Meet Our Hatha Yoga Teachers
We integrate breath, asana, and awareness to help you become centered and connected to your inner Self, so that you can experience yoga as a deep spiritual support. We bring a lifetime of yoga and meditation practice, skillful technique, and compassion to our teaching.All Movement Center hatha yoga teachers are trained and certified, and many have decades of teaching experience. You’ll find that each instructor brings a unique perspective and a slightly different emphasis to their class. It is our wish to share the experience of yoga with you so that you can access your own deepest creative potential.
If you have questions for your instructor or would like more information about their teaching, feel free to contact us at info@mcyoga.com, or call The Movement Center at 503-231-0994.
from one of our students…
"The Center is beautiful! I have taken the yoga classes and loved them. There is a subtlety and awareness in the yoga practiced at the Movement Center that I have been searching for and now found! The teachers are wonderful; everyone I have met at the center is warm and welcoming. The Movement Center is truly a special community that I feel very fortunate to have discovered.”
-Deidre Cooke
Click on a photo to read more about their approach to teaching.
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Angie Shoemaker-Ramirez
Angie graduated from the Movement Center yoga teacher training program in 2001. She has taught yoga for pregnancy since 2005, and since then she has had two babies of her own. Her class merges her teaching experience with her recent experiences of pregnancy to provide a thoughtful and objective class.Arwen Spina, RYT
The continuing classes I teach begin with taking a few moments to internalize our awareness & create a breath ratio that will be used throughout class. We then flow into warm-ups that are relevent to the more challenging poses to be visited later. There is some emphasis on building upper body strength & working on alignment to aid us in our exploration of inversions & balances. Often we will take time to individually practice sun-salutations, prior knowledge of this vinyasa is helpful but not necessary. Please note that in many classes we do prep-work for inversions. If you have any shoulder or neck issues you are still welcome to join, as there are always options to practice during that time. The class comes full circle and ends with deep relaxation & chanting “om” for those who want to participate. return to topConnie Dyer, RYT
In my own practice I use improvisational dance and the principles of Bonnie Bainbridge Cohen (Body–Mind Centering®) and other movement educators. They have inspired me to listen to my body, release habitual patterns, and integrate my movement. Each day I want to experience poses in new ways and forms that express how my body wants and needs to move. And I want to experience ALL my body in movement, not just mind, muscle, and bone. My goal in yoga is to help you find the same freedom in your own practice. In class you’ll explore creative ways to initiate and support movement effortlessly. By making friends with gravity, you’ll make full use of your body’s response to meeting resistance, experiencing it as a support for movement rather than an obstacle or burden. I might invite you to "wiggle" in a pose to experience its shifting bases, to move playfully within the range of motion in your arms and legs, or to move a line of stretch across your body. "Take root to fly!" return to topDan Sisco
Dr. Dan Sisco has been a practicing Natural Physician for the last thirty years. He is also a father of twenty three (mostly adopted) and grandfather to seventeen (ditto). Dan became a certified yoga teacher in Pennsylvania in 1976 and taught for two years in community centers and colleges there. After a long hiatus he began earnestly practicing hatha yoga in last 6 years and completed his yoga teacher certification again through The Movement Center. He is the author of numerous stories for children and adults, fairy tales, and books of poetry. Using clearly guided visualization along with breath work, I invite exploration in each of the poses. My classes are intended to provide a safe welcome for beginning students but contain enough flexibility in the program for anyone to enjoy. All are welcome. return to topGreg Esion
Yoga asana practice gives us the opportunity to get out of our heads and into the immediacy of our physical experience. Coming fully into our senses allows us to observe where we hold tension in our body, so that we can consciously release those tensions and have greater access to mental and physical well-being. The pace and intensity of my class is moderate and appropriate for all levels of asana practice. return to topGretchen Kreiger, RYT
The style of yoga I teach—The Thinking Body–The Feeling Mind—shares many postures and philosophies with classic hatha yoga. The conscious expression of movement, inner awareness, and purposeful use of breath are key elements of both traditions. I believe the riches that come from a mindful movement practice have great potential to sustain our physical lives and support our spirit. My classes have less intense, repetitive movement than a vinyasa flow class and more choreographed moments than a classic hatha yoga class. Everyone is encouraged to practice with respect for their own body and needs at each session. return to topJesse Sweeney
I teach Chi Core Yoga, a dynamic, energizing flowing yoga form which I developed and refined over more than a decade. My own study began with dance then moved into martial arts, yoga and Chi Gong. I have woven aspects of all of these into a unique yoga form. Chi Core yoga enhances balance, flexibility, energy flow and strength within a dynamic movement sequence. It teaches your body how to function as an integrated unit and can be adapted to all levels of participation. I give personal attention to each member of the class so you can be comfortably challenged or go all out for a strong workout. Included in the class is an overview of the fundamental principles of movement so that you learn how to make safe, effective, supported movements, along with information about your energy system - the chakras, breath, energy meridians, circulation of energy, and meditation. Each class begins with Chi Gong or meditation then moves into a sequence of poses or free form movements. You will come away feeling conditioned, energized and rejuvenated ... and it's fun too! See you in class. return to topKathy Dahlke
Yoga is an amazing tool for discovering how to tune into your natural state of vitality, harmony and balance. Yoga teaches you to access your mind-body awareness to relieve stress and enhance health, strength and mobility. Explore your potential! Nurture yourself, and allow chronic patterns of postural and life imbalances to fall away. Yoga and meditation have had a great influence and positive effect on my life. They have enhanced my understanding and awareness of the natural and innate vitality that is present physically and energetically in each of us. I am a medical doctor with a strong interest in osteopathic manipulation, and alternative and complementary medicine. I have personal appreciation for yoga’s benefits physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. I hope to share some of this with you. return to topKelly Ponzi, RYT
My teaching reflects the breadth and depth of my own practice and studies, which includes the precision and alignment of B.K.S. Iyengar, the therapeutic benefits and flow of Viniyoga and Vinyasa, and the inner focus and awareness of the spiritual traditions of Kashmir Shaivism and Tibetan Buddhism. I honor the uniqueness of all people, believing that at our core we are each perfect and one with the divine. In my view yoga is the practice of realizing this divine union, and I am committed to expanding my awareness of that and sharing it with my students. return to topKen Reader, RYT, LMT
The practice of yoga is a journey and personal commitment to grow, and I would like to take the opportunity to assist and help your practice grow as well. I bring 9 years teaching experience with extensive training in Hatha and Vinyasa styles, and a dance performance and massage therapy background. I like to begin each class with a centering and breathing exercise that focuses on energy centers, and then let that focus naturally express itself outwardly in the poses.I use props and will modify poses to assist and support letting go. I also offer hands-on adjustments to encourage proper alignment. Come and release the patterns that hold us and let our breath lighten our thoughts and energize our bodies. Practice is on going with emphasis on foundation and body awareness. All levels are welcome. Namaste, Ken. return to top
Laura Washington, ND, RYT
In my hatha yoga classes I endeavor to create an environment where participants will experience themselves deeply. Time is spent at the beginning of class quietly connecting to breath and body. We then begin moving slowly and simply, taking that conscious focus into our practice of postures. Each of my classes has a slightly different focus. My Tuesday evening class moves in a meditative tone, often incorporating sound, ratio breathing, or use of mantra. On Saturday mornings we have a longer class, the last half hour of which is dedicated to advanced practice. Students have the option to stay and participate in this last segment or not, as they wish. Saturday’s class may include stronger physical work that helps to prepare us for the more advanced postures. return to topLaurie Saunders, RYT
"Healing Yoga Practice" works to support the innate capacity of the body-mind mechanism to move toward health. This practice grows out of my own experience with MS and from working with students with short-term and long-term health situations. It can serve the needs of a student who has been feeling a little "under the weather" and wants a quieter, gentler practice this week – or a student who integrates it in a healing program with other classes – or a student who is dealing with a chronic condition and wants a yoga practice that can work deeply over time. It is also a great beginning point for students who don’t feel "fit" enough to start with a regular yoga class. There’s no sequence, so you are welcome to try the class once or attend on an occasional or long-term basis. I’m happy to have e-mail correspondence or a phone chat with you before you attend – just let The Movement Center office know. return to topLenore Bijan
“Seniors Only” is a yoga class designed for individuals 65 years and up. It is taught by Lenore Bijan who, at 77 years, is the oldest recipient of accreditation by The Movement Center to teach hatha yoga. As a former performer and teacher of classical ballet, the practice of yoga with an aging body (hers) has fascinated her since she attended her first yoga class at age 72. “I went into that first class surrounded by much, much younger people, not knowing how “good” I would or could be. I soon discovered that being able to achieve some ideal pose is not the point at all. It is the movement powered by breath and increased inner awareness – the joy in that – that is the beating heart of yoga.”Traditionally yoga was taught to students individually by the teacher. We will be using that same approach because older bodies have such unique histories and patterns. Lenore will also work with students to improve proprioceptive balance (the balance one has – or really needs - with eyes closed), of major importance in preventing serious injury from falls. Because the rhythm underlying and empowering everything in yoga is the breath, pranayama or breath awareness and control will be a vital part of each class.
Lenore Bijan studied classical ballet and danced professionally in New York, London and Paris. At age 25 she “retired” to marry and raise children in a Philadelphia suburb. The profound autism of one daughter, an illness that left another daughter paralyzed, and a divorce necessitated major changes in course. Returning to school (University of Pennsylvania), she did editorial work at the Johnson Foundation for Medical Physics and wrote several children’s books on science published by Prentice Hall. Other jobs involved medical and scientific writing and memberships in the National Science Writers Association. She moved to Oregon to pursue opportunities for her disabled daughters.
Recently, with the new lease on life she has found through yoga, she has become active as a volunteer advocate for low-income seniors and disabled people. As such she serves on the Leadership Team and Commission of Elders in Action, works with Portland Impact, and Multnomah County’s Coalition for Healthy Aging. She also serves on Oregon’s Advisory Council on Energy, and is Vice President of the Oregon State Council for Retired Citizens. She also grows, cans, freezes and dries almost all of her own food. return to top
Leslie Goldstein, PT
I am available for private instruction to learn the basics of care for your back. I’ll teach you how to use simple, safe, and effective yoga poses to help ease your back pains, and show you strategies to prevent further or future damage to your back. Safe body mechanics and joint-protecting techniques will also be discussed. I bring 25 years of experience as a yoga instructor and extensive experience as a professional therapist. I specialize in low back and sacroiliac dysfunction, and currently practice physical therapy in Portland, Oregon. return to topLinda Dima
My class is beneficial to practitioners at all levels of practice. My overall goal is to return us to our natural state of being, harmonized from within and attuned to our bodies and the environment around us. The easy to moderate pace of this class enables us to explore how we hold tension in our body and gives us tools to release these tensions, providing us with an experience of greater well-being. To this end I emphasize coordination of breath and body, awareness of alignment, and increased mobility and flexibility. This class is a great opportunity to set an intention in our bodies and minds, creating a foundation of openness and flow for the rest of our day to unfold from. return to topLindsey George, LMT,RYT
In my classes, we hold simple poses and stretches with concentrated focus, paying attention to the truth the asana reveals rather than approaching practice as a series of physical difficulties that need to be resolved, overcome, or mastered. Expect to feel the unexpected within yourself, and experience the profound and transformative sensation of relaxation. return to topMira Ames
In my yoga classes I encourage students to discover an inner sense of stillness and rest, and then maintain that awareness as they practice poses at a level suitable to their individual interests and capabilities. For me, a beautiful quality of yoga is the experience and exploration of opposites: stillness and movement, effort and release, taking in and letting go, focus and relaxation, stretching and softening, working and resting. When we explore these contrasting states fully, we find balance and an expanded appreciation of ourselves, our lives, and the people and world around us.About Mira - I have been studying yoga and meditation at the Movement Center for twenty years, and teaching yoga since 1995. I also enjoy singing, violin playing, writing poetry and practicing tai chi outdoors.return to top
Molly Merideth
My love of hatha yoga practice centers around its ability, through the simple use of breath and awareness, to allow subtle releases in a person’s system that promote a greater flow of energy. Through simple breathing, visualizations, and a variety of flowing movements, I invite students to explore their own potential to change their state and experience a different level of well-being. In my classes, yoga poses are approached incrementally so that everyone can experience the essence of the poses safely within the boundaries of their own flexibility and strength, while allowing those boundaries to expand naturally through practice.return to topPat Tarzian, RYT
What I love about yoga is that it is the surest, safest, and most sane way of finding your birthright, which is the vital energy with which you are born. That energy is the key to your health, your happiness, your sense of wholeness, and everyone is born with it and can live from it. In my classes and workshops, asanas, or yoga poses, and mudras, or yoga gestures, are used, along with some mantra, or sound, work, to bring about the discovery of the source of your vital energy, the increase in that energy, and the channeling of that energy into nourishment for every facet of you and all that is around you. When we move in these classes, we move from core energy and breath, not from muscle and volition. We exchange with everything around us as a source of refreshment, and we melt tension and use the energy released for fuel for our creative aims. We hold, we move, we do simple asanas and challenging ones, we do asanas that particularly benefit the organ systems, and we learn why and how. Most people who enjoy this practice have had some yoga and are fit. I myself have had a meditation and yoga practice for twenty plus years, with a background in dance, aerobics, and athletics, and for those twenty plus years I have also been a dedicated student of homeopathic medicine. I use yoga practice as an enhancement to health, to that vital energy intrinsic in each of us, to the discovery of the tranquil, potent flow that is what we truly are. return to topPatty Slote, RYT
My approach in teaching is to use a simple repertoire of asanas and pranayama techniques, selected to meet the needs of the students in the class, and play with them to explore what is possible in the moment to open more deeply and experience more flow. A conscious attunement to one's body, breath and mind allows a person’s practice to evolve naturally and unfold over time. I especially enjoy teaching new students, pregnant women, people who need a gentle approach, and those who prefer one-on-one instruction. return to topRachel Dyer
If you want to do rigorous yoga and not hurt yourself, if you want to accomplish some mastery of your breath, if you want to bolster your psychological strength, I think core work is critical. I use Pilates work and bandhas in my own practice to those ends, and teach from that basis. This requires both refinement (constant reminding and tweaking) and strength training. The end goal of course, is to leverage those tools for centering in day-to-day life, but the great side benefit is the increased tone, body awareness, and ability to prevent injury that results from practicing this way. And while none of it is hard to learn, it takes play and experimentation and patience to get comfortable with these tools. That is what my classes are tailored for, and I welcome anyone interested to come and share their experience. return to topRoland Levesque, RYT
With a life long interest in comparative religion, meditation and just trying to get a grip I made a decision in 2005 to take a break from my professional career which lead to a concentrated study and practice in meditation and hatha yoga. In 2008 I completed the Hatha Yoga Teacher Training here at The Movement Center and received my registered yoga teacher status with Yoga Alliance in 2009.It is an honor to have an opportunity to share my daily meditation and asana practice with you. The transformational power of hatha yoga shows itself to me everyday in my family, professional, and ever unfolding life. The more I share this yoga the more it shows me.return to top
Ruth Knight, RYT
In my Continuing Practice yoga classes, I integrate subtler core work such as bandhas and directed breathing techniques to help you feel stronger and more supported in your asanas, and more energized overall throughout your body.If you don’t mind an early class, please join me for the Friday, 7:00 AM Continuing Practice. You’ll be practicing with a dedicated, hard-working group of yogis with a terrific sense of humor! We range in age from late 40's to 70's plus, and enjoy an invigorating practice that builds stamina and flexibility while staying true to yoga's ultimate goal of contact with spirit. Start anytime. return to top
Sara Grigsby
For me the miracle of yoga is that it reminds me again and again that we have choices and options in our life. Almost every way we spend our time, in work, relationships, commuting, errands, entertainment, tends to draw our focus outward, loosen our connection to our heart, and drain us energetically. I say "almost" because a regular yoga practice retrains our focus, replenishes our body and spirit, and reminds us that we can take that experience into our daily life. When we feel better, we can be a better friend and a better citizen. My role is to create an environment in which you can contact and cultivate well-being and carry it into your life. return to top
Sharon Ward
During classes, I strive to help others discover who it is doing the seeing and feeling and hearing and thinking inside….underneath all of the ego identities, tensions, and ideas about themselves. Using asanas designed to release tensions in the body and in the mind, along with pranayama and a series of relaxation techniques, students begin to let go of the barriers preventing them from understanding their own true nature. By incorporating awareness exercises to train the mind to focus clearly, my goal is to have students walk away with an understanding of the flow of energy that powers and guides their lives. return to topSusan Marshall, RYT
I teach yoga with two goals in mind: relaxation and personal progress. Both happen incrementally. Hatha yoga is a powerful method for releasing everyday tensions. I invite students to begin by lying down on their backs to focus on opening their hearts and releasing tensions through ujjaye and diaphragmatic breathing. Moving through asanas with these two breathing methods develops a meditative focus that will change you into a more relaxed person.My classes begin slowly using passive movements to release tension, explore the flexibility in the natural curves of the spine, and discover your natural range of motion. Next we move into more active asanas designed to warm the body, building stretch and strength. Classes are structured around a theme that may last for several classes or a much longer period of time. This allows you to experience progress over time and discover your own personal maximum in any given pose. I’ll lead you one step at a time in a continual vinyasa flow, so you’ll never feel lost in individual poses. Each class leads up to a variation of shoulder stand and ends with a lying relaxation pose and a seated meditation.
If you are especially interested in strengthening your core, developing more flexibility in your hamstrings and hips, and learning how to approach balance poses and inverted poses like shoulder stands, you will enjoy this class! return to top