About Instructors


	About Our Instructors
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		Pam Walsh, 500 hour E.R.Y.T, owner and operator of "The Spirit of Yoga", has a BS and MS equivalency in Health and Physical Education. Her love for yoga and teaching led her to open The Spirit of Yoga - West Chester in March of 1999 and The Spirit of Yoga Wellness Center - Downingtown in November 2003. She took her first yoga class in 1973 and has been practicing yoga ever since. Pam's dedication to lifelong study and practice has led her to many yoga instructors including Richard Freeman, Beryl Bender Birch, Rodney Yee, Erich Schiffman, David Swenson, and many others. Pam recently completed her third module of training with Tais Little. She enjoys teaching yoga and sharing her experiences with students at the West Chester Senior Center, West Chester & Immaculata University, several local corporations, and both Spirit studios. She developed the 200 & 500 hour yoga teacher training program and loves introducing her students to the joys of teaching yoga.
		Isabelle Allgood-Neal, RYT, has a Masters Degree in Environmental Science as well as a background in aerobics and modern dance. She trained at the Spirit of Yoga for her 200 hour RYT which she received in January 2009. Isabelle continues to train in the various yogic traditions, and holds her Pilates Mat Certification Level 1 - 3. She has a passion for the beauty, art and science of yoga and especially loves the healing and meditative aspects. Isabelle enjoys teaching to all generations and loves to help students to create their own mind/body/spirit connection through yoga and meditation.

		Danielle Anastasi started practicing yoga in 1999 at the Spirit of Yoga. It was then that she discovered a passion for the practice. She completed the teacher training program with Pam Walsh. There she studied a variety of yoga including Kripalu, Ashtanga, Baptiste and Iyengar. Danielle emjoys sharing her love of yoga with others.
		Susan Banks, 500 Hour R.Y.T., Susan has been practicing yoga for over 20 years and teaching since 1992. She initially took up yoga to compliment her Aerobic teaching, but finds she teaches more yoga classes than fitness these days. She has studied various styles with numerous teachers over the years which she thinks shows in her eclectic practice. Known for her more vigorous practices in which she correlates body awareness with anatomy and cuing. Although Susan teaches Kundalini and Power Yoga she still manages to teach beginner yoga that allows students to stretch their potential.
		Sarah Beck, 500 Hour R.Y.T., M.F.P., discovered her love of yoga while attending classes at The Spirit of Yoga. She has studied a variety of yoga styles since 2000, which she blends into her classes. She is certified in Vinyasa Flow Yoga and has attended many yoga related workshops & lectures. Sarah specializes in prenatal yoga and wellness and is certified by Motherwell as a Maternity Fitness Professional and Prenatal Yoga Instructor. She is a Childbirth International Certified Birth Doula, is working to complete her Childbirth Educator Certification and is a featured practitioner at Mindful Mamas. In 2007, she studied Thai Yoga Bodywork with Michael Buck. Sarah is a Reiki Master, completed her studies with the School of Shamanic Methods and does a variety of energy work.
		Bhakti (Judith Curiel), Ph.D., RYT began a daily yoga practice in 2004 and completed the Fall 2007 Teacher Training at The Spirit of Yoga. Her passion is making yoga available to people in any physical condition, of all ages and of all body types. She loves to share many modifications and adaptations in her classes. She has studied Restorative Yoga with Dr. Judith Lasater, the foremost authority on Restorative Yoga, and earned the titles of a Relax and Renew Trainer® and an Advanced Relax and Renew Trainer®. Judy also traveled to Mexico and Costa Rica to learn from her mentor, the very gifted Restorative Instructor, Jane Fryer. She is a certified ChildLight Instructor™ and a certified Let Your Yoga Dance® for Special Populations Instructor. Presently, she is enrolled in the 500 hour yoga teacher training at Kripalu. Off the mat, she has been an educator for over thirty years and has taught students of all ages from Kindergarten to College but there is a special place in her heart for teenagers.
		Mina Patel, PhD, RYT, took her first yoga class in April of 2007 and quickly discovered that she had found a new passion, one that has allowed her to become physically and mentally stronger. Never imagining that she would teach yoga, Mina undertook the teacher training program with Pam Walsh at the Spirit of Yoga to deepen her own knowledge and practice of yoga. The goal of her energetic Hatha-based flow class is to challenge the body through an intense focus on each posture and thus relax the mind. She aims to bring out the full potential in each student. She is delighted to share her passion for yoga through teaching and hopes that her students find her enthusiasm infectious.
		Stephanie Phillips Markstein has been teaching yoga for 6 years. She received her 200 hour Yoga Alliance certification through The Spirit of Yoga in the fall of 2004. Just this past December, she completed her 500 hour RYT certification, again at the Spirit of Yoga. Stephanie has also studied with Beryl Bender Birch, Edward Clark, and Simon Park. Her passion is Ashtanga yoga, but she enjoys practicing and teaching many other styles. Stephanie is also a singer-songwriter-guitarist and local political activist.
		Cathy Mink, RYT, received her training at The Spirit of Yoga. She is also certified as a Yoga for the Special Child Instructor. As a Pennsylvania Elementary and Secondary certified school counselor, she has worked with students of ages 5 to 21 for over twenty five years. She taught as an adjunct instructor in the Counselor Education Department at West Chester University for 10 years. She recently received her certification as an autism specialist.
		Mary Powers After several years as a group fitness instructor and a few injuries, curiosity led her to try yoga. The passion for yoga was sparked and the group fitness aspect dwindled. Through teaching yoga, she hopes to share the physical benefits of the asanas and the calming tranquility of the mind that yoga offers.
		Sarah Rogers, R.Y.T., first learned about yoga from her mom and began practicing formally in 1999. She received her 200 hour Hatha Yoga Certification from The Spirit of Yoga in January 2007 where she learned about various styles including Forrest, Astanga, Kripalu, Baptiste, Iyengar, Kundalini, and Prenatal yoga. Sarah brings a calm, soothing presence to her yoga and meditation classes. She is interested in teaching her students to cultivate not only improved physical health but also an inner stillness and a tranquil spirit through their yoga practice both on and off the mat.
		Kristin J. Roosevelt, R.Y.T, completed her certification at the Spirit of Yoga during the 2004-2005 Teacher Training Program. She has been practicing yoga since 1998 and has attended Beryl Bender Birch Ashtanga workshops and a retreat at Pura Vida in Costa Rica. She has practiced various styles of Yoga including Ashtanga, Baptiste, Forrest Yoga, and Tri-Yoga. Her foundation is in Ashtanga Yoga, but she does enjoy teaching various styles of Yoga including flow classes. Kristin has been an athlete playing lacrosse and running cross-county and marathons. Her love and practice of yoga has transformed her life physically, mentally, and spiritually and she hopes to share these experiences with her students.
		Sherry Rubin, LCSW, CYI, has been practicing and studying both psychotherapy and yoga for thirty years. She became a Certified Yoga Instructor in 1999 after her studies at the Yoga Lifestyle Center. She has received additional training in Mindfulness Yoga with FrankJude Boccio, and Life Force Yoga to Manage Moods with Amy Weintraub, for whom Sherry has been a teaching assistant for the past three years. Most recently, she has been studying Richard Miller’s iRest Yoga Nidra. The Yoga Nidra classes she offers at The Spirit of Yoga teach how to ease stress and relax physically, emotionally and mentally. It gives her great pleasure to share this powerfully healing and restorative practice. Visit www.SherryRubin.com for more information about iRest Yoga Nidra.
		Ajay Sharma, RYT, shares a lively, heart centered yoga that builds core strength, flexibility, and Self awareness. He has over a decade of experience and dedication in the field of yoga, meditation and metaphysics. He was first exposed to yoga by Bikram Choudary, the founder of Bikram Yoga College of India in Los Angeles. Over the years Ajay has studied various yoga styles in the US and India giving him a wide background to draw from. He has also formally completed teacher trainings in Amrit Yoga and most recently Sampoorna Yoga. For the past 3 years he steadily served the yoga community at his family’s temple, Hari Om Mandhir, in Downingtown, PA. Ajay is also a musician that has performed around the country with his kirtan band Sound of Silence and world renowned kirtan artist Russill Paul.
		Sharon Smith, R.Y.T., has studied a variety of Hatha Yoga styles, including Kripalu, Ashtanga, Baptiste, Forrest and Iyengar. She blends all of those styles into unique yoga classes designed to help you relax, focus, calm your mind and become more flexible. Sharon combines yoga postures, breathing techniques and guided meditations to lead students through their own journey of self discovery. Sharon's daily practice helped her connect with and reveal her true, bright, inner light, an experience that she has come to believe is at the heart of what yoga is all about. She finds teaching yoga to others has been a life transforming experience. Sharon is a Registered Yoga Teacher with Yoga Alliance and is a member of the International Yoga Association.
		Linda Thoman, RYT, has been practicing yoga for over 15 years and was initially drawn to it's ability to remove stress from the physical and mental bodies. In 2006, she had the amazing opportunity to take the 200 hour month long teacher training immersion program at The Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health. The literal meaning of Kripalu is "compassion" and Linda strives to bring compassion to all of her endeavors, both on and off the mat. She has been teaching restorative classes since 2009. As a perpetual student she eagerly continues to study the many aspects yoga has to offer. Jai Bhagwan!
	Call The Spirit of Yoga at (610) 429-0920 today!