Sue began practicing yoga in 1994 to compliment her very active lifestyle. Through her years of daily practice, she has found her passion lies in Ashtanga & Power Vinyasa Yoga, which create a strong, flexible, healthy body - as well as a quiet, peaceful mind. Although Sue continues to teach Power Vinyasa Yoga classes, her daily personal practice for the past 9 years has been dedicated to the Ashtanga Yoga tradition.

After studying with Gabriel Cousens at the Tree of Life Rejuvenation Center, she has transformed her life in a deeper way by adding daily meditation and eating primarily an organic, raw, vegan diet. Yoga, meditation and a healing diet help not only to cleanse and purify the body, but also the mind...connecting us to our inner "buddha" which means "one who is awake". When we make this connection, we become conscious of the choices which we often make at an emotional or unconscious level; and it is through this connection that we can truly transform our lives.

Sue began her teaching career in 1984, teaching various forms of fitness training for the past 26 years. She began teaching yoga in 2003 and founded New England Yoga on August 26, 2006. Sue previously taught aerobics, weight training, personal training, pilates, and was a ski instructor and a pre-school teacher.

• Certified Yoga Instructor
• RYT Instructor w/Yoga Alliance
• 200 Hr., Raja Ashtanga Yoga Certification w/Focal Point Yoga - 2003
• 108 Hr., Ashtanga Yoga Teacher Training with Kino MacGregor, Greg Nardi & Tim Feldmann - 2010
• 5 Day Ashtanga Yoga Primary Series Workshop w/R. Sharath Jois in NYC - 2011
• 40 Hr., Ashtanga Yoga Teacher Training w/David Swenson - 2004
• 40 Hr., Ashtanga Yoga Teacher Training w/David Swenson - 2011
• 42 Hr., Ashtanga Yoga Teacher Training w/Tim Miller - 2009
• 40 Hr., Advanced Teacher Training w/Ana Forrest - 2007
• 35 Hr., Vinyasa Yoga Teacher Training w/Seane Corn - 2007
• Workshop training includes: Kino MacGregor, Beryl Bender Birch, David Swenson, David Williams, Nancy Gilgoff, Manju Jois, Annie Pace, Shiva Rae, Seane Corn, Rolf Gates, Shannah Greene & David Magone
• Level III Certified Usui Master Reiki Practitioner w/Bindy Johnson
• Certified "Living on Live Food" Raw Food Teacher w/Alissa Cohen
• Level I - Conscious Eating Intensive/7 Day Vegan Live Food Training w/The Tree of Life Rejuvenation Center
• Level II - Advanced Conscious Eating Intensive/7 Day Vegan Live Food Training
  w/The Tree of Life Rejuvenation Center.
• Certified Personal Trainer w/AAI/ISMA
• STOTT PILATES trained Intensive Mat Pilates
• STOTT PILATES trained Intensive Reformer

Lisa has been practicing yoga for 10 years to balance her own life as a Registered Nurse. She has been working in many aspects of health care for 30 years and was swayed to Holistic Medicine mid practice. Enjoying the benefits of yoga philosophy herself, Lisa decided to move to the next level, getting certified through Yogafit and becoming an instructor. Attending many workshops and practicing different styles of yoga, she settled on Vinyasa Flow. The mind-body connection with breath meditation transcends us deeper into our true self. The awaking, healing, strength and feelings of gratitude each pose offers is something she wants to convey to others on the mat vs the bedside. Life is a journey to be nurtured...find your balance and enjoy!

I feel so blessed that my life has turned onto this (very unexpected) path of yoga. My belief is that yoga is truly a miracle and whatever we seek, whether consciously or unconsciously, for our minds or for our bodies, can be found on our mats. I'm so honored to be able to teach and my goal for my classes is to further my students' awareness of their energy, breath, bodies, and alignment, and to help them realize the beautiful light they all possess. My 200-hour Yoga Alliance certification is from Prana Power Yoga... thank you, Taylor & Philippe! I should also thank David Magone, Baron Baptiste, Bryan Kest, Ana Forrest, and Ellen Heed. Jene, Jacqui, and Sue, you continue to inspire me and Joe, if it wasn't for you I wouldn't have found my way here. Thanks to all for your energy and light. Besides yoga, I'm certified to teach pilates and Zumba, am a Level II Usui Reiki practitioner, and have a deep interest in our chakras and how they affect every aspect of our lives. I've been graced with two unbelievably wonderful sons and one exceptionally crazy dog. Peace.

After 15 years of competitive gymnastics, and 10 years of coaching gymnastics, Danielle came to yoga looking for an activity that allowed the same sense of strength, balance and endurance that gymnastics fostered. Danielle has practiced various styles of yoga (Bikram, Power Vinyasa and Anusara) for 8 years, and identifies most with the beauty and meditation of the flowing, vinyasa style. She has been teaching all over New England for the past 2 years. Danielle's approach to teaching is to support the physical practice by creating flows that are always different, always challenging, but yet accessible for all levels of practitioners. As a Ph.D scientist researching and teaching exercize physiology at UMass-Lowell, Danielle uses yoga philosophy to balance her analytical mind, and attempts to share that balance with her students

Anne began teaching fitness classes at the age of 15, and received a degree in Exercise Physiology from Northeastern in 1988. For several years she had a business as a personal trainer and also obtained a certification as a health/fitness specialist through the American College of Sports Medicine. But it wasn’t until 2010 that she discovered power yoga, ditched the gym, and focused on yoga exclusively. In 2010/2011 she trained with David Magone and Kevan Gale and received a 200hr PranaVayu-Inspired certification. She describes it as an awesome journey, especially the philosophical component of the PranaVayu system and Buddhist – inspired teachings. She looks forward to teaching what she has learned to her students. Expect from her classes a meditative flow, incorporating PranaVayu- inspired sequences of asanas and Buddhist-inspired dedications. Expect a calm vibe and a balanced series of body and mind-challenging experiences. She loves being a yoga student and her most favorite thing to teach is meditation. Anne is also a certified interior designer and owner of Buddhanest Yoga, a traveling yoga studio

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Ann is an Occupational Therapist who currently works in the area of special needs with children and young adults. Ann has taught yoga to children with cerebral palsy and other neuromuscular challenges with the belief that yoga truly is for everybody.

Ann began practicing yoga in early 2000 and received her 200 hour certification in Raja Ashtanga Yoga in July of 2002.

Since then, Ann has done numerous workshops with such noted instructors as Rodney Yee, David Magone, and Rolf Gates.

Ann received her ACSM Personal Training Certification in February of 2006, is certified to teach Pilates Mat level one, and has completed Pilates Fit training through Yoga Fit Training Systems.

Ann has taken workshops such as: Integrating the Feldenkrais Method with Orthopedic Therapy and Exercise Rehabilitation programs; Designing Home Exercise Programs for Persons with Disabilities; The Pilates Method for Use as Therapeutic and Corrective Exercise.

Ann is extremely grateful to Sue Pentland for the opportunity to teach and grow in such a beautiful studio, and to Julie Erickson for her excellent Pilates instruction.

Based on the advice of his staff in India, Paul Miller signed up for his first Yoga (Asana) class in 2006. In April of 2010 he would go to start teaching in New Hampshire. Paulie to his friends is an executive at a Fortune 500 Corporation with over 20 years of Management experience. Paulie received his Liberal Arts Degree in Philosophy from U Mass Lowell. He is also an accomplished musician and drummer for the band Crazy Jane.

Paulie took his first Workshop with Beryl Bender Birch in 2008. Knowing nothing about Beryl he signed up with some friends. Paulie showed up to class an hour early. He met a nice lady and they chatted for about 45 minutes. Later he found out she was the teacher. After class he knew he found his teacher. Knowing nothing about Ashtanga or the 8 limbs the path became clear.

Beryl studied with Norm Allen, the first Westerner to study with Sri K. Pattabhi Jois, the founder of Astanga Yoga. Beryl also spent 6 months studying with Jois while he was in the states. Beryl is a bestselling author of Power Yoga and Beyond Power Yoga. She was named one of seven American women “innovators shaping yoga today” by Yoga Journal in 2000.

200 hour certified by the Hard and Soft Yoga Institute / Beryl Bender Birch and is currently working on his 500 hour Certification. A graduate of the Veterans Yoga Project Teacher Training Baptiste Teacher training Level 1 – 117 hours.

Ramsay began practicing yoga over a decade ago at Baron Baptiste?s studio, where she was drawn to the strong, physical practice of yoga.  The unexpected bonus was that this physical practice also brought about a peaceful mind that other athletic endeavors had not. Being a mother of three young children, this peace was good! Over the years, Ramsay has attended several workshops with re-owned yogis like Ana Forrest, Shiva Rae, Rodney Yee, Seane Corn and Rolf Gates.  Ramsay completed her 6 month/200-hour teacher training with Natasha Rizopoulos of YogaWorks, based in NY and LA. Ramsay?s classes combine the heat and flow of Ashtanga with an emphasis on alignment that comes from Iyengar. As a former TV producer, Ramsay enjoys the challenge of planning and producing a safe but challenging sequence for each class? with a deep appreciation that every student is different and that each day is different.  Be Present  and Be Patient.  As the great Pattabhi Jois said,  ?Little by little, all is coming?.

After several years of home practice with books and videos, and classes with many local teachers, I enrolled in a year-long teacher training to deepen my practice and connect with others of like mind. During my teacher training I experienced my first Anusara class when Deb Neubauer came as a guest teacher. I was so impressed by how much deeper my poses were, and how uplifted I felt after class that I knew I had to learn more, so I took every workshop and class I could, eventually taking a year-long teacher training with Deb. I continue to be awed and inspired in each Anusara class I take.

Anusara, which was developed by John Friend, celebrates the essential goodness in each student, and brings the student to a higher state of opening and freedom by addressing the inner experience as well as the physical alignments of the yoga postures. By opening ourselves to the greater flow of Universal energy, we find ourselves being transformed on the mat, as well as off.

My goal as a teacher is to create a safe, uplifting environment where each student feels inspired to reach inside to discover the strength, freedom and joy that is our essential nature.

Marge began practicing yoga nearly 10 years ago as part of a comprehensive health program. Initially drawn to power vinyasa as an aerobic, graceful exercise, she began to see that yoga?s benefits transcended the usual workout. Curious to discover why yoga was unique, she began to practice other styles, including restorative, which she found to be extremely powerful. Following a cancer diagnosis nearly 5 years ago, Marge entered deeply into the practice, finding that she could remain active and centered during the rigorous schedule of treatments and surgery. It was through NE Yoga that she found the support and courage to use yoga as a means of not only managing her life, but was inspired by Founder Sue Pentland?s willingness to bring her personal sorrows and challenges to the studio with an open mind and heart.

Marge completed her 200 hr certification with Lucy Cimini of Central Mass Yoga, where Lucy?s work with PTSD and combat veterans inspired her to more deeply explore the relationship between trauma and the physical/emotional response to trauma that could be addressed and healed through yoga.

Her personal practice is an Ashtanga- based practice which appeals to her for its meditative flow and comprehensive asana sequence. She recently attended a weekend workshop with Ashtanga master David Swenson.

In addition to working as a private duty nurse, Marge counsels and coaches women who have been through cancer treatment or other debilitating and traumatic experiences, bringing extensive knowledge of integrative therapy, nutrition, and restorative and therapeutic yoga to those who seek alternative methods of healing.

Brenda has been practicing yoga for about nine years and completed her 200 hour teacher certification with master teacher and author Rolf Gates. With a passion for movement and wellbeing, she has a desire to help others enjoy the benefits of a committed yoga practice. Brenda thoroughly enjoys assisting students of all levels as they improve their strength, flexibility and alignment both physically and mentally. For Brenda, yoga has been her chosen vehicle for encouragement , support and positive change in her life. It is her distinct honor to share her love of yoga with all who choose to come to her classes. Brenda also has a teaching background in aerobics, weight training, children’s tap, ballet and jazz. She is also currently certified as a spinning instructor through Mad Dogg Athletics.

I had been studying yoga for years and exploring many styles before discovering a vinyasa (flow) style practice in a Baron Baptiste video.  This eventually led to David Magone?s PranaVayu classes.  When David announced in class one day that he was starting up a teacher training program, my heart sang out and I knew it was the right program for me. 

PranaVayu classes are characterized by the careful sequencing of poses to make difficult poses attainable, core alignment principles to keep the body safe, and meditative techniques to calm the mind.   The end result is a strong, flexible body and a balanced outlook on life.

Yoga is art in a physical form, like ballet and other forms of dance, or any form of movement when it is performed with attention and grace.  Poses, experienced from the inside out, have the power to liberate the body and the mind.  Opening up the body to a freer and less constricted way of moving through the world can open up the mind to a freer and less constricted way of moving through life.

I graduated from Wellesley College with a BA in studio art and am a mother of three, an artist, curator and librarian who loves to run in the woods with her German Shepherd.

I have been fortunate to take classes and workshops with Shiva Rea, Edward Clark, Sue Pentland, David Swenson, Tom Gillette, Kevan Gale, and many others.  I completed my 200 hour teacher training in PranaVayu yoga with David Magone in November of 2009.

 

Deborah Santoro

Shirley, Massachusetts