Yoga Teacher Training Graduates

Kinder Roth

Kinder Roth is a West coaster at heart, born and raised in Oregon…then moving to the Southern California sunshine. In 2011 she re-located to Columbus, OH with her husband and beloved Pomeranian and now resides in German Village. After a major foot injury and life on the road for her job with Free People, she began looking for some kind of oasis. She started doing yoga as rehabilitation for her injury and solace from her fast-paced lifestyle. She quickly fell in love with yoga and all it has to offer. When she saw the impact her practice had on her life, she became an advocate for yoga to all her friends and family. Then she knew; she wanted to spread the love and teach yoga so others could benefit from it as much as she has. She received her 200 hour Yoga Alliance Certificate in the Spring of 2013.

Kris Wilson

Kris Wilson first started teaching in the group fitness industry in 1997. After attending different styles of yoga classes she attended a seminar on meditation taught by Laurel Hodory. She was thrilled to learn the physical benefits of the pranayama (breathing) practice. It was here Kris felt drawn into Laurel’s in-depth knowledge of the benefits of yoga, Philosophy and anatomy. After an intensive 200 hour teacher training with Laurel and faculty, Kris received her certificate in March of 2013. As a teacher she wants students to feel comfortable and have a sense that they belong, no matter what their level of practice.

Kristy Gerlich

Taking her first class as an undergraduate student, Kristy immediately took to yoga and has been practicing ever since. Ten years later, she has practiced across most of the country from San Francisco—where she really deepened her personal practice and awoke to the transformative powers of yoga—to New York where she challenged herself in advanced classes. A ten week stay at the Omega Institute in upstate New York solidified her commitment to exploring the yogic teachings and the mind, body, breath connection.

Kristy is an organic farmer who physically uses her body very hard almost every day. Yoga has been a literal life saver for her as a restorative balance to the daily aggressive tasks demanded by the farming lifestyle. Driven to share the peace she experiences from her own restorative practice, she enrolled in Laurel Hodory’s 200 Hr. Yoga Teacher Training. The training covered both Ashtanga and Hatha Yoga. New to teaching, she and is eager to share her inspired knowledge drawing from her own strong asana practice in the hopes of facilitating a co-creative environment with her students in the studio.

Kristyn Henthorn

Kristyn Henthorn BS RYT was introduced to Yoga as a means of stretching and relaxation after rigorous weight lifting workouts. The gentle stretching and place of peace kept bringing her back. Her background included gymnastics, cheerleading, and several high school sports. Yoga seemed like a natural progression.

After practicing for over 10yrs she trained under Laurel Hodory as a RYT 200HR in 2012. She is trained in the Ashtanga Vinyasa System and Hatha Yoga. Kristyn has studied and attended numerous lectures including; Anatomy and Physiology of the body, Philosophy of Yoga, and Ayurvedic Medicine. She completed her Bachelors of Science Degree in 2009. After 11yrs of Medical Sales she decided to pursue her love of Yoga and wanted to share it with others.

Her passion is to offer a nurturing practice for students to explore, heal and transform their bodies and their lives. She guides students in a rhythm that allows them to flow in harmony with their breath and stay open to the moment.
Kristyn is currently the Yoga Coordinator and teaching at Lifetime Fitness in Dublin, Ohio. kristynbreatheyoga.com

Lana Goldberg

Lana Goldberg became a devoted student of Yoga after experiencing its transformational and empowering magic in the late 1990s. After exploring various styles and falling in love with what yoga represented to her, she decided to deepen her knowledge by becoming a certified teacher.

Lana completed Yoga Teacher Training with Laurel Hodory & Faculty and in 2014 registered with Yoga Alliance as an RYT-200. She also received her Yoga Tune Up® teacher certification from Jill Miller in 2012 and has studied with Steve and Robyn Capobianco and Max Strom.

As a teacher, Lana looks beyond physical movement to create a spiritually rich, healing, and safe practice that addresses tightness and lingering injuries in the body and fosters emotional freedom in the higher self. She is excited and honored to share a healthy, fulfilling and graceful yoga practice with her students.

Prior to studying yoga, Lana was an avid Ballroom and Argentine tango dancer. She loves music, books, learning, traveling and spending time with people she loves. When not on her mat, Lana works with a Life Science company in Massachusetts and chases her son in local parks.

Leah Moody

Leah Moody first became involved with yoga in high school for the physical relief from running. The mental and spiritual aspects quickly had her addicted and she has practiced ever since. She attributes yoga as the only way for her to control anxiety and keep her hip-flexors open all from the same practice. She enjoys the stability and peace that a yoga lifestyle brings to her otherwise ungrounded life as she engages in international travel several times annually to study less-commonly taught languages.

“Yoga helps to ground me no matter where in the world I may be. Unlike languages, cultures, people and materials, the yoga lifestyle has no limits and it is one of the few things that I can take with me wherever I go.”

A current student in the Master in Public Health program at Ohio State University, Leah has a special interest in small, organic farm food production and women’s health issues. She enjoys staying in touch with her yoga lifestyle by spending time in nature, playing the piano and eating vegetables.

Her yoga philosophy in the classroom is that in order to love and help others, you must first love and help yourself. In class, she will usually speak to the importance of staying in touch with nature in order to attain personal and spiritual awareness.

Leah was certified in 2014 in Ashtanga and Hatha Yoga by Yoga with Laurel Hodory and has taught at the Recreation and Physical Activity Center at Ohio State for two years. She will graduate in 2015 and plans to spend time in Asia doing public health outreach under either the Peace Corps or Fulbright grant.

Leiyah Shan

Leiyah (Shan) started studying yoga over 12 years ago at Seattle’s Center for Iyengar yoga. She was so appealed to yoga by its physical and emotional benefits, she has been studying and practicing yoga ever since. She has practiced Hatha yoga for many years, and Bykram yoga for 3 years in Seattle. After moving back to Ohio, where her family is, she has started studying Ashtanga yoga as well as Anusara yoga in various studios. In 2010, Leiyah decided it is time for her to share her passion for yoga with others by becoming a certified yoga teacher. She has been studying with Laurel Hodory since January 2010. She will Yoga Teacher Training Certification with Laurel Hodory in November of 2010 in Ashtanga / Hatha yoga.

This year Leiyah she has also studied with Rodney Yee, and will be studying with David Swenson in November. She plans to further her studies of Anusara yoga in 2011.

Leiyah has been teaching since she moved back to Ohio. She taught for almost 2 years at Premier Fitness in Dayton. She started teaching again this year as she is going through certification. She is currently teaching a beginner’s yoga class to a group of private clients. She is also currently a sub yoga teacher for Premier on Sawmill Athletic Club and Pai Yoga.

Leiyah hopes to continue to expand her teaching experience through sharing her endless joy in studying and practicing yoga with beginners and experienced yogis alike.

Leslie Fox

Leslie Fox discovered yoga in 2006 a year after giving birth to her sixth child. Leslie knew her core was weak and she was physically exhausted from having six children in twelve years. She was hooked from the very first day and knew instinctively that her life was about to change. Immediately she began practicing yoga every single day. After five years of attending classes and telling anyone who would listen how yoga has changed her life, she decided to become certified. This coincided with her eldest leaving the nest for college and with her youngest entering first grade. Yoga has helped her with the transitions that life brings and the stress that comes with change and with raising a household of kids, especially teenagers.

Leslie loves both Hatha and Ashtanga yoga and has a keen interest in teaching beginners. She remembers hiding in the back of the room until she emerged to the front of the room with gained confidence and wants to help others achieve the same not only on their mat but in life as well.

Leslie lives with her six children, her husband David and a menagerie of pets. It can be a chaotic existence and it is amazing how yoga helps with that.

In addition to yoga, Leslie loves to garden, read, cook, knit and take long walks early in the morning at sunrise.

Leslie is a YTT 200 hour certified yoga teacher through Laurel Hodory and hopes to someday further her training in the YTT 500 hours program.

Liz Whisler

Liz Whisler started practicing yoga at home in 2007, but it wasn’t until she stepped into the classroom that she became a dedicated student of yoga, pranayama & meditation. She continues to find her way to the classroom in addition to regular home practice.

She is committed to cultivating a place of safety, exploration and connection for her students, where she can share the many gifts of yoga that have been given to her. Additionally, her personal experience with injury gives her a unique awareness and sensitivity to the special needs of individuals in the classroom.

Liz has had the fortunate opportunity to study under Laurel Hodory and will receive her 200 hour Yoga Alliance teacher certification this December, 2012.

Lorena Ritchey

Lorena Ritchey is passionate about living a healthy, well-balanced life full of meaning, growth and love, love, love! Yoga continues to humble and encourage her to exercise patience and learn more about herself each day. Yoga reminds Lorena of the beauty and simple moments of life which ultimately helps her focus on what matters most, and to pursue what truly makes her happy. She enjoys the physical challenge and the peaceful and fulfilling energy yoga brings into her life “on and off” the mat.

As a teacher, Lorena’s focus is to share her love of yoga, and to create positive, healthy and meaningful experiences for her students. She’s had the privilege to study under the formal instruction and guidance of Laurel Hodory and continue to be blessed with the guidance from two of her mentor teachers; Chan White and Kara Lough. Lorena is a 2012 graduate of the 200 Hour Yoga Teacher Training Ashtanga/Hatha- Vinyasa Program, certified under Yoga Alliance.

Lori Conway

Lori has always been a meditation practitioner. She would find time to be alone and quiet and realized the grounding qualities that came from it at a very early age. It was an invaluable tool to have through college and now as a parent.

During pregnancy in 1999, she was looking for exercise to stay in shape and found an Iyengar studio in Boca Raton, Florida. Yes, the benefits of staying in good physical shape were realized, but what hooked her was the amazing connection she found with her baby. Through thoughtful movement, breathing, meditation and chanting, the light on the path would shine a little brighter and with every practice, gain a bit more clarity into self.

Lori has attended Yoga Journal conferences and various seminars. She will complete Yoga Teacher Training Certification with Laurel Hodory in November of 2010.

Through her own experimenting with Hatha, Asthanga, Kripalu and a few fusion forms of yoga, she can see the beauty in all forms and understands that being playful and open only deepen your own personal practice and spiritual path. It is her hope to continue to learn from others on this path and draw on her own experiences and the wisdom of her teachers so that she can share this transforming and amazing practice with all seeking balance, strength and grace. Namaste!

Maggie Egbert

Maggie Egbert went to her first yoga class in 2003 when she was searching for ways to deal with stress. What she discovered was not only was yoga calming on the mind but also challenging physical workout. Maggie has enjoyed practicing with many different teachers and styles of yoga and through those influences has developed a style of class that focuses on self reflection instead of competition and classes that have laughter and music and offer a vigorous physical workout. Maggie received her certification in 2009. Maggie lives in Upper Arlington with her husband Charlie they enjoy the adventures of traveling and when at home enjoy playing with their two dogs Max and Zoe.

Mari Rui Nygard

As a student of classical music in Oslo, Norway, Mari Rui Nygard found yoga to be a needed support and comfort. She uses yoga as part of her music education and performance to enhance her focus, as well as to maintain her physical health, a sense of calm and an open heart. Over the years, Mari has practiced many different styles of yoga, including Iyengar, Kundalini, Bikram and Ashtanga, with teachers throughout Europe. In 2013, she completed the Yoga Teacher Training Program with Laurel Hodory and Faculty in Trondheim, Norway.

Mary Coleman

Mary began yoga as a home practice when she was searching for an alternative to her normal aerobic exercise. After spending two years practicing with the use of DVDs, she realized that she needed a teacher who could help her find the way. Mary began studying privately with Laurel Hodory (Columbus, Ohio) in 2009. The experience was transformative. Mary became a Certified Yoga Instructor through Yoga Alliance in November 2011.

Mary believes in the body’s ability to heal itself. In 2011, she became a Certified Health Coach, founding her health coaching business, “Celebrating Health, LLC”. “Yoga is a natural part of my philosophy for health and wellness.” Mary says, “When we align ourselves with the core principals of yoga, eat well, care for ourselves and reflect on our lives in a conscious manner, we begin to know a life filled with abundance, joy and passion. We all want to live our unlived lives, to know what it is like to wake up everyday filled with passion for what we do.”

Mary enjoys a vigorous practice but also embraces the enormous value of a restorative practice. “I believe that every body can do yoga. No matter what you believe your limitations to be, I believe that there is a yoga practice available to you, if you want it.”

“Since I was 16-years-old, I had endured daily shoulder and neck pain as a result of an accident. Truly for almost 30 years, I did not know a single day without discomfort until I began a regular practice of yoga. I still remember the joy that I experienced when, after only a month of dedicated yoga practice, I realized that I had no pain! The beautiful part was that after the pain was removed from my life, I could focus on developing my inner life without distraction.”

Mary is eager to share yoga and wellness with others and can be reached through her website at www.celebratinghealth.us.

Mary Jo Kearns

Mary Jo Kearns has been practicing yoga intermittently for over thirty years. She lived most of her adult life in rural Kansas, where she raised four children and taught lively and energetic middle schoolers. She is currently enrolled in a 200-hour teacher training course at It’s Yoga under the direction of Laurel Hodory. The program has given her training in Ashtanga and Hatha Yoga. Mary Jo enjoys helping beginners discover their flexibility, strength, tranquility, grace, and individual purpose. She teaches primarily Hatha Yoga.

Mathew Citriglia

Matthew’s introduction to yoga came via a P90X fitness DVD in 2009. It was nothing like he expected and was one of the most intense workouts he had ever experienced. He discovered yoga worked the entire body: it built strength, increased flexibility, improved endurance, and created a mental focus that shut off the rest of the world. He began to study the subject but was overwhelmed by the many diverse practices yoga offered. Fascinated by the subject matter, he joined a Yoga Teacher Training 200hour Program with Laurel Hodory in January of 2011 from which he graduated in November 2011. The training provided focus, direction and solid ground to allow the seeds of yoga knowledge to sprout.

Matthew seeks out a variety of yoga workshops to improve his knowledge and understanding of the practice. He loves the power of arm balances, the freedom of flying and the focus of binds. Students enjoy the passion and positive energy that he brings to class, along with ability to instill a sense of confidence in them.

As a Master Sommelier and Director of Education for Vintage Wine Distributor, Matthew spends most of his time instilling his knowledge and passion for wine, beer, sprits and sake to hospitality professionals and consumers. No matter how busy life gets, Matthew always makes time to break up his day with a wide variety of activities that will raise the heart rate and intensify life’s pleasure: Yoga, mountain biking, hiking, roller hockey, snowboarding, running, or jumping on a slackline are just a few of the activities he can be found enjoying.

Megan Ferguson

Megan Ferguson is a devoted mother and fitness enthusiast. She started taking yoga classes as a natural way to help alleviate anxiety and augment her cross training. Shortly thereafter she discovered that a regular yoga practice helped her to find strength in herself as well as peacefulness through the mind, body and breath connection.

In 2005 Megan completed a yoga teacher training program to deepen her practice but did not pursue teaching certification. Eight years later she re-enrolled in the Yoga Teacher Training Program with Laurel Hodory & Faculty, this time with the goal of sharing her passion for yoga with others through teaching. She received her certification in Hatha and Ashtanga yoga in November 2013.

As a yoga teacher Megan wants her students to feel inspired by their yoga practice and understand that yoga is a powerful vehicle for change no matter who you are. She also wants to impart the message of yogi Gurmukh Kaur Khalsa—yoga is not about self-improvement, it’s about self-acceptance.

Megan Grunewald

Megan Grunewald became a RYT200 with Yoga Teacher Training with Laurel Hodory and Faculty in 2015. She came to yoga as a way to cultivate a deeper awareness of her own body. She has studied other movement arts since 2006 including hula hoop dance, poi, hip hop, jazz, and modern dance, and her experience with yoga encouraged her to pursue it as a way to incorporate healthy functioning and use of her body into her life as a movement artist. Megan is passionate about nurturing healthy bodies as well as a healthy planet. It was this passion that inspired her to complete a sustainable agriculture internship with The Green String Institute in 2012, an experience that strengthened both her spiritual and visceral relationship to the natural world. Megan’s desire to reduce her ecological footprint and find a path to personal health motivates her to eat a mostly seasonal, plant-based, whole foods diet. She worked with Luna Burger because of their dedication to creating relationships with sustainable Ohio farms, and she volunteers with Goodwill Columbus to plan and implement a garden-based life enrichment program for on-site residents. Megan practices mindfulness of the present moment, leading her to appreciate her own strengths and limitations. She incorporates her passions for growing and eating healthy foods into her life as a yoga teacher.

Merethe Hellen

An athlete her whole life, Merethe Hellen began to practice yoga in 1999 and has continued ever since. She finds in yoga a powerful feeling of presence in her body, mind and breath. Merethe’s practice has been influenced by Iyengar and Sivananda yoga and she has attended workshops and retreats both in Norway and internationally. In 2014, Merethe enrolled in Yoga Teacher Training with Laurel Hodory & Faculty, where she earned her certification in Hatha and Ashtanga Vinyasa yoga. Merethe is a clinical psychologist who specializes in working with victims of trauma. In 2013 she participated in a Trauma Sensitive Yoga retreat at the Kripalu Institute in Massachusetts and recently started a support group in Trondheim, Norway where traumatized refugee women use yoga as part of their healing process.

Michael Morgan

Michael Morgan came to the practice through Sally Roberts and her teaching at Grandview Heights area gym. He was seriously into lifting but not so much into stretching. He noticed the asanas and mistook them for stretching but was eager to try it. He fell in love with the practice and found that it was so much more than stretching.

Yoga has brought him through personal and physical struggles. Yoga helped him back to health after being hospitalized twice in a month for Crohn’s disease. It was the first thing he turned to and it didn’t let him down. Yoga has been very good to Michael. 🙂

Michael wants to bring the gift of yoga to others for all it can do both off and on the mat. Michael is very interested in the philosophical underpinnings of the asana practice and has used them in his personal and professional life. He believes that simple things can lead to great awakenings and people can be introduced to the philosophy in a non-dogmatic way.

Michael has already used yogic teachings, including parts of the Bhagavad Gita, in his work as an Attorney with the Franklin County Public Defender with great success. He has had a variety of experiences that help him relate to people from many walks of life. He has been a farm boy, Army Reservist, commission salesman, and a public defender both in urban Columbus, Ohio and Appalachian Marietta, Ohio. He enjoys his yoga practice, studying the scripture, the company of good friends and family. He is very eager to give the gifts he continues to receive back to the community.