Background

Army veteran Manny Alfinez worked his way up from a Surterra delivery driver in 2018 to an assistant manager opening a new location in Fort Walton Beach within 10 months. He went on to work as a Cannabis Advisor and Practice Manager for Kaya Life Cannabis Clinicians as well as a Field Services Engineer for Surterra Wellness, and founded The Blunt Joint to provide educational services that benefit the general public. Manny has been featured as frequent co-host in MarijuanaAware events since 2023.

“Though I love the dispensary side of the industry, I felt it necessary to gain clinical experience. So I decided to take a job with The Kaya Life Cannabis Clinicians as a Cannabis Advisor/Practice Manager in 2021. The key to this change is that I was no longer held back by dispensary retail liabilities, meaning I could now be more specific in advising patients. In doing so, I began learning from others’ experiences along with my own in more detail, a true blue case study at the user level (not peer-reviewed). This allowed me to assist others in finding specific products for specific results, saving hundreds of dollars.

​I believe that due to the nature of cannabis and how it may affect individuals differently, there is a need for advising/coaching for those who find little assistance in the general consultations being provided in the market today.”

​Qualifications

• Interpener or Cannabis Sommelier (Certified)
• Cannabis Consultant (Certified)
• Cannabis Products & Sales Training (Certified) by the Trichome Institute and Medical Cannabis Wellness Advisor
• Cannabis Fundamentals Certificate with GreenFlower
• Cannabis Handler Certificate with GreenFlower
• Dispensary Associate Certificate with GreenFlower

The Blunt Joint

The Blunt Joint provides educational services that benefit the general public. Simply put, we facilitate discussions to better inform persons on how the Florida Office of Medical Marijuana Use (OMMU) & Medical Marijuana Use Registry (MMUR) operate, how to find & navigate state/federal regulations, the use of Cannabis at the individual level as well as community events & discussions. Visit StayLifted.life to learn more, or email Manny at staylifted@thebluntjoint.life.