www.mettacommunityyoga.com

Staff
	Lindsey VerStraeten, CYT Lindsey is a co-owner of Metta Community Yoga Center. She first began practicing yoga in 2001. Inspired by the sense of balance and clarity the practice brought her, she completed her Yoga Teacher Training with Kat Meyers, Jeff Martens and Michelle Dante at Inner Vision Yoga. Lindsey has worked in the nonprofit community since 1998 at Make A Difference and is currently the Director of Special Initiatives there. Through Make A Difference, she has had the opportunity to learn about the strengths of this community while exploring a wide array of social issues and ways to create positive change. She is responsible for the Make A Difference AmeriCorps program – a group of 20 individuals that serve the community for a full year in over 15 different nonprofits. Lindsey is committed to making yoga accessible to others and bringing compassion, encouragement and positive energy to the Metta community. She is excited to bring her passion for yoga, and all of its amazing benefits, together with her commitment to building community.
	Rhonda Oliver Rhonda is a co-owner of Metta Community Yoga Center. Bio coming soon...
	Melissa Bialczak Melissa found yoga in 1998 after spending several years searching for a way to heal her severe back pain. Yoga was the therapy that she needed to be pain free and she's been dedicated to her practice ever since that time. She became a certified yoga instructor in 2005 so that she could share the power of the body and mind to heal one another. Melissa emphasizes building strength, developing balance, and releasing deep tension in her teaching to encourage a healthy body and peaceful mind. Melissa also works for a language translation and teaching company which reflects her love for cultural studies, languages, and travel.
	Sonja Bochart, RYT Sonja, an Arizona native, has always been drawn to healing, the arts, and the environment. Yoga is the color thread that has offered her beautiful insight to her interests and greater meaning in life. Sonja is focused on the mind-body-spirit connection, and the great potential of yoga to calm our minds, empower our immune system, and connect us with our true essence. Her personal practice was deepened through YA 200 teacher training with Kat Meyers & Jeff Martens, and she is currently pursuing her 500 hour master level teaching certification. Sonja's teaching style focuses on cultivating self-awareness utilizing each student’s unique experience during asana practice as the vehicle for self-exploration. Sonja is also an interior architect focusing on sustainable and life-enhancing projects in our community.
	Hannah Conry, Nia
	Francesca Fragomeni, CYT My yoga journey began in 1999 when I embarked on my own personal practice toward clarity and healing. Since then, yoga has been an integral part of my life mentally and physically and has evolved into a rewarding spiritual practice that guides me through life's mountains, peaks, and valleys. In the Fall of 2005 I had the great opportunity to complete my 200-hr yoga teacher training under Kat Myers and Jeff Martens at Inner Vision Yoga in Chandler. My passion as a teacher is to guide students in a yin yoga practice with a relaxing and meditative focus. As a clinical social worker and psychotherapist, I have become interested in exploring yogs's many healing benefits and applying these to the mental health field in which I work. My yoga journey has changed my life in many ways, and I look forward to continuing to bring its healing power to others as a yoga teacher.
	Sarah Grace, Nia Bio coming soon...

	Cathy Genzler, RYT Cathy integrates teachings of the classical, ancient yogis with contemporary insight and music to offer students a dynamic and unique experience with each class that she teaches. Cathy is fascinated with the human body; her understanding of anatomy, physiology and biology is derived from her formal, ongoing studies. Honoring the earliest interpretations of the science of yoga, Cathy encourages her students to be mindful that the physical practice of yoga (asana) is meant to bring the body to place where the mind will finally become quiet, allowing the essential nature of the person to be revealed. Cathy’s classes are planned with this in mind, regardless of the level of physical movement. Cathy has studied nationally with a variety of teachers including Shiva Rea and Max Strom, although her greatest inspiration comes from her students. Join her for an uplifting and dynamic yoga experience!
	Kahlea, Bellydance Bio coming soon...
	Carrie Klein, CYT/RYT In 1998, Carrie began practicing yoga and was instantly smitten. In 2003, she became a certified yoga instructor, teaching all levels of classes, including pre-and post-natal yoga. In 2006, pregnancy brought a new dimension to Carrie’s personal practice and her teaching, giving her a greater appreciation of the power of yoga in all aspects of life, and especially that of pregnant mothers. Carrie loves connecting with pregnant and new moms through yoga and the collaboration involved in helping them integrate yoga into their path of motherhood. She derives great joy from her family, friends and colleagues and from pursuing her interests, which include reading, surfing and, of course, her yoga practice.
	Zuzana Kolinkova, CYT I was introduced to Yoga very early in life by grandmother, who was a Yoga enthusiast and advocate in Czech Republic. It is gratifying to recall visits to her studio where she was teaching the same postures that I perform and teach today. The art has been passed down within my family, and I have now become the enthusiastic practitioner. Over the years my yoga journey has taken me to many parts of the world in the role of both student and teacher. In addition to my professional career in international trade and my continuous pursuits of foreign languages, a fundamental part of my life is Yoga. I am passionate about the practice of Yoga and I love sharing it with my students, helping to guide them on their own personal yoga journey.
	Kat Myers, RYT 500/Certified Yamuna Body Rolling Practitioner Kat is a dedicated, devoted and ever-evolving student of yoga and life. She has been teaching since 1989 and teaching teachers since 1996. Kat uniquely blends anatomy, alignment and body rolling into a healing, contemplative and radically dynamic approach to fitness and well-being. Kat is grateful to the inspiration and teachings of Sri Gary Olsen, her Rhythmic Family, and all of her wildly creative students that continually inspire, motivate and teach her. Visit www.yogabodyrolling.com to learn more about Kat.
	Patty Miller, RYT Patty has been practicing yoga since 2000, when she needed a way to get back in touch with her body after surgery. I had taken yoga classes in the past and I always walked away thinking this is just not my style. However, after my surgery, I decided to try yoga one more time. This time, it was exactly what I needed. The pain and stiffness had taken away my ability to move and breathe freely. My yoga instructor introduced me to a practice that was gentle, free from expectations and easily adapted to my healing body. In 2006, Patty became a Certified 200 Hour Instructor (RYT) in Interdisciplinary Yoga at the Nosara Yoga Institute with Don & Amba Stapleton. In 2007, Patty was also certified as a Pranassage® Instructor, which is a yoga relaxation experience. Patty is currently completing her 500 hour RYT Training Program.
	Katie Princic, front desk bio coming soon...
	Regina Robbins Regina is a forever student & a natural teacher with a B.S. in Psychology, an M.A. in Spanish and over 10 yrs. of professional experience teaching. She has been teaching yoga since 2004. Her authentic style embraces a variety of hatha yoga including Vinyasa, Anusara, Iyengar & Yin. Her classes take yogis of all ages through a deep explorative process that challenges students to integrate, exercise and align body, mind and spirit. A true child at heart, she is a lover of God, life, learning, nature, family and fun! She wants to create a safe place to explore the joy of being a kid, a family & a community. Regina practices and teaches with a playful spirit and a heart full of joy, laughter and love.
	Lara Rosenberg Lara began practicing yoga in Arizona in 2000 and finished her teacher training in 2004. In 2005, Lara’s inspiration to help those abroad took her to do humanitarian aide work in post-tsunami Sri Lanka and Southern India. Lara has also traveled many and continues to explore many other parts of the world. Lara attributes her unique teaching style to the many influences in her life. Lara brings a fresh yet grounded style to her teaching she is always changing and growing herself –she promotes and encourages this philosophy in her teachings. Lara’s goal is to have her students leaving class feeling free, light and energized.
	Karen Vannoy, Nia Karen has been a Nia student since 1995 and has been teaching since 1998. Karen says, "Nia has completely transformed my body, my understanding of health and healing, and my approach to self care in general. The best gift I have received from Nia is to be more comfortable in my own skin than I have ever been before." Karen is also a United Methodist minister and also uses Nia as an aid to the spiritual practice of embodiment, which she believes is a key to any spiritual practice.
	Aubrie Vikturek-CYT Aubrie began practicing yoga in 1997 with a group of high school friends in small town Iowa under the inspiration of her aunt. Thanks to this start, Aubrie has embraced yoga in her own life as a way to feel connected, have fun and find peace, joy and light within. Aubrie completed her 200 hour yoga teacher certification at SWIHA under the guidance of Mary Bruce and learned a variety of teaching styles and techniques. She is amazed by the movement of energy and healing properties of yoga and incorporates a variety of postures in her teaching, designed to create space and revitalize the mind, body and spirit. Aubrie is honored to share her practice and teachings with you.
	Amber Williams, CYT Amber completed the 200 hour yoga teacher certification at SWIHA in 2005 under the guidance of Cain Carroll, author of "Partner Yoga." Her original motivation was to deepen her personal practice and expand her knowledge in all 8 limbs of yoga. As her practice evolved, Amber realized yoga was changing her life and was inspired to help others feel better inside their own bodies. Embracing this opportunity, Amber’s classes are filled with love, humor, and gratitude.
	Stacy Weiss, front desk Stacy began studying yoga during her last year in college (2005) and has enjoyed learning and practicing ever since. After graduating from Indiana University, she journeyed to the wonderful state of Arizona to join AmeriCorps and served under Lindsey VerStraeten. She fell in love with Metta’s loving-kindness and has been a faithful student and staff member ever since. Stacy enjoys traveling and in 2009 she will go on a year long personal journey enjoying the insight, guidance and unending spiritual development yoga has provided her. She is currently a Community Programs Manager at Make A Difference, Crewmember at Trader Joes. One of her goals is to someday teach yoga and inspire others to discover how it will help their personal journeys – and share how it’s affected hers.

	Razel Wolf, Nia Diverse background in dance/choreography. Jazz, modern, improvisational, and African, to name a few. Now a certified NIA instructor, Razel's upbeat and enthusiastic nature in inspires her students to self-awareness through the exploration and Joy of the Dance.