Hi, I’m Farmer Mar Mar and I’m just a guy that loves plants and the vibes that come with it. I have a garden of over 60 plants that my wife and I tend to. I’m real big on being self sufficient especially being black in this country. Gardening helps me relieve the stress of today’s world. That’s all I’m trying to share with my people.
Dr. Ram Bhagat
Dr. Ram Bhagat is a longtime educator, arts innovator, peacemaker, and community healer who has been teaching and transforming communities for 35 years. Dr. Bhagat is committed to healing trauma in our classrooms, schools, and communities. Ram is an international conflict resolution trainer, specialist in arts integration, and certified in restorative justice. He is a master teacher of culturally responsive peacemaking circles, racial healing, trauma awareness & resilience, yoga and mindfulness.
In the early 1990s, Ram co-founded Drums No Guns, a world percussion ensemble using drumming, dance, and drama (3D) to engage youth in a process of “healing community with rhythm.” The Drums No Guns Foundation was established in 2017 to expand Dr. Bhagat’s work with youth and families traumatized from gun violence, by combining trauma healing, restorative practices, mindfulness, and artfulness. Dr. B. also started incorporating peacemaking circles along with the original junk-yard jam to create a sense of balance within schools and diverse communities.
Dr. Ram Bhagat is devoted to healing community with rhythm. His pedagogy revolves around the ideals of compassion, equity, liberation, and love. Dr. Bhagat integrates four spheres and four arcs of engagement in his community healing process, called Massive Resilience. This emergent strategy is based on the principles of Ubuntu (I Am, Because We Are) and Sawubona (I See You, We See You). The four spheres for Massive Resilience are art, culture, education, and health, which collectively promote and support safe, responsive, loving, and healthy communities and organizations. The four arcs or engagement practices are trauma healing, restorative practices, mindfulness, and artfulness. The goal of Massive Resilience is to generate a decade-long renaissance (soaring 20s) of transformative cultural experiences, which includes training a cadre of warrior healers who are committed to generational healing.
Johnny Anzalone
Johnny Anzalone is a passionate yoga and mindfulness instructor in New York. In the school system Johnny has taught special education and dance and theater arts at New York University for over eighteen years. He has taught yoga, meditation and mindfulness for Rosewood hotels, Equinox fitness, simon and shuster publishing, Silberstein school , and countless other schools and organizations. He is most happy about his recent certification with Mission Be, dedicated to teaching mindfulness to kindergarten through twelfth graders. I’m so delighted to finally bring my creativity to Urban Yoga Foundation.
Warmly, Johnny
Shindera Jackson
Shindera Jackson, nurse, doula, yogi, acupuncturist and herbalist in training, momma of 2 and Light to many. She started this journey 14 years ago at the guidance of her grandmother and hasn’t stopped since. Volunteered as a wellness director for Urban Yoga Foundation guiding underserved children and adults to better health within the communities of New York for over 12yrs. Now making her main focus women's health, brown skin mommas womb health to be exact. Trail blazing with a different type of approach, wholistic realiness.
Shindera has been and will always be, an activist for health, just now, she's had a better platform to be heard. Stepping out on faith and stepping into your wealth, womb wealth. Coaching women one on one, setting their bodies on the right track, via lifestyle changes, exercise and mindfulness meditation. Showing you, brown skin women, that just because you were taught that way doesn't mean it has to stay that way. “Puedenda edumonia”.
Nikki Smith
Nikki is an 800-hour Jivamukti-certified yoga instructor and mindful meditation teacher. Her training is diverse: she received advanced certifications in both restorative yoga through Yogaworks, and mindfulness and creative practices for people incarcerated through LiberationYoga. Her extensive studies also include training in Reiki healing, Kundalini yoga and the Iyengar method. She began her journey into yoga 15 years ago and has been ever grateful for the life-altering impact yoga has had on her mental, emotional and physical well-being. Nikki's classes aim to create a healing space so that her students may witness the healing benefits of meditation and yoga. Nikki holds a B.A. in English from New Jersey City University.
Monica Parkin
Monica is a Yoga Instructor, Licensed Massage Therapist, mixologist, and small business owner living in St. Petersburg, FL. In 2015, Monica completed her 200 hour Yoga Teacher Training in Rishikesh, India. Her journey with UYF commenced in the Spring of 2018 as she began teaching middle school students in the underserved communities of St. Pete. Her practice and her teachings are all centered around the message of self-love. She often begins and ends her classes with a thought provoking question for her students to carry with them and apply towards the complicated situations life throws their/our way. The goal here is for every student to walk away with greater confidence in who they are and a deeper knowledge of their physical bodies. Monica’s small business, strength + shanti LLC, includes: therapeutic massage, yoga, and her handcrafted natural body care products. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Cultural Anthropology with a minor in Latin American Studies.
Whitney Blair
Whitney is a Florida native who moved to St. Petersburg in 2014 after graduating from Florida Gulf Coast University with a B.A in Anthropology and minors in Art and Philosophy. She completed a Master's degree in Global Sustainability from the Patel College of Global Solutions at the University of South Florida in December of 2017. Whitney has been practicing yoga since 2005 and in 2016 graduated with her 200YTT through Adiaya Yoga Sanctuary. Yoga has taught Whitney that one does not always have to swim upstream, sometimes we can just enjoy where the river takes us and trust in life's journey. More than anything, Whitney desires to dedicate her time to a meaningful purpose and yoga allows her to do just that.
Latreca Bonner
Latreca is a Certified Yogi and Meditation Instructor with a passion for teaching wellness of the mind, body and soul as a collective. For the last 2 1/2 years, she has been working with individuals (ages 5 to 95) in the surrounding community to gain and grow their self-awareness and self-love in every aspect of life. She is a Saint Petersburg, FL native and currently offers Yoga and Meditation sessions in a number of aspects throughout the community. Latreca is a Social and Emotional Learning or SEL teacher for the local school system while also being a children's piano teacher, which has allowed her to utilize her 20 years of music expertise to create and offer Musical Meditation as another form of soothing restorative practice.
“You have the power to heal yourself and you need to know that. We think so often that we are helpless, but we’re not. We always have the power of our minds. Claim and consciously use your power.” –Louise Hay
Clayton Sizemore
Clayton spent 30 years as a Broadcast Manager working for ABC, NBC and the world news leader CNN before taking control of his future and embarking on the next phase of chasing life and longevity as a Certified Yoga instructor. He was trained in India as a Hatha Yoga Instructor and is working with Beginners, Intermediate and Advanced students.
He is founder of the “Mens Movement Class” designed for Men 40 and over addressing special needs, working on flexibility, developing core and upper body strength, keeping the heart strong and the mind focused. He worked with the Fordham University Rams Football team in preparation for the 2013 fall football season.
Mya Cato
In 2014, Mya found herself in a yoga class as an avenue to stretch her achy muscles and counteract the mental stress of Corporate America. The physical benefits were obvious but the beginning of her yoga journey was ignited after receiving a sense of balance between the mind, body and soul. She adopted yoga as a lifestyle and later chose to become an instructor because of a lack of representation.
With a degree in Business Management and a background in Marketing & Event Planning, Mya founded Meeyogi, a Tampa-based yoga company offering events and private sessions. She received her 200-hour Hatha Yoga certification in 2016 through Yoga Loft Tampa. Her ongoing studies through various workshops allow her to remain a student first, to relay the teachings to yoga.
Mya includes three things in every class; movement, mindfulness, and meditation. She encourages a playful yet purposeful practice. Having the opportunity to teach yoga to youth and adults, she is dedicated to making yoga more inclusive for people of all labels.
Boo Boafo
Boo lives a holistically inspired, plant-based lifestyle with a lifelong yoga practice. Since health and wellness are her passions, she certified as a Thai Bodywork practitioner through 'Shantaya Yoga School' and a certified Yoga teacher through 'The Bhakti Center', she also has teachings for a trauma-informed practice and children's yoga with the ability to seamlessly blend them in to her classes, bringing sensitivity with a balance of light heartedness. Having switched to a plant-based lifestyle in 2003, Boo attended classes and lectures led by RawSoul, Tree of life, Hippocrates and other pioneering members of the plant-based community arming her with enough knowledge to dive deeply into a daily self-practice and exploration of the plant-based lifestyle. Fifteen years later, she now enjoys sharing that knowledge as a holistic lifestyle consultant, teaming up on retreats around the world either as the yoga teacher or as the chef leading the kitchen. She is also available as a private chef on vacations or for corporate events and classes. Locally she often works with non-profits assisting in the community to help others find balance through healthy nutrition and movement, one breath at a time. Her eternal question to her yoga students is 'what can you take from this practice today and filter it into the remaining 23 hours of the day? each and every day'. For yoga is not so much about what you practice on your mat but so much more about how you walk your path in life off the mat.
Shia Joyner
Shia Joyner is a mother of two, medical esthetician, yoga instructor and reiki healer based in Harlem.
She is deeply passionate about sharing simple and gentle ways to heal and nurture the body and skin. Inspired by the idea of true healing and wellness, Shia empowers others by teaching that beauty is more than skin deep and provides a 360 approach for the essence of ones true beauty to shine. Her mission is to provide people with result centered lifestyle routines that include yoga, beauty treatments, wellness experiences, and expert advice for those seeking to make a total life transformation.
Shia’s yogic journey began 5 years ago and was her tool in helping her deal with anxiety and depression. This lead Shia to travel to Nicaragua, Cuba and Columbia to strengthen her practice and study indigenous healing practices. She completed her 200 hour yoga teaching with Yoga Works and is dedicating to teaching other how to overcome life traumas through yoga.
As a yoga instructor, Shia’s teaches the power of breathing, mindfulness, self care and life balance. Shia believes that yoga is medicine for the soul and meeting on the mat is the prescription to discover your life purpose.
Asmi Shah
Asmi Shah has done yoga on and off for more than a decade, starting with old-school Indian DVDs. It
was focusing on breath and experiencing yoga as a moving meditation that transformed her life. She
completed her 200-hour teacher training at Yoga Vida in NYC and went to Nepal to study energy healing
using Himalayan singing bowls. Asmi believes yoga is for everyone – combining movement and breath
is powerful and doesn’t require any fancy postures or previous experience. She has also studied various
forms of Indian dance from classical to folk to Bollywood; she choreographs for sangeets (Indian
weddings) and other celebrations.
Lewis Tangi
"I love to provide an organic, nourishing experience on the mat. Yoga is union, of the body, mind, and soul. My role is to guide you into the present moment, and to ignite your inner healer within. Through physical sequences, linking breath to poses, you can remove energy blockages that cause ailments. Since 2012, I have witnessed yogas effect on my life. It has improved my posture and lung capacity. It has helped to heal minor back injuries. It has toned my body. Yoga continuously inspires creativity and brings me into a peaceful space from which life can open up and evolve. This is why I believe in yoga, and I wish to share its benefits with people of all walks of life.
I also facilitate meditation. Meditation is also union. Sending your energy and focus to isolated parts of your body, anchored by your breathing, can improve your overall wellness. In class we guide ourselves inward, to loosen ourselves, to accept and release accumulated energies that we are holding. Meditation has been a deeply practical part of my life. It is a process, a journey, an experience unique to every individual. I wish to share with you my practice while guiding you to find your flow through meditation."
Nyle Johnson
Nyle Johnson is a self taught Chef, who specializes in Nutritional Counseling and Vegan Style Cooking. From a young age, Nyle has spent a lot of time in the kitchen with his family, and by his wary teens, he was able to master many of the traditional American Style Dishes (I.e steaks, burgers, chicken, etc.) However, after losing several relatives to terminal illnesses, he began to research the correlation between poor nutrition and chronic diseases. Since then, he has devoted his life to creating foods that are satiating, delicious and nutritious. He now works at The Fig Tree Health Group in Brooklyn, NY, a company created by Maa and the late Dr. Sebi, that specializes in Nutritional Counseling and Herbal Compounds. He also works as a Private Chef and Nutritional Counselor to help assist others on there path to health and wellness.
Autumn Leonard
Autumn Leonard inherited a love of equality from her parents who braved laws against interracial marriage and got legally hitched in 1960. Her love of storytelling began when she was eight years old and accidentally stumbled into a stage debut at the Edinburgh Fringe. That combination of justice and story has infused her work ever since. Autumn worked as the Creative Action Coordinator for United for a Fair Economy, using theater techniques to help craft press events and stage creative social actions. She then worked as the Community Programmer for the International Festival for Arts and Ideas in New Haven before making the leap into film and attending the graduate Radio-Television -Film program at the University of Texas at Austin. She has been a trainer for Ruckus and a puppet builder for Art & Revolution; she has chaired the Race Task Force at Kolot Chayeinu in support of other Jews of color and taught at Kolot's K'tanim program. A mother of two, Autumn believes avidly in the importance of play in education and has served on the Maple Street School board since 2012. She graduated with a BA in Theater Studies at Yale and holds an MFA in Film from UT Austin. Autumn is currently the Social Media Coordinator for Hand-in-Hand, the domestic employers' network, and teaches yoga at the Urban Yoga Foundation.
Daniel Sierra
Daniel Sierra is a certified Personal Trainer, along with his 200 Hour Yoga Alliance certification from Three Sisters Yoga. He began his career in fitness as a Personal Trainer in 2009 and obtained his Yoga certification the following year. He found work as a substitute Yoga teacher (while training in New York’s big corporate gyms) until he finally found a residence as a Vinyasa Flow Instructor at the Riverdale. He is keen on continuing to apply his full range of creative skills at the URBAN YOGA FOUNDATION. He works well with people of all ages and backgrounds in a high energy, safe and nurturing environment.
Ellie Aaron
Ellie Aaron is a certified yoga, meditation teacher, and health coach. She's the founder of Senmo (A confidence boosting movement practice for women). She has over 15 years of movement, dance, and meditation training. She's also a graduate of the institute for Integrative Nutrition, where she studied over 100 dietary theories. Ellie hosts her own podcast: The Ellie Aaron Hour where she has conversations that celebrate what it means to be human.
Taler Jasper
Taler worked as the account manager for a staffing agency in the IT division for a year before she decided to join her mother in building her business. She has helped build and keep client relationships as well as recruited and hired candidates for various positions in IT. She now is for the account manager for UYF, creating new relationships with different schools and organizations as well as finding new teachers for each program. She first started working for UYF in 2005 selling and packaging Talers Teas for UYF. As UYF expanded she started to work with the company as a children’s yoga teacher at P.S. 125 after school program in 2011 where she worked for two years . She is excited to bring wellness and mindfulness to different schools and corporations so that people can experience the benefits and joy it brought her as a child .
Mychal Watts
Mychal Watts a Veteran of the United States Marine Corps worked to become a Professional Photographer after serving our Great Nation. Mychal developed an astute talent for Photography by learning his craft from working as a Professional Photo Lab Technician and earning the accolade of a Master Black and White and color Technician.
Under the tutelage and as #1 assistant to Entertainment Photographer Kevin Mazur, Mychal started to place images in many National Magazines. After this success he was now hooked on the Field of Entertainment Photography. Aquiring clients include such Celebrities as Mariah Carey, Aretha Franklyn, Sting, Elton John, Billy Joel, P. Diddy, James Taylor, Debra Gibson and others.
His Talent eventually landed him a chance to cover events in the Entertainment Industry. Assigned to cover many Celebrity and News Events for Wireimage, then Grandfathered into a contract with Getty Images.
Mychal then shifted his focus to a passion very dear to him, to be able devote his talents and skills to support his Brothers and Sisters in Arms. Volunteering for a year then brought in as the Director of Photography Services for The Coalition to Salute America’s Heroes, a 501.3c Not for profit Organization that provided financial and emotional support for our wounded Soldiers returning back to society after recovering from injuries received in Combat.
Now based in New York City, He remains a Contributor/Stringer Photographer shooting for Wireimage/Getty