Loris Bjorkman

Loris Bjorkman started practicing yoga 9 years ago, through her practice on the mat she has found a profound empowerment to face challenges off the mat. She is 2010 graduate of Mama Nirvana's Teacher Training. Her classes emphasize realizing the body's potential strength and flexibility by practicing in a fun, easy-going, and carefree environment. With Loris' positive "you can do it" attitude students will gain confidence as well as insight into what they are truly capable of. Loris has a MS in Art Therapy and is currently a high school Special Education teacher. She is most happy when visiting family, sitting outside, and making art with the children in her life.

Kathy Champagne

Kathy Champagne, RYT200, received her 200-hour Kripalu Yoga teacher certification in 2005 and has studied a variety of styles of yoga. As a dancer and choreographer, Kathy has been a lifelong lover of movement. In yoga, Kathy found a form of movement that brought balance to her life and helped her develop respect for her body and mind. In her classes, Kathy creates a judgment-free environment and assists students in traveling a path to strength, flexibility, balance, relaxation, stamina, freedom, courage, self-respect, and love. As a yoga teacher, Kathy's motto is: "Saying you can't do yoga because you are too stiff (or too old or too heavy or too distractible, etc.) is like saying you can't take a bath because you are too dirty." Kathy believes that the gifts of yoga are available to everyone and each person's path is perfect just as it is. In her Yoga Groove workshops, Kathy enjoys helping participants access joy through creative movement. When not practicing yoga or dancing, Kathy enjoys cooking, gardening, knitting, and traveling to Paris, where she loves to eat cheese and find cute shoes.

Julia Fournier

Julia Fournier, RYT200, has been practicing yoga for over six years and recently graduated from Mama Nirvana's Teacher Training. Julia teaches high school science and often uses her biology background to enrich her yoga classes. Her classes are relaxing, gentle, and fun. In addition to teaching and practicing yoga, Julia enjoys dance, reading, and tennis.

Vickie Healy, BSN, RN

In addition to being a graduate of Mama Nirvana's New Yoga teacher training, Vickie also holds 200-hour certification from Dharma Yoga. In 2000 on the wise counsel of a close friend, she began practicing yoga while going through a difficult time. She was amazed that through the beautiful guidance of the teacher she could relax and feel peace. Since then, yoga has helped her live through adversity with peace and calm. Vickie came to YTT with a strong desire to give back and share what she has learned with others. Students respond to the peaceful, inclusive, and welcoming atmosphere of her classes. Vickie accepts the level of each student, while offering gentle encouragement for growth. Vickie’s classes include gentle and beginner sequences designed by Sri Dharma Mittra as well as her own creations (based on her Mama Nirvana's Teacher Training). Her classes assist in calming the mind, relaxing the body, decreasing stress and invigorating health. Vickie is a Registered Nurse with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Georgetown University. She is studying Ayurveda, a holistic system of medicine from India that uses a constitutional model. She loves to cook, read, walk, hike and spend time with family and friends. View her website.

Beth Illingsworth

Beth Illingsworth, is a certified RYT200 Hatha yoga instructor. She is a graduate of Mama Nirvana's Yoga School. Her classes incorporate her love of music and the power of the body and mind through yoga. When not teaching or practicing yoga Beth enjoys hiking, music, reading, gardening, raising chickens and most of all spending time with her children.

Mary Lemoine

When her daughter broke her foot at a dance competition in 2008, Mary brought her to do yoga together at Mama Nirvana's.  But it was Mary who soon fell in love with the practice. From her early adulthood, when she was a Nautilus instructor, Mary has been committed lifelong physical movement and health. As an adult she has been a fitness class devotee, and studied Ballet, Jazz, and Figure Skating. Mary inspires her yoga students with enthusiasm and energy. Her classes assists folks in keeping their own bodies moving, keeping their minds calm, and enjoying the practice of yoga. Mary enjoys hiking, backpacking, mountain biking, wildlife photography, and enjoys treks throughout the northeast and western states with family. She is also a seamstress, interior designer, artist and avid gardener.

Ruth Anne Lundeberg

Ruth Anne Lundeberg, E-RYT500, is blessed to have studied with the topmost teachers of yoga, dance, Buddhism and meditation since 1983. She holds a Bachelors of Fine Arts Degree from New York University, where she studied voice, movement and performance intensively with the top experimental performers/directors in NYC. In 1984 at age 19 discovered traditional Hatha yoga at the Himalayan Institute on Fifth Avenue and at Satchidananda's ashram, Integral Yoga, on 13th street. Later, she studied directly with yoga master Sri Dharma Mittra (whose poster of himself performing 908 yoga poses hangs in studios all over the world.) Ruth Anne has also studied directly with Beryl Bender Birch (author of the "Power Yoga" and "Beyond Power Yoga," Beryl was largely responsible for introducing Ashtanga Yoga to the East Coast) and Jivamukti Yoga founders Sharon Gannon and David Life at their original East Village loft studio.

In addition, Ruth Anne is a long-time dedicated student of Theravadin Buddhism and meditation. She has sat numerous retreats since 1989 with a variety of international teachers including Jack Kornfield, Christopher Titmuss, Larry Rosenberg, Christina Feldman, Sharda Rogell, and Leigh Brasington. Ruth Anne is a committed daily meditator with over 20 years of experience.

Ruth Anne brings a unique and powerful spiritual flavor to teaching and practicing yoga. Her teaching is defined by her years of study with masters of yoga, Buddhism and experimental movement forms. In a time when yoga has been re-defined as an exercise modality, Ruth Anne offers her students and trainees a rare chance to learn traditional yoga as a method of spiritual awakening.

Rebekah Madera

Rebekah Madera, RYT200, MEd, is a graduate of Mama Nirvana's Teacher Training. She has a decade of yoga experience. When teaching hatha yoga she showcases excellent music, and emphasizes ahimsa (non-violence), compassion, and positive thinking. Rebekah is an enthusiastic ESL Teacher (English for Speakers of Other Languages) at Easthampton High School and White Brook Middle School. In 2007, she received the Pioneer Valley Excellence in Teaching Award. She has traveled to Spain and Morocco, which inspired her study of Middle Eastern Dance with Rose Champagne.

Allisyn McCarthy

Allisyn McCarthy always wanted to teach movement classes. Within 10 minutes of her first yoga class (at Mama Nirvana's) she knew she had found what she had been looking for, so she enrolled in MN's yoga teacher training. Allisyn's outgoing, accepting attitude helps students to love and accept themselves at all stages of their path to greater empowerment. At the same time, her classes emphasize building physical strength and mental focus. Allisyn has a Bachelor's degree in Consumer Studies and Apparel Marketing. She enjoys camping, boating and attending truck pulls.

Amanda McNeish

After graduating from Umass with a BA in communications and a minor in psychology, Amanda was ready to start the next chapter of her life but was uncertain on where to begin. She first stepped onto a yoga mat in 2009, and in doing so, discovered the guidance she was searching for came from within herself.  Students enjoy Amanda's energy and enthusiasm. Her classes offersa safe and relaxing environment and just the right balance of postures to work the body and mind. She enjoys spending her spare time with her family and friends. When not teaching yoga, she's playing with her dog, making jewelry, cooking, reading, camping and playing outdoors.

Margaret Nunnelly

Margaret Nunnelly received her yoga teaching certification from Mama Nirvana's New Yoga, studying under Ruth Anne Lundeberg and Josh Schumer. She is registered through Yoga Alliance at the 200 hour level. She is also certified by Paul Grilley as a teacher of Yin Yoga. She has been a yoga practitioner for many years, and has been teaching in western Massachusetts since 2007. She is currently enrolled in Georg Feuerstein's course, The History, Literature, and Philosophy of Yoga. Margaret's classes are presented in an informal leadership style. Her teaching incorporates methodologies from several styles of yoga, and she uses myths, stories, anatomy and personal experience to explain postures in a way that is meant to be technical, historical, and entertaining. Her classes increase concentration, clarity and patience both in yoga and everyday life. She directs students to tune into physical sensations and explore how subtle changes in movement can resonate in a wide variety of outcomes.

Karen Orlando

Karen Orlando, RYT200 is a graduate of Mama Nirvana's Teacher Training and has been teaching yoga since 2003. Her classes allow students to unwind, let of daily stresses and have a joyful and relaxing yoga experience. She specializes in assisting individuals to explore their own potential strength, balance and flexibility. Karen has a BA in psychology and a Master's degree in Education. She is an educational consultant to parents and educators of children with autism and other intensive special needs. She enjoys travelling, hiking, and kayaking as frequently as possible.

Tracy Remelius

Tracy Remelius, RYT200, is a graduate of Mama Nirvana's Teacher Training. Her classes assist students in developing physical strength, vitality and a focused mind. She believes that a healthy active lifestyle supports self esteem and an enlightened life. Her down-to-earth and adventurous approach to yoga both in classes and outdoors in the Pioneer Valley appeals to teens and active adults. Tracy holds a certification in Outdoor Leadership from Greenfield Community College. When she's not teaching yoga she can be found playing in the woods; hiking, skiing, biking. She's learning circus fabric aerial and slackline yoga. She practices balancing on a surfboard whenever she can. Tracy holds a Masters degree in Education and has been an educator for over ten years. www.tracyremelius.com

Josh Schumer

In the summer of 2000, Josh Schumer, RYT200, joined Mama Nirvana's faculty and helped open the current studio in Easthampton. Josh holds a Bachelors of Science degree in Physical Education from the University of Massachusetts, where he specialized in health and fitness. Josh has worked as a conditioning coach and trainer in the fitness industry. Josh studied Martial Arts for 23 years and taught both swimming and martial arts before becoming a certified yoga instructor. His keen understanding of exercise physiology is evident in his yoga teaching. Josh offers a lifetime of experience in functional strength, health, and inner development.

Josh and Ruth Anne were married at the Easthampton studio in August, 2002. Together they run Mama Nirvana’s two studios, teach classes daily, direct Mama Nirvana's professional teacher trainings and lead international retreats.

Kate Smith

Kate Smith is a graduate of Mama Nirvana's Teacher Training. Her simple, calm and gentle approach to yoga facilitates powerful growth for yoga students with or without prior yoga experience. Her classes feature posture sequences which playfully explore effort and ease while building both strength and flexibility. Kate is a student/practitioner of Jin Shin Jyutsu, an ancient art of harmonizing life energy in the body.

Bonnie St. Martin

Bonnie St. Martin started her yoga journey in 2005 working as a receptionist at a movement /yoga studio in Tennessee. Being so far away from home, and knowing only a few people, she found great solace not only through her practice but within the yoga community. When she continued her travels around the country she always gained support from fellow yogis and yoga teachers. Upon returning home to western Mass, she knew she wanted to pass along this support to others so she took Mama Nirvana's Teacher Training. In her classes, Bonnie offers a posture flow that both challenges and safely opens the body by incorporating props and modifications to accommodate a range of abilities. Her students are guided to focus attention inwardly and let go of personal "ego." This allows the student to experience yoga on deeply internal levels. Bonnie is a reader of classic literature, a fiction writer and photographer who loves to travel to new places. She plans to someday open a shelter for neglected/abused animals.

Kate Stenson

Kate Stenson started taking yoga classes in 1996 to carve out time for herself as a new mother. Her interest grew over the years and she graduated from Mama Nirvana's Teacher Training in 2009. She creates a relaxing atmosphere in her classes with her gentle approach and sense of humor. Kate's students appreciate that they are able take the relaxation they gain from her classes into real-life situations. Kate holds a B.A from UMASS and is always following new interests; her most recent studies are in aromatherapy. She is training for a triathlon while exploring simplicity as a way of life. Married to an Englishman, Kate and her family have enjoyed their many adventures together in cities and byways of Great Britain.

Katherine Tancredi

Katherine Tancredi, RYT500, is a graduate of Mama Nirvana's Teacher Training. Her classes create gentle support as she guides her students toward achieving proper alignment, developing a fuller breath, and cultivating a body-mind awareness that honors the individual. Her training in yoga has deepened her commitment to the yogic path as a way to promote vitality, provide relaxation and gain a sense of well being. She has studied with Yogiraj Alan Finger, Bonnie Bainbridge Cohen, Patty Townsend, Judith Hanson Lasater, Rodney Yee, A.H. Arun, Sharon Salzburg and Dharma Mittra and continues to learn from Ruth Anne and Josh. She lives in Amherst with her husband Bob and her dog Buddy, and is the devoted mother to college student Liz. Her background includes degrees in art and film studies. View her website.

Jennifer Vanderleeden

Jennifer has practiced yoga on and off for twenty years but it wasn't until she met Ruth Anne at Mama Nirvana's New Yoga studio in 2007, that she realized that yoga was her true path.  Jennifer strives to teach her students to open their hearts and minds and to realize their truth through their practice on the mat. She hopes that each class she teaches brings joy to her students. Her classes are light hearted, fun, dynamic, and strong. Jennifer has a Master's Degree in Rehabilitation and has worked in the wellness industry as well as the Health Sciences field for many years. She loves music and dancing but most of all loves laughter.

Brian Wert

After spending many years hunched over a computer, Brian realized his sedentary and stressful life style were taking a toll on his well being. In 2008 he took his first yoga class at Mama Nirvana’s. After consistent practice, Brian found himself feeling increasingly flexible, stronger, and centered. Wanting to discover more about yoga and himself, he enrolled in Mama Nirvana’s teacher training. Brian emphasizes how to bring yoga into your daily life in a simple and practical way. His classes focus on building physical strength and stress reduction. When not on the mat, Brian, a US NAVY veteran, is an IT specialist who enjoys restoring his 19th century farmhouse and hiking with his wife and dogs.