Heart of the Village Yoga

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The Team

The Team

Remembering our teacher and dear friend, Juliana Centner. You are often in our minds and forever in our hearts.
January 16, 1937 - October 27, 2012

- Andrea and Jo

Jo Kirsch, Yoga Therapist, E-RYT®500, Owner/Director

Jo’s been practicing yoga for 32 years and teaching for 22. She is certified as a yoga therapist and a yoga teacher.

Jo’s initial yoga teacher training was in Astanga yoga with Beryl Bender Birch. Since that time, Jo has been certified to teach Adaptive Yoga by Matthew Sanford, Trauma Sensitive Yoga by David Emerson, Yoga Nidra by Jennifer Reis, Yoga of 12 Step Recovery with Nikki Myers, Yoga for Traumatic Brain Injury with Love Your Brain, and Yin Yoga with Biff Mithoefer. Jo has a deepening love and appreciation for Bhakti Yoga and finds her heart cracking wide open as she studies and practices with Manoj Chalam, Sean Johnson and the Wild Lotus Band, and Gaura Vani. Her studies also include Iyengar and Anusara yoga, with many amazing, inspiring, loving teachers. Jo graduated, Fall 2021, from Soul School, a 200 Hour online Yoga interdisciplinary teacher training program presented by Sean Johnson and Mitchel Bleier.

Jo’s personal experience with Post Traumatic Stress  (PTSD) inspired her to work with individuals with PTS, to help them manage their stress and heal. Jo’s practice informs her teaching. She’s found that everyone benefits from learning and practicing coping skills to help manage personal stress. She greatly values and teaches stress reduction techniques including posture practice, meditation, focused breathing, and yoga nidra in her yoga classes. Jo recently completed a training to become certified as a Yoga Therapist with Breathing Deeply Yoga. Yoga Therapists are trained to work one-on-one with individuals to help with a myriad of conditions such as insomnia, physical issues, pain management, digestion disorders, depression, anxiety, asthma, autoimmune issues and more.

Jo is also a certified professional ski instructor who loves to ski and share her passion for the sport with others. A lifelong learner who subscribes to experiential education, Jo finds that a balanced combination of physical activity, being in nature, practicing the different limbs of yoga, and eating well, leads to a spiritual, mental and physical life of health and happiness. She loves to share these practices with friends, family, and individuals who are in search of healing and happiness.

Bob Speck, E-RYT®500, Owner

Bob

Bob Speck is a Registered Yoga Teacher (EYT-500), Certified Personal Trainer and Functional Strength Coach. Bob has been practicing yoga for about 20 years, receiving his 500-hr accreditation through Beryl Bender Birch (The Hard and The Soft Yoga Institute) in 2016. Bob has also studied with Eoin Finn (Blissology Vinyasa Flow Yoga); Mathew Sanford (Adaptive Yoga); Biff Mithoefer (Yin Yoga); Sean Johnson (Bhakti Yoga), Manoj Chalam (Hindu Archetypes and Deities); Gaura Vani (Bhakti and Kirtan); Coby Kozlowski (Kripalu Yoga); Nikki Myers (Y12SR), Terry Fralich (Mindfulness), and Love Your Brain. He enjoys creating learning experiences which build supportive relationships, promote health and wellness, bring out the best in people, and provide ways for students to connect with the outdoor natural environment.

An athlete and outdoor enthusiast for his whole life, Bob is also a graduate of the National Outdoor Leadership School (Outdoor Education), Project Adventure (Adventure-Based Counseling), and is a PSIA/AASI Certified Ski, Snowboard, and Adaptive Instructor. He is also an ACSM Certified Personal Trainer, a Certified Functional Strength Coach (with Mike Boyle Strength & Conditioning), and a Pain-Free Performance Specialist (with Dr. John Rusin). Bob has taught skiing and snowboarding for over 40 years, and has worked in the ski industry as a snow-sports school manager, staff trainer, and regional clinician. He has also been instrumental in the development of health and wellness and mentoring programs for disabled veterans in association with the Wounded Warrior Project and Warriors Live On, and with various adaptive sports programs. He has facilitated numerous educational workshops, led bike trips and backcountry hiking expeditions, coached various sports, mentored numerous athletes, and taught middle school health education.

Bob was previously a structural/architectural engineer and timber-frame home designer for over 35 years. Throughout his career, he has been a mentor for young professionals, helping many thrive in their careers. After moving to Vermont in 1996, he focused his work on sustainable design and timber framing by maintaining a small private practice called Gaia Structures. He maintains a lifelong Earth-friendly perspective in his work and in his life. Bob keeps a personal learning journal on his blog: A Mentor Walks With Me.

To learn more about Bob visit https://www.perspective-coaching.com/.

Charlotte Alexander, RYT®200

Charlotte Alexander took her first yoga class at Heart of the Village Yoga when she was eleven. It was love at first vinyasa! Four years later Charlotte enrolled in Heart of the Village Yoga’s 200 hour Yoga Teacher Training and Advanced Studies Program. From the start Charlotte discovered a love of teaching and helping others grow their own practice.

Charlotte enjoys fast paced hatha practices, as well as ashtanga yoga. She has explored many styles, including restorative, acro, slackline, and aerial yoga. Homeschooled by her parents, Charlotte has a true love for learning. In her spare time she enjoys being out in nature, hiking, skiing, fly fishing, and horseback riding. Charlotte’s energy, curiosity, and fun approach to yoga motivates everyone around her.

Zoe Anderson, RYT®500

Zoe Anderson has pursued her lifelong passion for all things athletic, originally incorporating yoga as an alternative to warm-ups and stretching. Moving from New York to Vermont, and attending a Heart of the Village aerial yoga class, the concept of body and spirit integration opened the door to more inspiring wellness practices. It wasn’t long before aerial yoga, ashtanga power-yoga flow, yoga philosophy, and functional strength training became her weekly go-to practice. Zoe focuses her practice on core awareness, strength, total body wellness and recognizing the importance of moving from a strong, centered core.

Zoe recently completed 500 Hours of Yoga Teacher Training with Heart of the Village Yoga. In 2021, She obtained her certification as a Pain-Free Performance Specialist (PPSC), a cutting-edge functional strength training program utilized by personal coaches at Heart of the Village Yoga.

When not at the studio, Zoe can be found at another studio as Art Director and Commercial Illustrator for a Vermont-based art licensing company in Manchester.

Dina Bronson, RYT®500

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Dina became a committed yoga student in 2003, while practicing therapeutic Iyengar yoga one on one with Rebecca Weisman. The profound healing that occurred on the mat moved yoga from an exercise practice into a lifestyle. As Dina’s practice deepened, her longing to share this work with others grew, inspiring her to become a certified yoga teacher. Dina completed her 200 Hour Teacher Training offered at Heart of the Village, in conjunction with Beryl Bender Birch’s The Hard and the Soft Yoga Institute, in 2016; and then completed her 300 Hour Yoga Teacher Training with Heart of the Village Yoga in January 2020.

Dina’s work with energy and spiritual healing inform her classes, and they are a synthesis of body and mind, heart and soul, play and focus. Finding the “and” on the mat helps us bring it to our lives.

In addition to being a RYT 500, Dina is a graduate of the 4 year program at The Barbara Brennan School of Healing, as well as the 4 year non dual healing program at A Society of Souls.

“I am so very grateful to Jo, and Heart of the Village Yoga. I am absolutely thrilled to have the opportunity to teach here. I look forward to seeing you on the mat.”

Emily Dee, RYT®200

Emily began her yoga asana practice at Heart of the Village Yoga in 2014. In 2015 she became part of the support staff at the studio, registering students and assisting in the Boutique. She has kept up a steady practice and received her 200 hour yoga teacher training certificate in the spring of 2022. Emily is currently continuing her studies and is enrolled in the 300 Yoga Teacher Training at Heart of the Village Yoga. She will complete this training in April of 2023.

From the start of her practice, Emily has enjoyed bringing the mind, body and breath into the poses. Integrating the breath is a central teaching in her classes. Emily’s teaching style demonstrates her spiritual essence which is steeped in eastern philosophy. She is a long time practitioner of meditation and Bhakti yoga. Emily believes that bringing the mind, body and breath together creates a state of stillness which enables students to connect to an inner state of bliss.

Emily grew up and has lived the majority of her life in the lush green mountains of Vermont. She has a great respect and deep appreciation for nature and animals, which she expresses through taking photos and writing poetry. She is an avid skier and always enjoys a good jaunt in the woods. Emily recently took up playing golf. She doesn’t take it too seriously, but plays for fun with her friends while enjoying the beautiful scenery. Emily implements the teachings of yoga, not just on the mat but as her life pursuit. As a yoga teacher she hopes to expand, enrich and uplift the lives of the students that come to her classes. Then, they too can discover the richness of life within their own being, on and off the mat .

Sue Flanagan, RYT®500

Sue began her yoga journey in 2017. She walked into the Heart of the Village Yoga and felt at home, taking as many classes as she possibly could. Her practice grew as did her desire to learn so she enrolled in the Heart of the Village Yoga 200 hour teacher training program. The training was transformative and helped Sue become more in touch with her true nature. She is currently completing the 300 Hour Teacher Training at Heart of the Village Yoga and has been developing an ease and depth in her practice. Sue became enamored with Aerial Yoga through Heart of the Village Yoga. The act of being supported and letting go through Aerial Yoga has been a very powerful experience for her.  She received her teacher training for Aerial Yoga in Albany, NY in 2022.  

Sue has lived and raised 4 children in Manchester since 1995. She is currently a retired Speech Language Pathologist who worked at the local elementary school for 26 years.

Lela Hughes, RYT®500

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Lela has been practicing yoga for 18 years, becoming increasingly dedicated over time. Heart of the Village Yoga has allowed Lela the opportunity to advance her practice both on and off the mat. Lela enjoys the challenge of a rajasic yoga practice and sequences that build heat from the inside out. She is excited to share her love of the practice with new students – honing in on alignment and breath work. Lela, an interior designer, can be found spending time outside with her family – snowboarding and sledding in the winter, and gardening and exploring nature in the warmer months.

Barb Lowes, E-RYT®500

Barb Lowes has been practicing yoga her entire adult life. She is a Yoga Alliance Certified Teacher E-RYT500, YACEP, specializing in Power Yoga, Slow Flow, Restorative, Yin, and Chair.. She is also a practicing Reiki Master and a Certified Brain Longevity Specialist by the Alzheimer’s Research and Prevention Foundation.

Barb was inspired to study the practice of Brain Longevity after her father passed away from Alzheimer’s. She uses this passion to teach others the empowering yoga strategies found in ancient wisdom teachings. These studies are proven to relieve tension and anxiety, improve mood, boost focus and concentration – plus build a strong memory to keep the brain active, powerful and healthy.

She finds Yoga a glorious way to navigate the journey and a constant companion through all of life’s ups and downs. Originally from New York City, Barb now lives in Manchester, Vermont. She is a wife, a mother and grandmother. Besides yoga, Barb loves to hike with her dog Finn, bike, ski, play tennis, pickle ball, golf, and travel.

She lives by true yoga philosophy: choose to find things to do that you love…and just do it. Barb shares this work through classes and workshops, both live and via zoom.

Kait Zwagerman Tyler, RYT®500

Kait has been teaching yoga in Southern Vermont since 2013–sharing a teaching modality and practice that celebrates movement with playfulness, connection, and joy. These feelings inform and guide her teachings, which are rooted in helping students better connect to themselves, the people they care for, and their community.

Kait first fell in love with the practice when she discovered hot power vinyasa and enrolled in her first teacher training— Hot Warrior Yoga with Jennilee Toner in 2013. After teaching for several years, Kait completed her 500 hour teacher training at Heart of the Village Yoga in 2018. Over the years, Kait has drawn from her range of yoga experiences—through attending, teaching, and personal practice—to weave together flows that range from fun, energetic and invigorating…to easeful, gentle and sweet. She is best known by her students for her energetic attitude, hands on assists, and playlists. Being part of the Vermont yoga community means the world to Kait—and she has made some of her best friendships and connections through these shared experiences.

Kait has been teaching yoga at Heart of the Village since 2017.

She has taught Stand Up Paddle Board Yoga, Prenatal, Mommy and Me, Power Flow, Gentle Flow, Yin Yoga, Restorative Yoga, Slow Flow and many workshops like ‘Guideposts for Wholehearted Living’ and Make Your Own Mala—she also sells jewelry from time to time in the boutique.

In September 2023, Kait started her freelance marketing business with a “mindful marketing” approach. She is currently working with mission-aligned clients and having a blast integrating her mindfulness practice in this new way. When not working or teaching yoga, you might find Kait walking the trails at Equinox with her husband, two kids, and rescue pup, do-it-yourself-ing old house projects, or baking bread.


Andrea Albrittain Ross, Co-Founder

“I have practiced yoga for over 30 years. It has been an extraordinary journey into stillness and awareness. 

The practice of yoga open’s one’s heart, mind and body. It benefits our physical bodies by building strength, balance, and alignment. For me, my practice has become a moving meditation where I find peace within the grace of the Asanas. I believe that the practice of yoga has the power to transform and bring peace and well being into one’s life.

Many of the postures practiced in yoga are focused on physically expanding our chests to allow us to focus on and expand our heart centers. This opens our etheric or energetic hearts and enables us to receive healing and increased awareness. The practice of yoga has the power to transform and unify. 

It is my hope that Heart of the Village Yoga will expose others to this practice that enlightens all our lives, individually and collectively. It is my hope that what is taught in our studio can be incorporated in to one’s daily life. That one’s yoga practice can become a part of who one is when confronted by all of the circumstances of life. That one’s mat can always be beneath one’s feet. The practice of yoga in the studio becomes a rehearsal for one’s authentic practice within the greater community.”

In addition to being a mother of eight children, Andrea Ross’ career of community service includes over twenty-five years in clinical patient care; board service and active involvement with local schools, community foundations and family services. She  earned her Bachelor and Masters in Nursing from the University of Pennsylvania.

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