An artist at the LAMP Art Program and recent graduate of Street Yoga's LA Trauma-Informed Yoga Training program, prepares to teach his first yoga class. Photo credit to LAMP Community.
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Dear friend,
School is out for summer and so is our weekly yoga class at Madrona Elementary. Our volunteer teacher, Tara Neilson, shared some of the notes and letters she and her students exchanged on their last class of the school year. We loved them so much that now we are sharing them with all of you.
Excerpt from Tara's letter to the students at Madrona Elementary:
...What you guys don't realize is that you have taught me more than I could ever teach you. Leading this class has taught me about myself and my future. Our individual encounters before and after class are what truly brightens my day. Whether it is someone apologizing for disruptive behavior the week before, or someone asking me if I am married yet (and the answer is still no), I love the time I have to get to know you better as individuals. Each one of you has taught me the power of patience, compassion, and positivity.
My wish for you all moving forward is that you can continue with yoga in some way. Maybe you start doing postures and stretches on your own, or maybe you do some breathing exercises in the morning. Whatever you take away from this experience, I hope you have found it as meaningful as I have. Again, I am truly grateful for the opportunity to come and share what I love with all of you.
I hope you can always find a way to use the wind of life to become a better tree. The light in me truly honors and respects each and every one of you.
Namaste,
Miss Tara
The students write :
Relationships like this are what Street Yoga's all about. Yoga is both a tool for healing and an avenue for making meaningful connections. Thanks for being apart of it!
Gratitude! Everyone at Street Yoga |
| JUNE 2015 STUDIO OF THE MONTH |
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Kula Movement is Street Yoga's June Studio of the Month. On Saturday, June 13th at 2PM they are hosting a acro/partner yoga class donation-based class benefiting Street Yoga. No partner or experience necessary! The class is 60 minutes, led by Angela DiMario and Jill Baumgardner.
Kula Movement is located at 5340 Ballard Ave NW on the old historic street of Ballard. Parking is free or metered nearby-- please give yourself extra time to find parking and fill out the 1-page new student waiver.
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TARA NIELSON at MADRONA ELEMENTARY
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Why do you volunteer for Street Yoga?
I teach to give back to my community in the most constructive way I know how. Yoga has been my saving grace through life's many transitions, and I love being able to share that meditative experience with others who are experiencing change, transition, or hard times.
Do you have a favorite yoga pose to teach to kids?
Wind and tree game! In the game, half or the majority of students practice tree pose (balancing on one foot) and one or more students pretend to be 'wind' and run around the students holding tree pose, trying to distract them and get them to fall over. It's a great game for encouraging kids to focus in a chaotic environment-- also, it's just fun!
Share with us a favorite quote:
"Yoga is not about touching your toes. It's about what you discover on your way down."
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STREET YOGA IN THE NEWS
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| THE WEST COAST TRAUMA PROJECT |
Street Yoga's founder, Mark Lilly was interviewed by the West Coast Trauma Project of their Trauma Therapist Podcost (Episode 81). Click here to listen to the podcast and for links to the resources mentioned in the podcast. Mark's advice: - Trauma is important... but focusing on trauma exclusively is like focusing only on the dark side of the moon.
- Always look for the resilience and the strengths first.
- Really understand the power and completeness of each amazing breath.
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| INSTITUTE FOR CHILDREN POVERTY & HOMELESSNESS |
Street Yoga was featured in the article " The Peace Within" in the Institute of Children, Poverty and Homelessness's 6.1 issue of Uncensored, their in-house publication.
"The main goal at Street Yoga is to provide classes that are predictable, safe, and fun. Toby explains, 'Predictability allows youth to know what to expect from our classes, which creates trust and supports the re-regulation of their nervous systems. In other words, it's easier for them to not immediately go into 'fight or flight' mode when faced with a stressor, or easier for them to transition from that mode to a calmer state. Safe classes allow all youth to feel successful and build resilience. Fun classes increase the likelihood that yoga will be an enjoyable experience and that youth will want to continue to participate.'"
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| YogaLOVE 2015 is only 2 weeks away! |
JUNE 27, 2015. 200 YOGIS. $15,000.
YogaLOVE is Street Yoga's biggest community event of the year. Join us for the practice of 108 Sun Salutes led by nine great Seattle yoga teachers. Register here to save your spot! Only $25 to participate. More info on our website.
This year we have an incredible set of wellness prize baskets for our raffle. There are prizes for the highest fundraiser AND everyone who raises/donates $108+ is entered into our wellness prize basket raffle. We've created a step-by-step guide to make fundraising easy.
We've got a fantastic teacher line-up for this year's event. Here's a sneak peak of two of the nine phenomenal teachers you'll meet at YogaLOVE 2015:
Casey Peterson Director of Yoga, Urban Yoga Spa
After a lifetime of "going hard" in competitive sports, yoga has given Casey the chance to find a softer side.
"In sports, especially in college, we pushed ourselves extremely hard. We trained and pushed our physical bodies to do really powerful things but it was all physical and there wasn't too much mindfulness or care. Finding yoga and being encouraged to turn inwards WHILE being physical helped me learn and change some of my habits and patterns."
Casey began practicing yoga in 2001 at her community college and gyms. In 2009, Casey chose CorePower Yoga in Huntington Beach, CA for her first teacher training because she loved the creativity and freedom of the flow and how different every class and teacher was.
"Being in class was like a time warp. It never felt like 60 or 90 minutes. Time would fly by no matter how challenging it was. I was able flow and breathe and laugh and feel things that I had never felt because I wasn't competing. It was just me and it didn't matter if I was the best or that I couldn't do everything."
"The most important thing that I believe is that I am a forever student. My life is better when I am taking yoga. I love yoga in that way that surfers can't stay out of the ocean and how snowboarders get sad in the summer. I am passionate about it. I have opinions regarding this practice and I want to share them and explore them and that is what fuels my teaching. I will never stop learning."
Allison Barnes Owner, SOL Yoga
Allison came to yoga after years of feeling quite certain it was not for her. Quite certain. Born and raised in Colorado, she moved to Seattle from Boulder on a whim in 2003 craving new experiences. With a background in athletics, personal training and a B.A. in health and rehabilitation, she became bored with the traditional gym model and discovered Power Vinyasa here in Seattle. The intense physicality of this style of yoga, coupled with the focus on proper breathing and an awareness of being mentally present in each moment was beyond intriguing and rewarding for her. It became her passion and her new path, which quickly led to teacher training and opening SOL Yoga to share her love of yoga with a larger community. Allison strives to impart this same experience into every individual in every class. She believes yoga is an opportunity to challenge one's self, accepting failure as part of the process, breathing before reacting and finding the mental calm amid chaos-something Allison encourages her students to practice both on and off the mat (a skill set she practices in her own life as the mother of two young girls). Oh, and most importantly, she believes yoga is supposed to be fun! Allison's teaching pulls strongly from the structure of Baptiste Power Vinyasa Yoga but interjects dynamic flowing sequences in a safe, fun and varied fashion. Her style is athletic and challenging for all levels and music is always an integral part of her classes and the overall experience. Pulling out her inner D.J. to pair the music with the energy of a class adds to the sensory experience in a unique and transformative way.
In addition to teaching Power Vinyasa, she teaches her ever-popular YogaHIIT class as a compliment to a traditional yoga practice. Out and about you'll find Allison is not only passionate about SOL Yoga, but the Seattle yoga community as well. As a Lululemon Ambassador you'll find her attending or leading local events, partnering with local studios on fun endeavors, or perhaps enjoying a summer yoga festival too. (If Michael Franti is performing you'll definitely know where to find her - front row!). When Allison is not teaching or practicing yoga, she is discovering new music, and forever practicing in her heart with her two girls and German shepherd.
Giant thank you to this year's presenting sponsors:
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TRAINING CALENDAR
At our trainings: Learn how to integrate yoga and mindfulness into your work with young people facing adversity. You will leave with tools to modify and adapt your teaching skills to better serve your target population.
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SEATTLE YOGA NEWS is a weekly digital publication with informative, educational and inspirational content curated for the yoga community in the Seattle area.
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YOGA TEACHER CENTRAL donates 5% of proceeds to Street Yoga. Get instant access to expert teachings from diverse styles. Anatomy, Asana, Bandhas, Injuries, Mantras, Meditation, Music, Philosophy, Poetry, Pranayama, Sequencing, Themes. www.yogateachercentral.com.
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THE SAMARYA CENTER offers $100 off their Integrated Movement Therapy (IMT) trainings to all active Street Yoga teachers! Read about IMT here.
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CONNECT WITH STREET YOGA
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Jessica Osberg
Executive Director
jessicaosberg@streetyoga.org
Misha Bell
Director of Operations
mishabell@streetyoga.org
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Street Yoga is a nationally recognized non-profit organization that teaches yoga, mindfulness and compassionate communication to youth and families struggling with homelessness, poverty, abuse, addiction, trauma, and behavioral challenges, so that they can grow stronger, heal from past traumas, and create for themselves lives that are inspired, safe, and joyful. Street Yoga started in Portland, OR in 2002 and now holds weekly classes at over 25 sites. Learn more at www.streetyoga.org.
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