"Be where you are, not where you think you should be."
Teacher Feature
Our Teachers
We are so proud of the amazing teachers that have come out of our program. Our teachers well-trained, authentic and highly qualified to assist you on your Yoga path. Although we have had many graduates, these are the teachers who have offered to share their contact information with you. I hope you find this resource helpful.
Cathy Christoff
Cathy became interested in practicing yoga purely by curiosity and was naturally drawn to individuals who made time for this activity. After 10 years of weekly practice with her teachers, she began her 200-hour teacher training to seek more knowledge that has made such a profound effect on reshaping her life. Cathy's teaching style challenges a student without overwhelming them. She wants students to have their own practice in a group setting. Asana, breath and relaxation are used to promote specific effects in the body that can promote self-discovery. After 30 years of working with the public as a Flight Attendant, Cathy's yoga practice has proven time and time again that this science works. These unique experiences give insight to the students who come to her class and help them understand why everyone needs yoga!
Weekly classes with Cathy begin Monday September 11th at 9:30 am. A suggested $10 class donation will be accepted to be used toward the Senior High summer Work Camp.
Questions? Contact Cathy Christoff
The healing qualities of yoga are what led Karen to the practice over 10 years ago. Struggling with stress and mild depression, yoga became her outlet, her sanctuary and has helped her find 'center'. Continually growing and learning is something she is so very grateful for. She completed her 200-hour teacher training through Fox Valley Yoga Teacher Training with Karen Weber in May 2016 and is a Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT) through Yoga Alliance.
She is passionate about helping others and sharing what she knows through the practice of yoga. She teaches in a straight-forward approach yet with heartfelt style that is focused on moving students through the stages of a practice in an uplifting, safe and non-competitive way. She will guide students to transform the body physically, create stillness in the mind and nurture the spirit. Each class is designed to be different, challenging, mindful and calming, offering options for advanced postures as well as modifications for beginners. Her hope is that her students experience both a spiritual journey that helps them manifest the best possible version of themselves and a physical practice that makes the body feel amazing.
Besides yoga, she loves spending time with her husband and two girls, traveling, gardening, biking, photography and reading.
Karen Jansen
Lauren is a graduate of the Cortiva Institute in Chicago, a professional institute of Massage Therapy. Her path to exploring the interplay of the body, mind, spirit, psyche seemingly began with bodywork but actually began long before that. Feeling a sense of life being breathed into the soul through studying dance, having experiences of connection with plants and animals all the way back into her earliest memories, and continued inquiries into science and philosophy all lead Lauren to begin attending yoga classes and commencing her path of self-study in 2006.
Lauren completed Karen Weber’s 200 hour teacher training in 2015 and passionately continues to further her own study as well as work with students of varying backgrounds on integrating yogic techniques into their lives. Lauren does not have weekly classes currently but specializes in teaching privately both at her office within Valley Acupuncture Health Solutions in Geneva, IL and Essential Healing and Massage in Wheaton, IL.
Lauren Hendricks
Heather began practicing yoga in 2010 when her now boyfriend and fellow teacher took her on their 4th date to a Bikram yoga class. Nervous at first, Heather “survived” the 90 min class and was hooked, practicing at least 3 times per week. In 2011, she underwent hip surgery from an old injury resulting in severe arthritis. After recovery and weeks of physical therapy, Heather incorporated yoga into her routine, finding the most relief through her practice. Encouraged by not only the physical benefits but also the mental and spiritual, yoga became less of a practice and more of a lifestyle. A few years later, Heather’s passion took her on a search for a teacher training made just for her. In 2015, she completed Fox Valley’s 200 hr. teacher training with Karen Weber. Now a certified instructor (200RYT) and a member of the yoga alliance, Heather teaches at different studios in the area, helping others find their peace and healing. She is a fun-loving mom to her 3 M’s: Mitchell, Mia & Mason and practices a variety of yoga styles. When not teaching, one can find Heather attending yoga festivals, workshops and most importantly taking her practice off her mat. You can find her teaching schedule through her Facebook page, Heather Huffman Yoga Love.
Saha Yoga Studio: Monday: Hatha Flow 4:30 pm and YIN 5:45 pm
Wednesday: Hatha Flow 5:45 pm and YIN 7 pm
Heather Huffman
Sara considers herself very blessed to be on the yogic path. She first found yoga while in high school and immediately felt it's magic. She has had a regular practice since then, trying out many different types of yoga along the way.
Several years ago, Sara chose to change her career and fully enter into the world of alternative health and healing, in order to find healing for herself. She left her teaching career to become a Licensed Massage Therapist. Since then, Sara has worked as a LMT in a variety of settings, and continued her studies in alternative healing modalities. Sara is also a certified Level 2 Thai Massage practitioner, a certified Level 2 Reiki practitioner and now a certified yoga teacher! Sara considers her yoga practice to be her guide in life and in healing, it is the space in which she connects to her true self. Off her mat, Sara enjoys spending time with her family, in nature, reading, crafting and gardening.
Sara Robbins
@Vaali_sakthi
Valerie has a background in classical ballet, modern dance and biology. She is also a substitute teacher for West Aurora SD 129. She is a Yoga Alliance CYT 200 through Fox Valley Yoga TT with Karen Weber.
Valerie came to yoga through a natural investigation of the disciplines of the active body. To her surprise she found that while yoga does challenge the body it affects the mind in a most positive way, leading to benefits in one's life off the mat.
Her classes are predominately vinyasa flow, sequenced using Parayoga design with poses and counter-poses meant to safeguard the body and prepare for an apex pose.
She has taken additional workshops with Bob Whittinghill and Todd Howell at Prairie Yoga, Kino MacGregor at Moksha and Jeff Manning at Shine.
Abhyasa: Tues 6:15 pm YIN & 7:30 Vinyasa, Thursdays 12 pm YIN, SHINE: Sat 8 am
Valerie Schmit
Luke has found his calling through the practice of Yoga. After spinal fusion surgery in 2013 to correct rapidly developing scoliosis, he searched for relief from constant physical discomfort that in turn strained his mind. Not until he first began practicing Yoga did he experience a complete science that allowed him to unwind, open and relax his being. Due to a personal structural imbalance, Luke’s practice has been keenly focused upon rehabilitation and the restructuring of the incredibly resilient and responsive spine. He has found that through continuous and conscious regulation of the breath that life can unfold and align with the dharma (essential quality) of the world: to grow. This in turn allows the spirit to shine from within. Luke’s style of teaching is heavily based upon the knowledge provided from his teacher, Karen Weber-Manz. Under her guidance and through passionate daily practice, Luke continues to delve deeper into what it means to align and how one reaches a point of stillness, spaciousness and silence that create clarity, connection and freedom. He firmly believes that Yoga is a proactive tool that allows us to embody the mantra, OM Shanti, that is, realizing our limitless potential and living it with effortless ease.
Classes with Luke are focused on guiding the individual to embody OM Shanti. Through a sensitive awareness of body mechanics and an intention to create space within, poses are taught slowly and gradually with emphasis on allowing the breath to guide the student deeper into the pose and the self. Through this mindful