continues to hold an iconic position concerning both magick activism and witchcraft. Early life Born with the name Aurelia Bila, she was reared in the Bronx. Raised in an Italian and Catholic home, her family regularly attended Sunday service. Her interest in witchcraft is said to have started when she first saw Fantasia at five years old. Throughout her childhood, she attended public school until the ninth grade where she transferred to a beauty high school located on the Grand Concourse. Upon entering beauty high school, she found herself shopping in the area at local botanicas. This is where she was initially introduced to Afro-Caribbean beliefs such as Santeria. Santeria is a religion that sprouts from Yoruba beliefs and includes Catholic practices. This compounding of her Catholic background and exposure to Santeria began her journey into the occult. Upon receiving a book from a friend titled The Gypsy Witch Fortune Teller, Lady Reah experienced an awakening that drove her further into training in search of a crystal ball. This search for a crystal ball led to her arrival at the store called Warlock Shoppe, which introduced her to Herman Slater in 1972. Slater would eventually employ Rhea at his store, Magickal Childe, in Manhattan and serve as a mentor. While working, she waited on customers, weighed herbs, and shared knowledge about "The Craft." This location became the epicenter of occult culture and practice in New York. While working at