As an educator and yoga instrutor, I see my classes as a means of creating more space. Space to question, space to think critically, space to stumble, and as a result, to inevitably find more compassion and nuance for the world.

When Sanctuary set out on a mission to support individuals who are bravely committed to improving the health of our community and region, we understood that it would require dreaming big and approaching things differently. We envisioned a community of activists who show up for their community by showing up for themselves. Yet when we thought more about what to do with all of that creative and impassioned energy, it became clear that we needed to go outside our four walls and build connections with like-minded organizations. The Community Spotlight Series came into fruition, and was officially launched in March 2024. 

I’ve learned the value of slowing down and of simplifying inner life—and also, the value of allowing the storms to happen when they’re happening. As I’ve traversed through my own internal world, I’ve found it easier to relate to others’ challenges. I’ve found that at the core, many of our challenges have similar voices with different themes. This has really brought me deeper into empathy and a knowing that we are all one.

I often say that Contact Improv checks all the boxes. It meets my need for physical activity. It’s rigorous and there is a lot of lifting (taking other people’s weight) which builds strength. It’s social, playful, and fun. I have so many friends who I’ve met through the form. Above all else, it meets me where I am. If I’m feeling tired I can have a slow dance low to the ground. If I’m feeling energized, I might have a dance that goes in and out of the ground, falling through space, and engaging a wider dynamic range. It’s a pleasurable way of building a smarter body.

Meet our January 2025 Community Spotlight organization. Empty Arms Bereavement Support serves individuals and families in Massachusetts and nationwide whose babies have died through miscarriage, stillbirth, early infant death, or termination for medical reasons.

I am deeply committed to helping our world and all its beings heal from trauma. There are so many systems that actively harm and traumatize on a regular basis. I’m engaged in visualizing and creating communities and systems that value balance, belonging, and healing. I am a queer, non-binary trauma survivor, and finding places where I can be my full self and feel comfortable can be difficult. I believe that creating safe spaces and moments of peace can make a huge impact. The more I work to heal from traumatic experiences that happened to me, the more I notice how much healing is needed by others. And I feel deeply honored that I can help facilitate wellness through sound healing work.

Since we have taken over the studio, we have been trying to balance the high value of what we offer, the everyday costs of running a studio, and financial accessibility for anyone who wishes to practice. We have noticed that in our culture caretaking professions are financially undervalued, and this includes yoga teachers, bodyworkers, and healers. Our hope is not to dissuade anyone from practicing, but to name the true price of our yoga class offerings, outside of a sliding scale model.

Meet our December 2024 Community Spotlight organization, Resilient Community Arts. Their mission is to sustain efforts for social progress and equity through affordable arts programming.

I started breathwork as a way to ease anxiety and eliminate panic attacks. After 20 years of self practice in breathwork and meditation I became a Somatic Breathwork Guide and joined the faculty at Kripalu Center. This came about as I saw the world shifting dramatically around 2020 and I wanted to share what I had learned and experienced in my practice over the years to help heal and bring people together.

My work is an expression of my dreaming toward collective liberation. People deserve access to choice, and to be in their bodies in ways that work for them (including not being in their bodies). Simultaneously, complex trauma is an expression of larger systems of power and harm, like white supremacy, ableism, capitalism, colonialism, and their powerful sibling and offspring systems; I practice believing that processes intended to heal that trauma are/should be inextricably bound up in the parallel process of dismantling those traumatizing systems. Additionally, as individual bodies surviving and taking action against systems of harm, I also believe that our efforts are more sustainable if we can be on the same team as our bodies–speaking a shared language, making informed choices, and connecting with other bodies in aligned ways.

Meet our November 2024 Community Spotlight organization! Since 1979, The Northampton Survival Center is dedicated to improving the quality of life for low-income individuals and families throughout Hampshire County by providing nutritious food and other resources in an atmosphere of dignity and respect. They provide local folks with weekly groceries from our pantries in Northampton and Goshen.

Meet our October 2024 Community Spotlight organization, It Takes a Village. Their mission is to provide free postpartum and early parenting support to families with babies and young children living in Western Massachusetts, and to inspire the community to welcome the newest members of their Village.

My hope is that my clients experience a reclaimed sense of agency around their food choices and eating habits. My intention is to give clients the space to talk about their food based concerns and invite them into the driver's seat when deciding which direction we go. I strongly believe that my clients are the experts of their own body and that my role is to help folks get curious and explore options that align with their values. 

Meet our September 2024 Community Spotlight organization, Smith College Food Rescue Network. Their goal is to redistribute excess prepared food from Smith College to community members experiencing food insecurity. They collect data for every pan of food they donate and share this information with Smith Dining Services, allowing Dining Services to make decisions about more sustainable ordering practices.

In finding my voice and the light that guides me as a student, teacher and teacher trainer, I have found ways to support others in finding their voice and unique paths as students and teachers. I have learned to practice, learn, share, and teach yoga from love - for love - out of love - with love - for the sake of love. To step away from dogmatic rules and truly honor yoga from the inside, out.

Meet our August 2024 Community Spotlight organization, Translate Gender. Translate Gender is a collective-based, consensus-run (501c3) non-profit organization that works to generate community accountability for individuals to self-determine their own genders and gender expressions.

Being on the dance floor gives me a place to express all of my emotions in a way that allows them to move through me faster and with greater integrity. But what I cherish most is that through the dance, I feel the most directly connected to my own aliveness and to All That Is.

“The work I do is not separate from how I live or what it is that I contribute to the world. I believe that our greatest contribution to the world, ever, will always be who we are and how we live. I believe the highest form of activism is to know yourself and to understand how your choices impact those around you, as well as the planet.”

Yoga asks the essential questions of humanity: Who am I? Why am I alive? What is going on here? Who are these other beings around me? It is a longing and a seeking and a progressive discovery. What it longs for and seeks and discovers is the underlying, fundamental truth of oneness.

Through the practice of Somatic Breathwork we can utilize our own breath to clear the pathways of these stuck energetic imprints–releasing stress and anxiety, and setting us free to arrive fully in the present moment–creating space to embody our highest vibration, fullest self-expression and deepest authenticity in connecting to the richness of our lives.