i awoke and saw that life was service.
i acted and behold, service was joy.
- Rabindranath Tagore

Phi

Phi has been a practitioner of Buddhism and Recovery principles since 1998.  Her meditation teacher is Venerable Aggasami, a Theravadin (traditional school of Buddhism) monk who studied & trained in Burma under the lineage of Mahasi Sayadaw.  Her experience in Vipassana/Insight/Mindfulness meditation practice has flavored her yoga classes since she started teaching in 2004.  She also studies with Yogi Amrit Desai, founder of Kripalu Yoga Center in Massachusetts & now Amrit Yoga Institute in Florida.  The depth of Yogi Desai’s knowledge & experience of the true teachings of yoga has deepened Phi’s personal practice & has helped Phi to bridge her understanding of yoga & insight meditation even more.  She is a Certififed Destination Method Coach through the Telos Healing Center, empowering her to offer effective tools for immediate relief and healing.  She continues to study with her teachers, including Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh and his Sangha (community).   She has attended retreats with Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh dating back to 2000, and is very much inspired by his teachings on cultivating inner peace for strong, healthy communities.   Phi enjoys experiencing Thich Nhat Hanh’s family retreats with her family. In addition to leading yoga classes/workshops and helping clients in private sessions, she is currently working with Pennington Biomedical Research Center on the  use of mindfulness meditation for the treatment of Body Image Issues as well as writes articles on Mind-Body Health for LANG (Louisiana Army National Guard). In gratitude, Phi bows to all her teachers (yes, her children included!) & to numerous others who have helped her along her path.

Jean

Jean was introduced to Yoga in early 2002, and immediately knew it was going to be an integral part of her life. Recognizing yoga’s power to transform not just the body, but also the mind and spirit, she came to realize that she wanted to deepen her personal practice in order to share the benefits with others. One step on her dharma path was to become a yoga teacher herself. Jean has received formal teacher training in Ashtanga and Integral Yoga styles, and has earned a certified yoga teacher certificate at the 200 hour level from the Integral Yoga Institute, Satchidananda Ashram. Jean is continuing her education by studying Anusara yoga, which focuses on alignment principals, life-affirming philosophy, and supporting a heart-oriented community.  Jean gives thanks and deep gratitude to her many teachers, including students who are often her best teachers.

Christine

Christine recently moved to Baton Rouge from Los Angeles. She has been practicing and teaching yoga for over 15 years, teaching all throughout the United States, Europe & Japan. She has a BFA in dance from Point Park College, an MFA in dance from the University of California, Irvine, & is a Certified Yoga Instructor through the prestigious White Lotus Foundation in Santa Barbara, California. She has taught numerous dancers, fitness experts & celebrities in both New York & Los Angeles.

Alicia

Alicia discovered yoga four years ago in Aspen, CO. Inspired by her loving teachers Tracy Duhe and Faith Lipori, in April 2009 she attended teacher training to deepen her personal practice at Shamhava School of Yoga. Alicia fell in love with the ashram life during her training and returned to participate in the Work Study program. She spent the summer teaching yoga, pranayama and meditation to retreat guests. Complete immersion into the yogic lifestyle has helped her develop a strong spiritual foundation, which consists of a personal yoga and meditation practice. Alicia recently  continued her education with Michele Baker, founder of Swan River Yoga, and participated in her Advanced Teacher Training.

DeeDee

DeeDee has been a practicing yogini for 5 years. After years of practice, teaching friends and church members, she decided to deepen her studies and surrender to the calling to be a Yoga Instructor. In looking for a school, DeeDee yearned for a deeper spiritual journey on her path in Yoga. With that intensely ingrained within her heart, she decided to pursue her studies at the Amrit Yoga Institute in Salt Springs, FL. DeeDee starts her journey of Yoga with a 200 HR Teacher Certification and has conceded with the Universe that this is only the beginning of her journey after being blessed by her teacher Yogi Amrit Desai, founder of the Kripalu Yoga Center in Massachusetts. This beautiful experience has helped DeeDee develop a deeply spirited meditation practice in her personal life which is also incorporated into her classes. With this in her heart, DeeDee aspires to grow daily in order to inspire others on their journey.

Jennifer

Jennifer Richard was raised in Louisiana where she began practicing yoga in 2004. It was during her two years in Israel that she began to experience yoga in a new and completely fulfilling way. She cultivated a close relationship with her yoga teacher, Aviva Grace, and her practice deepened to a spiritual level. She began teaching small groups with Aviva and continued teaching friends and family upon her return to the States. A philosophy student at heart, she works to integrate yoga philosophy into the asana practice to bring awareness to the wholeness of the yogic lifestyle. She will complete her 200-hour teaching certification this year.

Amy

Amy is a certified Hatha Yoga Teacher, a Registered Student Teacher with Yoga Technology, and an Associate Member of the International Kundalini Yoga Teacher’s Association (IKYTA).  Her extensive study of Kundalini Yoga and Meditation, as taught by Yogi Bhajan, began in 1999. Her immersion into this unique form of Yoga includes studying hundreds of kriyas, breathing techniques, meditations, and mantras, as well as the ancient ethical and philosophical teachings. Founding Eight Chakras Yoga in 2004, Amy taught in New Orleans prior to Katrina and several locations in EBR, Ascension and Livingston parishes post-Katrina.  Having survived the tragedy that took her husband’s life and caused permanent injury to her own body in October 2007, Amy has resumed teaching and through the “saving grace” of her yoga practice she is rebuilding her life–body, mind and spirit.

Kate

Kate began her study of yoga with Nancy Clark in 1998.  Since then, she has completed her 200hr certification at Kripalu where she studied under Priti Robin Ross and Jairaj Randall Williams. Kate is currently embarking upon her 500hr certification.  Since her training at Kripalu, she has shifted her focus to reaching special populations including her current work with cancer survivors at The Red Shoes. Kate embraces the healing effects of an environment that cultivates compassion, and supported by a daily practice of gratitude, strives to take life one breath at a time.

Margaret

Margaret has taken yoga classes sporadically since the mid-1970’s, but when she discovered Svaroopa® yoga six years ago, and experienced a remarkable improvement in her back pain, she began a regular practice. And then she discovered the benefits beyond pain relief, an inner peace and a sense of joy, and she wanted to deepen her personal practice. She took a Foundations course in 2007 at Kripalu with the founder of Svaroopa® yoga, Swami Nirmalananda Saraswati, and began teaching that same year. All her training (373 contact hours) has been through Master Yoga Foundation. She is a Registered Hatha Yoga Teacher, through Yoga Alliance, and also an Embodyment® Yoga Therapist. Margaret is a committed Christian and has found that yoga has been ahelpful path to contemplative prayer and meditation.

Jennifer

Jennifer was first introduced to yoga in 2003 seeking help with flexibility and relief from chronic back and neck pain. She gravitated to Svaroopa® yoga because of the disciplined systematic approach that produced dramatic effects in body and mind from the very first session. Seeking to deepen her practice, Jennifer took the first step on her journey to become a yoga teacher in April 2007, taking a Foundations course at Kripalu with the founder of Svaroopa® yoga, Swami Nirmalananda Saraswati. She has since gone on to become a Certified Svaroopa® yoga Teacher and Yoga Therapist. Along the way, Jennifer discovered the power of yoga to work on all levels simultaneously physical, mental and spiritual, transforming not only your body and mind but also your life. Jennifer has been privileged to work assisting Nirmalananda at the 2009 Midwest Yoga conference and more recently as an Assistant Teacher Trainer for Master Yoga Foundation in Malvern, PA.  She gratefully acknowledges the teachers at MYF and thanks them for their dedication, patience and compassion.

Tamyra

Tamyra is a professional speaker, licensed professional counselor in private practice and educator in the field of conscious parenting .  She earned a masters in Counseling and a Ph.D in Philosophy. Her interest in building healthier families led to the development of The Enlightened Parents Network and the creation of her book How To Raise Happy, Loving, Emotionally Intelligent Kids. Her life work braids cutting edged distinctions with age-old principles to create conscious, optimal life choices. She has been a yoga and meditation practitioner for over 30 years. Her intention in offering meditation on Sundays is to unite like minded individuals and create a Sangha for personal as well as global growth and connectivity.

Master Thomas Zhuang

 Grand Master Yajun Thomas  Zhuang is one of China’s top Wushu artists. In China, Master Zhuang began full-time Wushu (Chinese Martial arts) training at the age of eight when he was selected from thousands of children  to attend the Jiangsu Wushu Institute. At age 17 he continued his study of Wushu culture at Nanjing Normal University and subsequently he joined the faculty at Nanjing Industrial University. In 1996, Master Zhuang became a Professor at Nanjing Industrial University and served as a member of the Chinese Physical Education Committee as well as a board member of the Wushu Professional Committee. He is a well-respected senior National Judge of the Chinese Wushu Federation, and was appointed the chief judge for international and national Wushu tournaments.