ANITA ALFONSI, RYT 200, is a registered Kripalu Yoga Teacher. She is currently continuing her yoga studies at the Rivertown Center for Yoga & Health in their 500 hour training and loves practicing, studying and teaching. "The practice is really what keeps drawing my awareness to the present moment." Anita appreciates being shown the way to living a more balanced, compassionate life through the practice of yoga and meditation and believes that yoga is for everybody and every body. VALERIE ANTONETTE was first introduced to yoga in 2001 when she took a class while attending college in Colorado. In 2004, due to the stress of her day job as a lawyer, she once again sought refuge in yoga. Since then she has been hooked and has never looked back! In 2008, Valerie completed her 200 hour teacher certification at Yoga H'om. She continues to broaden her practice and is studying Yin Yoga: opening the body’s deep connective tissues and joints through relaxation and meditation. She may be a lawyer by day, but she is a Colorado hippie at heart, so don't be surprised if you hear The Beatles, Pink Floyd or Dave Matthews playing during one of her classes. In her few moments of spare time, she enjoys watching live music, going to the movies, spending quality time with her cat, Justice, and reading about vampires. ILONA AUTH has been studying yoga since 2001 and has spent much of her practice time in the studio at BYS Yoga. She received her Teacher Training Certificate from the Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Dhanwantari Ashram in Kerala, India in 2006. In addition to yoga, she loves cooking, photography, books, and travel. MAGGIE BORZA-PETRIE, hopes to bring the feelings of peace and calm she found through yoga to all of the students in her classes. She first discovered Yoga in January of 2003 and began taking classes at CCAC with her husband Phil. She developed a passion for her practice and in 2005, removed herself from the stress of corporate life and has been devoted to pursuing the life journey into Yoga full-time. In December, 2006 she completed the 200 hour Teacher Training program at YOGA H'OM and is registered with the Yoga Alliance. Maggie has attended several local workshops and is excited to continue her studies and share her passion for Yoga with her students. She also enjoys art, music, family, friends and spending time with Phil and their dog Utah in the great the outdoors. ALANA DELOGE has found balance and peace on her mat following an introduction to yoga in 2003. Having developed a love for teaching in an academic setting, she recently discovered a new avenue through the completion of a 200-hour yoga teacher-training program and is thrilled to be able to share yoga with others. Although her practice is inspired by vinyasa flow, she enjoys exploring other yoga styles and tries to share all that she learns with her students. She hopes that her students will gain strength, peace, compassion, and confidence from their practice and she always looks forward to welcoming those who are new to yoga. When not practicing on her mat, Alana directs her energy towards public health, traveling, cooking, reading, and gardening, as well as towards her family, friends, and cats. REBECCA DREXLER, E-RYT began her study of yoga in 2002. Her first instructor, Margaret Burns-Vap, introduced her to Ashtanga Yoga, and she instantly fell in love with the increased energy and flexibility. Since then, Rebecca has studied with Doug Swenson, Manuso Manos, and Rodney Yee. She is a Registered Yoga Teacher at the 200 hour level. In her free time, Rebecca enjoys cooking and reading Ted Bell novels. ELSIE ESCOBAR, a native of El Salvador began her love affair with yoga in 1997. She completed her formal training at the Center for Yoga in Larchmont (now Yogaworks) and also completed the Integrative Yoga Therapy Program created by Joseph Le Page, focusing on the therapeutic aspects of yoga, mainly geared toward introducing yoga as a healing modality to those encountering either physical or emotional health challenges. In 2000 she found the wild joy in her heart through Anusara Yoga developed by John Friend, ‘a uniquely integrated style of hatha yoga in which the artistic glory of the human heart blends magically with the scientific principles of biomechanics.’ She continues to study fervently with John Friend and many amazing certified Anusara teachers; Naime Jezzeny, Sue Elkind, Noah Maze, Desiree Rumbaugh, and many others. Elsie’s classes are full of playfulness, smiles (and/or laughter), and strong commitment deeply grounded in self-honoring, acceptance and building community. Since July 2006, her love affair of yoga has been met by an equal passion for podcasting. She has a successful and inspiring FREE weekly podcast simply named "Elsie's Yoga Class: Live and Unplugged," which is just that, her live yoga classes sent out to those who subscribe and available through her website: www.elsiesyogakula.com. ALICIA FRONCZEK will have a bio posted soon! ANNA GILBERT, RYT, was introduced to yoga in 2005 by Chrissy Carter, who continues to be her primary teacher. She completed her 500 hour training through YogaWorks and spent several years teaching in New York and Los Angeles before life brought her to Pittsburgh. She is grateful to have studied with Natasha Rizopoulos, Lisa Walford, Julie Kleinman, and Annie Carpenter, among others, and finds constant inspiration seeing the strength, steadiness, and compassion we learn on the mat become tools that we can access off the mat as well. Her classes are influenced by the precision and alignment of Iyengar, the dynamic flow of Ashtanga, and a personal commitment to infuse playfulness and joy into the practice. LORI GRABLE, E-RYT was first introduced to yoga in 2000 at the Santa Barbara Yoga Center in California, where she became a regular student. Her love of yoga became stronger in 2003 when she traveled the country, taking classes at many studios, before relocating to Pittsburgh. Upon moving to Pittsburgh, Lori began a regular practice at Breathe Yoga Studio (now BYS Yoga) and completed a Yoga Alliance 200 hour teaching certification in 2006. Her teaching is Hatha based and is influenced by Vinyasa Flow. Lori is particularly interested in the healing effects of yoga. Outside of the studio, Lori does social work at a local nonprofit agency. She enjoys art, music, outdoor activity and spending time with her husband. SUSIE POPOVICH was introduced to yoga with the Ashtanga Primary Series in 2000. Since then, she has received the 200-Hour Yoga Alliance Teaching Certification through "It's Yoga" in Columbus, OH and is registered with The Yoga Alliance. When not sharing her love of yoga with others, Susie works as a make-up artist. She loves bird watching, traveling to sunny places, hiking, and spending time with her husband Carmon, their daughter, and their dog Ivy. LYNN RESCIGNO is currently the owner of Lynn Rescigno Yoga, LLC and has worked under the guidance of Sharon Gannon and David Life since 1999. She has studied the works of the Krishnamacharya Lineage with Sri K. Pattabhi Jois, TKV Desikachar, Tim Miller, David Swenson, Richard Freeman and many senior teachers under BKS Iyengar. A graduate of Point Park College, Lynn was a professional modern dancer with many companies in both NYC and Pittsburgh, PA. She enjoys teaching yoga to people of all walks of life. KRISTI ROGERS, RYT was first introduced to yoga by her younger sister but it wasn't until several years later, in early 2002, that Kristi took her first formal yoga class. Later that year (and likely not coincidentally!), she left the corporate architecture world behind and a renewed lifestyle influenced by yoga began to lead her way. In the spring of 2004, Kristi and her husband (& fellow yogi), Jody Schurman, opened Breathe Yoga Studio (now BYS Yoga). In June 2005, she completed her 200 hour certification through Yoga H'om in Oakdale, PA. Kristi brings the creativity of her design background into the studio through her classes and enjoys sharing the practice of yoga with all levels students. Finding that she feels most alive when teaching, she hopes to inspire students to discover their true passions and to appreciate yoga's many benefits through a deeper awareness and understanding of themselves. Her classes are a fun and flowing style with a healthy dose of alignment principles and philosophy mixed in. When not teaching or doing the myraid tasks of running the studio, she enjoys taking yoga classes and workshops (always learning something new!), volunteering within in the South Side community, traveling, spending time with her family, and dreaming about home renovations! KENDELL ROMANELLI began her practice of yoga in 1993 during her graduate studies in Cinncinati. She found that the practice gave her peace of mind and focus during the stress of her MFA program. Kendell discovered Kundalini yoga while living in Los Angeles and fell in love with the invigorating and meditative healing aspects of the practice. She practiced Kundalini yoga for the four years she lived in LA and established a personal practice when she moved back home to Pittsburgh in 2001. At the request of a dear friend, Kendell began to teach Kundalini yoga in 2005 and has been teaching both Kundalini yoga and Chakra yoga classes in several Pittsburgh yoga studios. Kendell's approach is light-hearted and healing as she follows the energy of the chakras to become open and balanced. Kendell is currently completing her 200 hour RYT with Joanne VandenHengel. JEN SYLVES has been practicing, studying, and growing through yoga since 2002. She recently completed her 200 hour RYT training through 3rd Street Yoga, based in Pittsburgh. She has also participated in trainings with Max Strom, Doug Keller, Amy Weintraub, and Desiree Rumbaugh. Jen has taught all levels and many interesting variations of yoga including special needsclasses in chairs, yoga for dancers, even a little yoga with dogs! She is thrilled to be teaching at BYS Yoga and so grateful to be a part of the strong community and unique ties and outreach to the city. Using creativity and encouraging self-exploration, Jen brings challenge, variety, and education to her classes. Student feedback and suggestions are encouraged to help customize each practice. When not physically practicing yoga, Jen tries to incorporate her yoga practice into her whole life, and especially enjoys spending time with her husband and her (or anyone else’s!) animals. NICOLE ZELLIE, RYT and Certified YogaRhythmics® instructor began her study of yoga over 10 years ago with Senior Iyengar teacher Marian Garfinkel. She found that yoga transformed not only her body, but her mind, spirit and her entire life in such a positive way that her teaching career began to unfold from there. She received her 200 hour certification at Lourdes Wholistic Institute in Collingswood, NJ - a Kripalu based school - where she also began to teach. In addition to teaching at several yoga studios across Southern NJ and Philadelphia, she opened her own small studio, the White Horse Wellness Center. Nicole received her certification in YogaRhythmics® with founder Connie Miller and has taught its fun and invigorating classes in juvenile detention centers, corporate workplaces, and to special education teachers. She has studied with Debra Ann Robinson, Kali Ray, Manju Jois and Duncan Wong (her favorite teacher for his dynamic Yogicarts classes!). Nicole now brings her eclectic background of knowledge, warmth, & love of yoga to Pittsburgh - her hometown area and her dynamic personality comes through in her YogaRhythmics® classes. She is forever grateful to all of her teachers and students over the years!