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inside & outside
BUILDING OUR COMMUNITY, TOGETHER
Street Yoga Happenings May 2012
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- Letter from Leslie Shipley, Executive Director
- 2012 Teacher Trainings
- Community Events
- Partner Profile
- Gratitude
- Integrated Movement Therapy
- The Trauma Toolkit
- Yoga Service Council! May 18-20 2012
- Street Yoga Gear: Shirts, Totes, & Tea
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Dear Friends, From the first time Street Yoga appeared on my radar, I thought "lucky world". Lucky to have people who will share the joy, healing and wholeness yoga can bring to those who do not likely have access. The democratization of this access to vulnerable children and teens on the margins is important work. Lucky to have people who know they have enough love inside to give it away. Lucky world to have you all in it. I'm Leslie Shipley, the new Executive Director at Street Yoga. I'd love to share a little time with you to introduce myself and talk about gratefulness.  Gratefulness followed me on my first day at Street Yoga when I sat down to a staff meeting. As is custom, this meeting began with a guided meditation. Then, people began to express gratitude and appreciation for each other. Nothing forced, no pressure to say anything... people spoke at random. They told each other about things they noticed in each other that demonstrated care, or professionalism or sensitivity. Before one matter of business went on the table, they took the time to notice and appreciate the gifts in each other and to talk about them.
I'm here at Street Yoga at the most exciting time possible. We are talking about how we respond to the world asking us to be out in it more. The world is calling us to teach and bring yoga service to their part of town. To their part of the world. We're growing and changing. But, one part of us will always be the same. You need only to look to your own heart to know what that is. I'm grateful to each and every one of you who support SY through your volunteerism or financial support. This week, I go to New York to be a part of the first ever Yoga Service Conference at The Omega Institute in Rhinebeck NY. Street Yoga is a founding member of the Yoga Service Council and Mark Lily will be teaching there. I'll be in the company of dozens of teachers and leaders in this growing path of yoga service. It's an exciting time for all of us in this Street Yoga Community. We'll tell you all about what we learned and shared there in the next newsletter.  In closing, I'd like to tell you about a personal moment that comes to mind when I think about gratefulness. It also reminds me that teachers are all around us. When my dog was a puppy, we were walking down NW 23rd on a warm summer night. There was a homeless guy sitting on the sidewalk. He looked very soiled, messy... his expression suggested that he might be slightly altered. He looked at my dog and smiled, made a gesture to "come here". My puppy dashed, pulling the leash out of my hand and ran to him. She commenced to slather his face with kisses wagging so hard her whole body wiggled. He started laughing... and then he also started crying. He hugged her close (which didn't dissuade the face licking!) He looked at me and almost whispered, thank you. I still see his face and think about how unlikely it is that anybody had touched or kissed this man in a long time. I'll never forget his delight. My puppy wasn't afraid of him. He wasn't invisible to her, either. She didn't see his "ugliness" or worry about "catching something". She saw his heart and his invitation and she said yes. Actually, she said whoopie!! You bet!
So, in the wisdom of Street Yoga and Dottie the Border Collie I'd like to say, Whoopie! You bet I'm happy to be here! Lucky world to have Street Yoga. Lucky me to be a part of it. Namaste,  Leslie Ann Shipley |
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Teacher Training
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 FEATURED TRAINING:
JUNE 1-3 2012
In this training, you will receive practical, real world knowledge and techniques for teaching yoga to at-risk youth and other vulnerable populations. You will also be encouraged to dig into your personal experience in order to draw out your own joy, courage, and compassion as a teacher.
UPCOMING TRAININGS
Philadelphia, PA - June 2012
Milwaukee, WI - June 2012
Minneapolis, MN - June 2012
Victoria, BC - July 2012
Portland, OR - July 2012
New York City - August 2012
San Antonio - August 2012
New Haven, CT - Sept 2012
Atlanta, GA - Sept 2012
Trenton, NJ - October 2012
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Events
PORTLAND * * * * *
Tuesday, May 22 * 6pm - 8pm
Energy Tools for Trauma Work: Manage Your Empathic Engagement to Prevent and Release Secondary Traumatization
learn more »
SEATTLE * * * * *
Saturday, June 16 * 10am - 6pm
Caregiver Retreat @ Bainbridge Island with Katie Arrants, Stephanie Toby & Trish Abbate
NATIONAL * * * * *
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Partner Profile
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 WYP focuses on planting the seed of healthy living within each student through integrating our program into the culture of the school and the school community. In addition, WYP host an annual Open Forum in the Spring, which provides an opportunity to have school teachers and/or staff members from each school to join us in the discussion on continuing to create positive experiences for their students'
Please join us for an amazing experience with Street Yoga's Lead Trainer, Katie Arrants.
Katie has trained hundreds of yoga instructors in cities across the nation, providing her students with a rich and challenging learning environment. As a Street Yoga trainer, Katie draws on over 9 years of direct, professional social work and care-giving experience with underserved populations, including homeless, runaway, and foster youth. She also brings over a decade of experience as a trained yoga teacher. |
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Our volunteers report weekly to Street Yoga with class sizes, challenges, successes, and stories.
what if you can't make the choice?
street yoga kids learn to nurture the deepest good within us.
I have noticed that I've a gotten used to the constant undercurrent of whispering students and the NOT silent yoga at my Street Yoga class. But because there's this constant low-grade noise, at moments when they really focus in, the silence is remarkable.
For my classes this month my theme was resolve and resolution. We talked about what those words meant, and during short meditations at beginning and ending of class, I encouraged them to imagine what it would feel like to decide to change one thing about themselves. Not to tell anyone or talk about it, but just to imagine how they would feel if they were able to resolve to make change from the inside. I used the word resolve as the catch-word for paying attention during poses: resolve to hold this pose, resolve to stretch your arm out far, etc. The rather sober silence at the end of class made me feel like at least some of them really were thinking.
Then today our class was about control - how only we can control ourselves, and how we are the only thing we can control. That was a good word to bring into asana, and we did a lot of balancing and other things that require extra control. Then during savasana I told a story (synopsis: Cherokee tells his grandson that 2 wolves are fighting inside him: good wolf and bad wolf. Grandson asks which wolf will win. Answer: the wolf that gets fed wins.)
Then I asked them what the story meant, and we talked about how what you do on the inside, what you feed or control, determines how you are. That it's your choice to be mean or nice, generous or stingy, etc. And one kid says, "what if you can't make the choice?" And I realized that he meant that things happen to him that he can't control, probably bad things, unhappy things. I was so impressed that he felt safe enough to ask the question. Not one kid laughed. I responded that those things are not him, those are the wolves outside and that he needs to continue to feed the good wolf inside himself, no matter what else is happening outside.
It's so hard for some of these kids. Some are just barely getting through in school; some are dirty, smelly; some are so unhealthy; some act out. And I love every one of them. I felt so honored to have the opportunity to maybe affect these kids' lives, even just a little.
Thank you Street Yoga Volunteers. You are what makes this work possible.
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Metta, or Loving-Kindness is a fundamental aspect of yoga service. Just as one gives, the receiving of these blessings is thousand-fold. Street Yoga creates the acceptance of gifts with deep gratitude, and in turn spreads this love to those most in need.
Many thanks to our supporters in Seattle & Denver for the Teacher Training in April 2012
Seattle's Ryther Child Services brings so much support to our Seattle Street Yoga family. Ryther treats behavioral health services for children and their families facing complex challenges.
Seattle Yoga Arts co-sponsored this spring's Seattle Teacher Training. We are blessed to work with deeply compassionate and heart-centered yogis.
Yoga for Young Warriors & Yoga for the People supported Street Yoga in our first training in Denver. We are so blessed to meet people all over the nation, and find the completely unique and powerful ways they are supporting marginalized youth in their community. Thank you!
 Yoga Bhoga & Santosha Yoga in Portland, OR continue to support Street Yoga by donating the income from a weekly class to help fund our youth programming. We are so full of gratitude for this kindness.
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Manage Your Empathetic Engagement
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On May 22nd, Cara will lead a community workshop on this topic with experiential exercises on grounding and separating trauma energy. She has graciously shared this article with us to inform our world-wide community on her very special offering.
Wishing you Peace & Joy in your everyday life!
 Tuesday May 22
Free Community Workshop
6pm - 7:30pm
530 NW 23rd Ave. Portland, OR
Manage Your Empathic Engagement with Trauma Energy to Sustain Your Vitality
By Cara Lee
As a helping professional you use your empathy to connect with your clients, patients or students. When you extend yourself beyond your body to connect with others, you can sense what they are feeling. This empathic engagement is probably the most important tool you use in your work. Maintaining your connections in a sustainable way is necessary for longevity in any helping field, especially if you work with people who have experienced trauma. Trauma Energy and Secondary TraumatizationTrauma energy has an intense quality because it contains all of the emotions that the person experienced and was not able to process at the time. The shock, fear, anger, betrayal and sadness stay in the body until the skills and support become available to release them. These pockets of energy may be active or become active during therapy, conscious movement and bodywork. 
Empathic Engagement SkillsEnergetic skills to manage your empathic engagement include grounding, clearing, holding energetic boundaries and separating energy. Everyone has their own way of sensing and interpreting energy and you can use your awareness to find what works best for you. There is no right or wrong way to do it. Grounding is the most important skill because energy needs a place to go. Like the grounding wire on an electrical outlet, energetic grounding provides a path for discharged energy to get to the earth. As a practitioner you have permission to ground yourself and the room you work in. Grounding yourself allows you to discharge stress and act as a role model for others to ground themselves. Energy takes the path of least resistance and it will flow through the person who is most grounded if their system is open to it. That will likely be you as the helper, so by grounding the room you work in you provide a path for client energy that is outside your body. You will take in less energy and be just as present with people and the energy as it is released. Play around with the room grounding method at the end of this article and be sure to notice other ways that you are grounding yourself and rooms already. Your empathy is critical for the helping work you do and the idea of actively managing your empathic engagement is new for a lot of people. But you can develop your skills and awareness so that your work continues to be effective, fulfilling and personally sustainable. Try This: Grounding the Room
In a room where you are working with a client or group, imagine tree roots or a grounding cord going from the floor down into the earth. This provides a place for intense energy to go and you can set a specific intention if you wish. Imagine the energy flowing into the ground as it is released. Play around with it and try different things until you find what works best for you. Continue Reading... |
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Yoga for Healing: Partnership
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Integrated Movement Therapy® is a holistic therapy approach developed at The Samarya Center by therapists who are also certified yoga teachers. It is an approach for people of all ages, from infancy to adulthood, using yoga's philosophical, physical and spiritual framework in conjunction with conventional neurophysiological perspectives to address the unique challenges of people with special needs.
*Special Discount for Street Yoga Volunteers!
» Email for info: alice@streetyoga.org
Portland Offering:
June 1 - 3: IMT Basics and IMT and Adults Level 1,
Join EB Ferdig via Samarya Yoga Therapy Portland
There are three IMT Level 1 courses, which focus on providing a more in-depth understanding of IMT's holistic framework and its application during assessment and treatment. The framework consists of six core principles:
- Structure and continuity
- Language Stimulation
- Social Interaction
- Self-calming
- Physical Stimulation
- Direct Self-Esteem Building
In IMT and Adults Level 1, participants use experiential activities and exercises to learn how to address the six core areas when working with adults dealing with a variety of challenges and disorders, including chronic pain, depression, stroke, multiple schlerosis, Parkinson's, traumatic brain injury, and anxiety. This workshop involves self-exploration and provides an excellent foundation for people who work with people of any age.
The format of this 13-hour workshops is discussion with lots of experiential learning, including yoga postures and practical activities.
To register, or for more info, please see these links: For more information about the whole IMT training structure, please see the Samarya Center website's IMT Training section
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Portland / Seattle / NYC / San Diego Community:
If your organization can offer continuing education to active volunteers please contact us! Email outreach@streetyoga.org to learn more about supporting this work in the cities where our volunteers bring yoga to marginalized children & teens.
We love our volunteers and want to find ways to show our appreciation. Street Yoga wouldn't exist without them. Thank you!!
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Street Yoga's Recommended Reading
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 THE TRAUMA TOOL KIT
Healing PTSD from the Inside Out
By Susan Pease Banitt, LCSW
In recent years, it has become clearer than ever before that the mind, body and spirit are connected, and that an illness affecting one affects the whole. Because this is a relatively new phenomenon in Western medicine, treatments of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and other stress-related disorders have often been woefully inadequate and poorly understood. The Trauma Tool Kit: Healing PTSD from the Inside Out addresses the physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual needs that arise in healing from traumas of all kinds.
PTSD is a whole body tragedy, an integral human event of enormous proportions with massive repercussions. Susan Pease Banitt, LCSW, wrote this book from the perspective of both healer and healed, in order to finally address the comprehensive needs in healing from PTSD and traumatic stress. Learn more »
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 Our dear supporter and volunteer Chris Calarco shares with us:
In an effort to give back the love that Phish and Yoga have provided me, I am proud to announce that ALL of the proceeds I earn from Phish Yoga wil now be donated to two amazing organizations. If I am partnering with a studio then their share will remain with them. 50% of my proceeds will go to Street Yoga, a non profit that spreads mindfulness and healing through yoga and meditation to youth in need. 50% will go to
The Mockingbird Foundation, a non profit that is run by Phish fans and provides funding for children's music education. Come to class, rage the Phish, rage the yoga and make a difference in kids lives.
Surrender to the Flow
Phish Yoga Tour: NYC / SF / DENVER
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Please send any events to support yoga for healing in your community to |
May 18 :: The Time is Now!
This conference offers a unique opportunity for learning, reflection, collaboration and inspiration. We welcome all those who are interested in using the tools of yoga and mindfulness to help create strong, resilient communities. Social workers, Teachers, Counselors, Health Care Providers and of course Yoga Teachers and Students are all encouraged to attend.
Check out the amazing teachers will be joining us, including Mark Lilly, Seane Corn, Dr. Gabor Mate, Beryl Bender Birch, Kelly McGonigal and 15 other leaders in the field. Plenary sessions will explore how trauma manifests in the body, the science of emotional regulation, what it means to be a compassionate teacher, and the current state of research in our field. Breakout workshops will be lead by the founders of organizations that have been serving specific populations effectively for many years. Choose from sessions on working with veterans, at-risk children, incarcerated populations, teens, or trauma survivors. Dynamic panel discussions will explore topics including starting and funding new program, creating a sense of safety and community in your classes, and addressing challenges in the field. Click here for a full conference A unique offering at the conference will be the Yoga Service Exhibition on Sat. evening, which will feature the work of 35 successful yoga service organizations, who will be on hand to talk with you about their work, answer questions, and discuss opportunities to get involved.
Yog Service Council is offering a $100 DISCOUNT now towards your tuition payment. In order to take advantage of this discount, please call in your registration to Omega (no web registration) and let them know that you would like to use the discount code "YSC."
Register Today » |
WEAR YOUR SUPPORT & TOTE YOUR GEAR!
Made from 50% recycled materials, wear your support on your shoulder. All proceeds go directly to Street Yoga. Price: $20.00. Free Shipping. purchase today »
DRINK STREET YOGA TEA! Street Yoga Tea is a sweet, refreshing hibiscus blend that calms and clarifies. To purchase our tea for you or a loved one, click here »  SPORT A STREET YOGA T-SHIRT OR TANK!
Buy one today (if you want) to help Street Yoga continue bringing yoga and wellness to homeless youth and youth at-risk of homelessness.
We have many colors in many sizes.
Read more on our website, and you can purchase here »
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Thank you all for joining Street Yoga on this journey of spreading compassion in the world. It is truly a blessing to serve Street Yoga as the Communications Manager and observe the impact Street Yoga can truly make. Our potential comes alive as you, our community engages and shares the wisdom of direct experience of yoga.  I want to leave you with a quote from the Tao Te Ching. It is because people say something are beautiful
that the idea of ugliness exists. It is because people say somethings are good
that the idea of evil exists.
Being and non-being come out of each other.
Difficult and easy are part of each other.
Long and short define each other.
High and low determine each other.
Sharp and flat harmonize each other.
Front and back follow each other.
Therefore the Wise One acts without doing,
shows without saying,
accepts without reservation,
receives but doesn't possess,
raises but doesn't own,
guides but doesn't depend,
succeeds but isn't proud.
And for this very reason, he is successful.
Namaste Dear Ones,
~ Alice, Leslie, Jaime, Mark & all of Street Yoga
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Contact Us: www.streetyoga.org 503-232-0362 |
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