Kristin Fiore, E-RYT 500, TCTSY-F, Director of Down Dog Yoga Center

Kristin is the owner and managing director of Down Dog Yoga Center and is registered through Yoga Alliance at the 500 hour Experienced Registered Yoga Teacher level.  Kristin's first 200 hour training with 7 Centers Yoga Arts in Sedona, AZ was in 2009 and included a month long immersion in the study of Yoga, Ayurveda, and Vedic Astrology. She has since returned to Sedona to further her studies with an Ayurvedic Apprenticeship and a Chakra Yoga Intensive.  She has also diversified her practice by studying Vipassana Meditation and completing a 6 month Thai Massage Diploma Program.  In 2016, Kristin completed Lotus in the Flame's School of Yoga & Healing Arts year long, comprehensive 300 hour training under the direction of Melissa Spamer. Kristin has also completed 200 hours of Yin Yoga training with Stephanie Calhoun out of New Brunswick, Canada, as well as a 300 hour Trauma Center Trauma-Sensitive Yoga Certification Program through the Center for Trauma and Embodiment at JRI in Brookline, MA. She is currently working on her master’s degree in social work from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.

Kristin's teaching is influenced by her many wonderful teachers including Melissa Spamer, Sraddhasagar (Ruth Hartung), Rama Vernon, Angela Farmer, Stephanie Calhoun, David Emerson, and life itself.  Her yoga classes encourage us to let go of judgment and be present as we explore mindful movement. Kristin continues to find joy and connection through her own practice and continued studies and is passionate about sharing Yoga with others.  She is committed to Down Dog Yoga Center's mission - connecting people to healthy living, creativity, and community - and invites you to join in and explore the center's programs and services.

Cynthia Hoss, LMT, E-RYT 500, AYS

Cynthia is a master bodyworker of 25+ years with specialized training in Therapeutic Massage, Myofascial Release, Touch for Health, and Abhyanga.  She also holds certifications in Advanced Kripalu Yoga, Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapy, Yin Yoga, Restorative Yoga, and is an Ayurvedic Yoga Specialist trained by the Kripalu School of Ayurveda.  Cynthia has been studying and teaching yoga for over 15 years and is an Experienced Registered Yoga Teacher at the 500 hour level with Yoga Alliance.  She also founded and co-owned Awake and Aware, a yoga and bodywork studio in Kalamazoo from 2004 to 2014, before merging with Down Dog Yoga Center in 2014.

Cynthia's teaching style and bodywork practices focus on taking you to your inner wisdom by opening the flow of energy to enhance health, vitality, and balance.  Cynthia's intuition and strong multidisciplinary background in holistic health add a rich flavor to all of her offerings.  She is an inspired student of these masterful teachers: Swami Kripalu, Yoganand Michael Carroll, Sarah Powers, Paul Grilley, Angela Farmer, Melissa Spamer and Scott Blossom. 

Kara Aubin, E-RYT 500, C. AYUR, AYS

Kara Aubin is an Ayurvedic Practitioner, ParaYoga teacher, Ayurvedic Yoga Specialist, and Holistic Health Coach with 20 years of experience and training in the sciences of Yoga & Ayurveda. Kara weaves the teachings of Yoga, Ayurveda, and holistic living into her clinical practice, group classes, workshops, and private sessions to share radical wellness with you.  Her mission is to guide students toward their bright inherent potential, as well as their right to radical wellness and balance. She finds the practices of Yoga & Ayurveda harness our capacity for self-healing, empower us to do our dharmic work in the world, and help us experience the beauty and bliss that is essential in each of our lives. 

Kara completed her Ayurvedic Practitioner certification, with over 1500 hours of training, under Dr. Vasant Lad at the renowned Ayurvedic Institute in New Mexico. She currently travels to Pune, India annually to continue her studies and support the clinical programs at the Vasanta Institute of Ayurveda. She is an Experienced Registered Yoga Teacher at the 500-hour level with Yoga Alliance, and has completed the rigorous ParaYoga Level I Certification under Yogarupa Rod Stryker. Kara continues her studies today with Dr. Vasant Lad, Rod Stryker, Sonia Masocco, Amruta Athale, and Pandit Rajmani Tigunait. She is also an Initiate of the Sri Vidya tradition, and an Ayurvedic Yoga Specialist trained via the Himalayan Institute.  

Indira Kate Kalmbach, E-RYT 500

Indira Kate has been practicing yoga since childhood and was first certified to teach in 2004 through the Nosara Yoga Institute under the expert guidance of her teachers Don and Amba Stapleton. She went on to work as faculty with Don and Amba for their Interdisciplinary yoga teacher training programs for many years before founding Pavones Yoga Center for Mindfulness in Costa Rica, where she is the director of all 200-hour and 300-hour yoga teacher trainings. Indira is registered with Yoga Alliance at the distinguished E-RYT-500 level and to date has undertaken thousands of hours in yoga training with Elise Browning Miller (Yoga For Scoliosis), Colleen Gallagher of the Iyengar Tradition, Neurokinetic Therapy, Restorative Yoga Therapeutics with Jillian Pransky, and Bandha Yoga Anatomy with Ray Long, MD, to name a few. She is greatly influenced by her time studying metta meditation with Stephen Cope, open awareness practice with Ram Dass, and contemplative studies through the lens of Zen Buddhism with Roshi Joan Halifax.

Indira brings her background in Philosophy and English Literature and a love for poetry and writing into her classes. Through a seamless weaving of physical alignment, emotional attuning, and a deep understanding of the human psyche, Indira creates inspiring yoga classes that invite students to practice radical self-acceptance and leave class feeling present, grounded, and awakened. She is also passionate about teaching yoga one-on-one yoga and offers private sessions for teenagers and adults with scoliosis using a sequence, based on the Scroth method, for S-curve scoliosis that she developed with professional surfer Leilani McGonagle. Indira is currently residing in Kalamazoo, MI and offers weekly classes, workshops, and private yoga sessions out of Down Dog Yoga Center.

Jeremy Blair, E-RYT 200, RYT 500

Jeremy has been practicing yoga for ten years.  His somatic path began in college and developed in tandem with his dance career in Chicago.  He completed his 200-hour teacher training in 2008 at Global Yoga Center in Chicago, under the guidance of Rhonda Kantor and Rita Knorr.  Their philosophy, deeply rooted in the sutras, took an interdisciplinary approach to teacher training which Jeremy draws upon to this day.  

While in Chicago, Jeremy taught yoga while working as a professional dancer, choreographer and dance instructor.  In 2014, he completed an M.F.A. in Dance at the University of Iowa.  Between his first and second year of graduate school he traveled to India to meditate, practice, and develop a better understanding of the ancient texts and lead by Krishna, Roshan and Fraaz, he completed his 500 hour certification at Rishikesh Yog Peeth.  Jeremy caters his class to the needs of the students and follows the Hatha tradition by fluidly integrating physical and mental yoga practices in a creative, invigorating, yet restorative flow.  In addition to teaching yoga in Kalamazoo, he currently teaches yoga philosophy and asana workshops for the Hothouse Yoga teacher training in Iowa City and is on faculty in the Department of Dance at Western Michigan University. 

Christine Peckels, E-RYT 200, RYT 500

Christine began studying yoga in 1999 and completed her 200 hour teacher training in 2008 and her 300 hour training in 2016 under the guidance of Melissa Spamer.  Christine is a Registered Yoga Teacher through Yoga Alliance.  She has taught multiple weekly classes since her accreditation and continues to take workshops and trainings to keep her skills fresh and advance her knowledge.  She has worked with cancer and stroke patients and believes that yoga is a great tool to keep us healthy.  Her classes offer gentle yet powerful insight into the infinite nuances of the body, mind, and breath with opportunities to explore a personal experience of joyfulness, peace and balance.  Christine loves to work with everybody and modifies poses to fit any ability.  

Kyle Thompson, E-RYT 200

Kyle has been practicing yoga since 1999 and teaching since 2003.  He was first introduced to yoga by his mother-in-law and has since been inspired by many teachers from several yoga and Buddhist traditions.  He is a Registered Yoga Teacher through Yoga Alliance at the 200 hour level and received his teaching certification from the Temple of Kriya Yoga in Chicago.  Kyle teaches traditional hatha yoga and incorporates asana, pranayama and centering/meditation into every class.  As a licensed professional counselor, he is very interested in the psychological and therapeutic benefits of yoga and believes strongly in the mind-body or mind-heart connection.  Kyle teaches yoga and meditation to promote health, wholeness, and personal empowerment and encourages everyone to breathe, relax, feel, watch, allow and experience each moment exactly as it is.  He believes that everybody can benefit from yoga and enjoys teaching beginning students and those who do not believe they can "do yoga." 

Patricia Plasko, E-RYT 200

Patricia has been studying yoga since 1999.  She is a Registered Yoga Teacher through Yoga Alliance at the 200 hour level and completed her teacher training in 2008 under the direction of Melissa Spamer, E-RYT 500, LMT and Founder and Director of Lotus in the Flame, School of Yoga and Healing Arts.  She has also studied with Kali Ray, Rama Jyoti Vernon, and Rod Stryker.  Bringing into the classroom 30 years of experience observing the body in motion as a professional dancer, choreographer and teacher, Patricia’s classes utilize clear anatomical and technical description, imagery, and the uniting of breath and movement to bring freedom and openness to the body.  

Dr. Kate Antoniotti, DC

Kate is passionate about holistic and preventative healthcare. She has a degree in Exercise Science & Kinesiology from Miami University and a Doctor of Chiropractic from Logan College of Chiropractic. During her college years, she discovered her love of yoga and completed her 200 hour yoga certification from Yoga Source in St. Louis in 2011. Drawing from her background in chiropractic, yoga, nutrition, pediatrics and women’s health, her practice is tailored to specifically address the needs of Moms. Her classes integrate functional movements to build strength and balance with support, connection, and community. Kate also enjoys spending time with her family and considers herself a student of life. 

Aubrey Butts, RYT 500

At the age of 12, Aubrey began a dedicated exploration of yoga as a way to attune to her body and develop a more compassionate relationship with herself and the world. Throughout the fluctuations of adolescence, her yoga mat became a saving grace. At the age of 21, Aubrey completed her 200 hour and 300 hour yoga teacher trainings through the well-known, Yoga Alliance certified program at Kripalu. Using a nurturing and humorous approach, Aubrey loves to share yoga, especially with those who may not normally find themselves in a yoga studio for a multitude of reasons. Her fun and uplifting classes help students connect to the breath, develop more awareness in the body, and experience peace of mind.

Erin Tonda, RYT 200

Erin began her yoga journey in 2008.  Initially using yoga as a form of physical exercise and stress relief from her busy life as an attorney, she dedicated herself to a consistent yoga and meditation practice and began to experience the concepts of self-love, acceptance, and awareness firsthand. This experience aided her decision to leave the practice of law and devote herself full-time to the study and practice of yoga. Erin completed her 200 hour yoga teacher training with Michele Fife of Seva Yoga in 2014.

Since Erin was last with us, she spent time in service to local crime victims. A portion of her work involved providing access to healing resources, and creating a more trauma-informed community. Erin has continued her life-long learning journey by studying and obtaining certifications in Applied Positive Psychology, Positive Psychology Coaching, and Kundalini Yoga at the 500 RYT level.  Erin is also a Certified Resiliency Trainer.

Mia Leibold

Mia graduated from Oakland University with a bachelor's degree in Nutrition, Health and Psychology. She began her career in the wellness industry in 2015 as a certified YogaFit instructor, group fitness instructor, spin instructor, and personal trainer. She is currently continuing her yoga studies in a 200 hour program with Eric Paskel and Rina Jakubowicz at Electric Soul Yoga in Studio City, California. Mia believes in a holistic approach to wellness and is passionate about assisting others in finding effective ways to reduce stress and take control of their health . She creates space in her classes for both physical and emotional support and inspires students to find their inner strength and leave each practice feeling motivated and at peace.  

BrieLynn Sturm, RYT 200

BrieLynn has been sharing the joy and gifts of yoga since 2013.  She strives to provide calming clarity and an opportunity for acceptance on and off the mat through movement, breath, and joy.  In addition to leading vinyasa yoga instruction, BrieLynn is fostering a supportive prenatal yoga community in Kalamazoo through her efforts with Om Momma Yoga believing there can never be enough support in the birth world.   She is 200hr level trained through Amazing Yoga in Pittsburgh, PA, and 85hr specialty trained in prenatal yoga through Sweet Momma Yoga in Bloomfield Hills, MI.

Meryl Ray, RYT 500

Meryl experienced yoga for the first time nearly two decades ago and has been cultivating her practice ever since. With a part-time career as a Nurse Anesthetist and a family of five to care for, she never thought she would become a yoga teacher, but in 2017 the desire to practice Stand Up Paddleboard Yoga and support local nonprofit organizations led her to seek out and complete her 200 hour yoga teacher training in Benton Harbor, MI. Meryl's studio classes focus on achieving an alignment-based foundation with mindful intention and challenge. She also teaches SUP Yoga and gives back through her organization, Just This SUP Yoga. Meryl has also recently completed a 300 hour training under the direction of Kate Lombardo.

Kat Owens, E-RYT 200, IAYT

Kat (she/her) is an E-RYT and international trauma-informed yoga therapist in-training (IAYT) and Accessible Yoga Ambassador. She has a deep passion for sharing a practice that is accessible, community-driven, and celebrates every person's unique path to well-being and liberation. Originally from Michigan, she began deepening her yoga practice while working as a Program Coordinator and Advocate Counselor for youth/young adults in New York City. After five years of working in non-profit education and youth development partnerships, she moved to Abu Dhabi, UAE. While overseas, Kat completed her teacher training in the sacred Kathmandu Valley of Nepal with Heather Elton. She is a certified Yoga for All teacher and holds additional training in Therapeutic Crisis Intervention, Teen Yoga, Yogic Studies with Seth Powell, Trauma Sensitive Yoga (TCTSY), and Trauma Informed Yoga Therapy with Sundara Yoga Therapy.

Kat recently completed a Yoga Therapy certification with the Yoga Therapy Institute (IAYT and based in the Netherlands). She has been on the faculty for various 200-hour yoga teacher trainings where she facilitates modules on the intersections of trauma, wellness, and systemic change. After returning to Kalamazoo in 2020, she became an external member of the Kalamazoo Community Foundation's Anti-Racism Transformation Team, which is committed to transforming the organization and community by dismantling racism.

Emma Shansky

Emma has always loved moving her body more than anything else. She studied dance very intensely, briefly danced professionally, and choreographed musicals for a few years. It was actually the period when she was without dance that she recognized her true passion for pure movement-- in any form. Since making the connection between an active and functional body and her mental health, Emma made a career of being a professional Yoga, Pilates, and Dance instructor. She is still eager to learn more about the human body and continues to do so through daily practice, training, seminars, and self-study. Her movement instructor education includes Pilates Mat and Equipment, CorePower Yoga and Yoga Sculpt, Barefoot Method®, Thai Bodywork, Bowspring Yoga, Animal Flow®, Functional Range Conditioning, Yoga Tune Up®, Forrest Yoga, and the Feldenkrais Method. All of these influences can be found in the classes she teaches.

Johanna Potter

Johanna began her journey with yoga in 1999.  Curious about the physical challenge it provided, she soon became drawn to yoga as a practice that provides connection to Source, acts as a guide, and helps one gain a deeper understanding of self and purpose.  In 2007, Johanna began teaching in Indiana where she developed a yoga ministry program.  An interest in anatomy and hands on connection also led her to study Thai Bodywork. She returned to Kalamazoo in 2010 and completed her 200 hour yoga certification under the guidance of Karina Mirsky. She has also completed trainings in Prenatal Yoga.

The path of yoga has seen Johanna through a variety of stages in her own life, including motherhood, and fuels her passion to teach and celebrate all of life’s seasons. After taking a short break from teaching as she settled into motherhood, she is honored to return to the teacher role and share her experience with new mothers and those with growing families.

Simeon Birnbaum, LMT

Sim Birnbaum has an eclectic background in yoga, both in his formal yoga teacher education as well as his informal yoga exploration in India and at the Omega Institute. He completed his first 200 Hour Yoga Teacher Training in Kundalini yoga in 2007. He went on to the Nosara Yoga Institute in Costa Rica where he studied Interdisciplinary Yoga, Self-awakening Yoga, and Pranassage (300 Hours Teacher Training).  He also brings a background in Prenatal Yoga from Blooma Yoga Studio, as well as his experience as a Certified Laughter Yoga teacher. In 2009, he traveled to India to study at Laughter Yoga International. He currently trains practitioners to become Laughter Yoga Leaders and has a coaching practice where he focuses on Laughter Coaching. Sim is also a licensed massage therapist.

Sim's yoga classes are a blend of vinyasa, kundalini, strength-building and laughter. He aims to create a joyful energizing flow to shake out stress and inspire intuitive movement.