Trauma-Conscious Yoga Guides

At Svälja Yoga most all of our yoga guides are certified yoga instructors from an accredited school. Nearly all of our instructors have additional specialized training in trauma-conscious yoga and is oriented in our unique Whole-Being Well-Being Yoga Approach.

With an increased sense of awareness and sensitivity to integration, we guide practices in a compassionate manner which offers invitations and options to enhance well-being.

Our goal is to support individuals as they connect with and strengthen their own inner resources and internal bodily wisdom. We believe that people are the experts on themselves. In our yoga practices everything is an invitation; nothing is an obligation.

Yoga is not about achieving a “perfect” practice or posture; is not about looking a certain way to the external world or to appease a teacher. Yoga is about traversing our internal landscape to connect more deeply with ourselves—mind-body-spirit. We practice interoception, which is to intentionally turn inward. We tune-in to how we feel on all levels of our being: bodily sensations, quality of thoughts and emotions, and intuition. Ultimately we begin to befriend ourselves with more compassion and kindness, listening to our deepest needs and desires. Our practice becomes an act of self-love, shedding layers of stress, trauma, and self-limiting beliefs.

The more we practice, the more we can experience an inner-sense of safety, wholeness, and well-being. We learn to trust our Inner Knowing. From this place, we make skillful decisions and take effective action that is more in alignment with our highest good.

“We practice all of this on our mats to equip us to face and bear whatever may arise off our mats.” —Kyle Leia Heyesen

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Meet the Team

Rebecca James Alsum (she/her)

OWNER
Rebecca is on a path of creating spaces where healing and deep inner wisdom can blossom. Through her many years working in advocacy and fostering healthy communities, she is most interested in empowering people to find healing that is centered in their own body through re-discovery of their own deep wells of wisdom and authority. She seeks to support in fostering deep relationships, holistic listening, meaningful communication, and spiritual growth.
Rebecca holds a BA in Sociology and is a Certified Sexologist and Sexual Wellness Coach. She is a Certified Qigong Trainer and a Certified Practice Group Leader through Spring Forest Qigong. Rebecca has additional certifications in Yin Yoga, Embodied Innerwork, Dream Work, and Trauma Conscious practices.
Rebecca came to Qigong as a trauma survivor seeking healing for her own physical, emotional and spiritual wellbeing. As a teacher, she focuses on a gentle, trauma conscious approach that offers practices to ground, in order that participants might feel the power of their own wisdom and healing within. Embracing the knowledge that one can heal oneself is powerful, centering and life giving– this is a beautiful truth that Rebecca knows intimately.
Rebecca loves spending time with her partner, two kids, pup, cat and the loving community of friends and neighbors around her. Sitting with Mother Earth and playing cello are key healing practices she enjoys along with Qigong. Engaging the magic of curiosity, learning, and the sun and moon keep her spirit wondering and flourishing on the way.
Miriam Hanson, E-RYT500, YACEP (she, her)

YOGA SCHOOL DIRECTOR
Miriam is a lead teacher for the Yoga School, and a lead specialty trauma-conscious yoga guide.
Duluth native Miriam built a bilingual elementary school in Roatan, Honduras after completing her BA at U of MN Twin Cites. Yoga showed her the way to practice being connected and present. She has been a student in yoga classes all over the world, which has broadened her perspective and complemented her practice.
Miriam completed TT200 on the island of Roatan with Martha Berry School in 2011. With Martha's worldly view, Miriam was able to find her voice and personal power in guiding Vinyasa. After discovering Yin Yoga in 2002, Miriam has come to embrace this style. She is now a certified Yin Teacher Trainer with training from the world-renowned instructor Bernie Clark, and is a Levels 1 & 2 Yin Teacher Trainer through Michelle Pietrzak-Wegner. She took her first Yin Yoga Teacher Training in 2015 and has continued to deepen her Yin education with over 70 contact training hours. Miriam has led weekly or twice-weekly Yin studio sessions since 2012, including extended workshops and specialty offerings. Additionally, she is certified in trauma-sensitive yoga through the Center for Trauma and Embodiment, Trauma Center Trauma Sensitive Yoga, and has Advanced Adaptive Yoga and Yoga for Trauma & PTSD Training with Matthew Sanford and Mind Body Solutions. She extensively studied Patanjali's Yoga Sutra with her esteemed instructor Bhavani Maki and weaves yoga philosophy teachings into her classes. She completed her RYT500 with the final project of memorizing the entire Samadhi Pada in Sanskrit. See her published piece on Sutra 1.20 in Midwest Yoga+ LIfe. Miriam is also grateful for her extensive studies with Indu Arora in Ayurveda and Yoga Philosophy.
Miriam believes in the power of yoga to transform trauma and stress and lead us to freedom from suffering through daily practice of Patanjali’s Eightfold Path. She enjoys the fellowship and healing power of yoga, as well as the opportunity to nurture a loving space of breath, movement and discerning awareness.
Check out her specialty refined-study workshops and Yin Certificate Program!
Kyle Leia Heyesen, MSW, E-RYT 500, YACEP (she/her)

Kyle Leia Heyesen is the founder of Svälja Yoga. Her specialty is Trauma-Conscious Yoga and holds a Master of Social Work (MSW) having worked in the social work field for over 20 years. She is deeply committed to diversity and inclusion through her career. She is a fierce ally to Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC), and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex (LGBTQI) people. She actively works to address her own privilege and bias and dismantle systems of oppression. She has worked with various populations impacted by trauma including battered women and their children, sexual assault survivors, abused and neglected children, people with disabilities, and adults and children with mental illness and Substance Use Disorder.
Kyle began teaching yoga in 2002. She has two 200-hour teacher training certifications. The first, from Sun Moon Studios in Mankato, MN, which focused on a variety of traditions, including Ashtanga, Vinyasa, Yin Yoga, Kundalini and Hatha, and focused heavily on the asana component of yoga. The second, was at Yoga North in Duluth, which followed the Himalayan Tradition of Hatha Yoga and was rich in yogic philosophy. She obtained her 300-hour teacher training certificate from Yess Yoga in Minneapolis in the spring of 2021 and over 2020-22 underwent over 100 hours of in-depth Yin Yoga training with Bernie Clark, Yess Yoga, and Miriam Hanson’s 30 hour Yin Certificate offered at Svälja. Kyle is passionate about learning and has taken many workshops, including with world renowned teachers David Swensen of Ashtanga, and Desiree Rumbaugh of Anusara.
Kyle is a trauma survivor and personally knows the devastating impacts and outcomes of trauma. She is a living testimony to the fact that we can transform trauma and stress in order to rise from the ashes and use our unique experiences and gifts to make a difference in the world. She indicates that yoga saved her life and is a powerful pathway to healing and growth. She she grew up with parents who struggled with Substance Use Disorder (now in long-term recovery) and lost her sister to a drug overdose in 2017. She is passionate about advocating for recovery, knows we can do better to save lives, and as a result is the Board Chair of Recovery Alliance Duluth (RAD).
Kyle has training in trauma-informed yoga from Firefly Yoga International, the Trauma Center Trauma Sensitive Yoga (TCTSY), and Transcending Sexual Trauma Through Yoga. She has further training in Mindfulness Based Stressed Reduction (MBSR) and Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TFCBT), and various social work oriented trauma-informed practice approaches including the 40 hour train-the-trainer certificate for Trauma-Informed Criminal Justice Systems..\ Kyle has taught at Yoga North, the Duluth Area YMCA, UMD Psychology Department, the Center for Alcohol and Drug Treatment, the Human Development Center Children’s Therapeutic Services and Supports (CTSS) program, the Program for Aid to Victims of Sexual Assault (PAVSA), the Center for American Indian Resources (CAIR), Yoga for Runners at the Duluth Running Company, Yoga for Kids, and a variety of open classes in the community. Additionally, in 2017 she partnered with the Honorable Judge Floerke of the 6th Judicial DWI Court to develop and implement a trauma conscious yoga and mindfulness program in treatment courts and has co-presented with him at the National Association of Drug Court Professionals (NADCP) annual conference.
She is a lover of writing and published poet of the book Grace Intoxicated. She weaves poetry into her yoga classes as a way to open consciousness and connect individuals with something greater than themselves. She knows yoga and poetry can be instrumental in healing and transformation. She believes in humanity and our ability to know & love ourselves more deeply in order heal, connect with and love others profoundly, and make a positive difference in this world.
Sam Connolly (she/ her)

ADMINISTRATIVE DIRECTOR

Anissa Thompson, RYT200 (she, her)

Anissa is an alumnus from Cohort 3 of Svälja’s House of the Gathering Yoga School. Yoga has been a lifelong intrigue of Anissa’s via books and DVDs since grade school. In 2012 she attended her first in person yoga class at the University of Wisconsin Superior. Anissa’s personal practice really took root in 2016 to heal and prevent injury while training for Grandma’s marathon. Yoga has been an integral part of Anissa’s days ever since. In early 2020, she earned several certifications in yoga trapeze, breath coaching, and gravity yoga. Anissa earned her 250-hour trauma conscious teaching certificate in the House of the Gathering Yoga School’s trauma conscious program graduating in November 2020. Completing the HGYS program opened many doors and has led to a dedication to learning and continued study. She is currently studying and working on a 300-hour training with Authentic Movements.

Anissa is originally from central Wisconsin but is a twin ports transplant and has made Duluth her home. In her free time, she can be found running, crafting, DIYing projects around the house, and hanging out with her dog.

Karen Zimmerman, R.N.,M.S., RYT 200 (she, her)

Karen received her BSN in 1985 and a Masters Degree in Science in Exercise Physiology in 1992.

After working as nurse for 25 yrs., Karen decided she wanted to make teaching fitness and movement a bigger part of her life. Karen became a Stott Certified Pilates Instructor in 2004 and completed the RYT 200 training at Yoga North in 2015, PiYO Live certification in 2017 and most recently completed a Trauma-Informed Yoga for Youth training.

Karen has taught and continues to teach a variety of group fitness classes including PiYO, Pilates, Step-Pump, HIIT and Circuit training. She also teaches yoga at Amberwing for the outpatient treatment program for at risk youth.

Karen enjoys adventure traveling, hiking, backpacking, running, tennis, cooking and eating delicious food.

Kate Horvath, RYT 200, Yin Certificate (she, her)

Kate brings 20+ years of yoga and fitness experience to her classes. A professional actor, singer, director, and educator, she now counsels executives on career strategy for a boutique firm in Duluth, MN. Kate’s enthusiasm for mindfullness, health, and wellness ranges from studying kettlebells with a former KGB trainee in NYC to Keening, the vocal art, and practice, of mourning the dead. She has studied yoga around the world and once “whirled with dervishes.”

Kate teaches with energy and athleticism. She is also passionate about the benefits of a Yin Practice for all movers and shakers. You can expect an encouraging and inclusive class, creating a connected practice at every experience level. She is also an avid runner, community builder, and bonafide Shakespeare nerd.

Emily Ostos, E-RYT200, LMT (she, her)

Yoga has been a driving force in Emily‘s life for 15 years. She has over 1500 hours of teaching experience and is an E-200 RYT certified instructor with Yoga Alliance. She received her training at the Sivananda Kutir Ashram in Netala, India in 2011, and has continued her training with renowned teachers across the globe. Emily’s areas of focus in teaching are, biomechanically sound movement patterns and cueing, creative flows, pranayama, and giggles. She is as down-to-earth as she is energetic, and her passion for yoga is apparent within moments of meeting her.

She received a BA of Fine Arts from Northwestern State University of Louisiana, and is also a Licensed Massage Therapist, specializing in Myofascial Release, Traditional Ashiatsu, and Thai Bodywork. She has worked at Muggymoose Massage & Thai Bodywork since 2016.

Born in Venezuela and raised in Louisiana, Emily backpacked and bounced around until finding her home on the shores of Lake Superior in 2008. She spends her free time hiking with Niko, her Border Collie, creating, cooking, singing, and dancing ~ with the intention of fully exploring what life has to offer, one day at a time, with compassion and gratitude.

Sarah Gardner, RYT200 (she, her)

Sarah Gardner has practiced yoga since she was a small child. In addition to her 200 hour RYT, she has certifications in Yin, Restorative, Trauma Conscious, and a Masters degree in physical theater. Sarah has taught yoga, knitting, and theater in Idaho, Pennsylvania, and now, Minnesota. She's on a mission to rest more, do less, and listen to her body and intuition with intention.

Kristy Marie O’Neill, LMT, NMT, Myofascial Release Therapist, RYT200 (she, her)

Kristy Marie is a yoga guide at Svälja Yoga and an instructor for Svälja’s House of the Gathering School. Kristy also leads Kirtan a musical and devotional yogic practice.

Kristy began practicing yoga 20 years ago and has been a student ever since. She was in the first cohort of House of the gathering yoga school, Svälja’s first incarnation of the YTT program.

She has a full-time massage and myofascial release practice here in Duluth, established 13 years ago.

Kristy studied and lived in Hawaii for four of the most formative years of her life. It was in Hawaii where she was immersed in a melting pot of different spiritual paths and an abundance of teachers ready to share these ancient wisdoms. She was Initiated as a Sufi in 2005 and has been studying all paths of the heart, religions, and traditions, finding unity between all ways. She uses mantras from the sacred traditions in a Bhakti (devotional) yoga practice called Kirtan. In this practice, we use the tool of the voice along with these archetypical sacred phrases to eradicate negativities of the mind and raise the essence of virtues and high ideals within us.

For the past 9 years, she has studied at length with John Barnes and the Myofascial release approach, taking 11 or more courses and shadowing him in his Pennsylvania clinic. The greater understanding of the fascia and its role in both the physicality and psyche/consciousness of every person feeds everything Kristy brings to both her massage practice and her yoga practice. She brings this deeply rooted fascial understanding into YTT also, co-leading the fascia workshop.

Kristy has also contemplated Death and dying for over 20 years with the mantra “you have to learn how to die before you can live'' as her guide. She has studied with masters such as Ram Das and Bodhi Be at the doorway to light in Maui Hawaii, stewards in the conscious dying movement. She also has studied with Jerry Grace Lyons from Final Passages, Institute of Conscious Dying, Home Funeral, and Green Burial Education. Kristy has led workshops locally, including for House of The Gathering YTT students on exploring the deeper meaning behind the corpse pose. Embrace death, and enhance life.

Sarah Mangan MA, MSW, E-RYT200 (she, her)

Sarah Mangan grew up loving the freedom of movement she felt when practicing gymnastics and dance, however, it was not until 2008 that her yoga journey began. As a social work graduate student, Sarah was looking for ways to destress and tried hot yoga with a friend. She was surprised at how difficult it was to move and breathe at the same time, but excited to find movements that reminded her of childhood. Moving back to Minnesota in 2010, she found a home studio, a daily practice, and the rest is history. She says "Yoga has become my anchor; my practice has become a space to explore, study, heal, and grow. The path of yoga has become my guiding force."

So inspired by the transformative gift of yoga in her own life, Sarah completed a 200 hour YTT at Muselan in Chanhassan, MN in 2012 and has been teaching since that time. You can find her teaching yoga in local studios, class rooms, backyards, and online; from little ones to elders, Sarah believes that yoga is for everyone. Today she gratefully teaches a variety of yoga classes, but especially loves to help folks unwind and intentionally relax with restorative and yin yoga. She believes in the cumulative effect of yoga – the result of each effort to arrive at a class, take our mats, and breath with one another; the effect is we are transformed. When we practice and connect with ourselves, we have an opportunity to rest in our true nature; and we are free.

Heather Murphy (she, her)

Heather has been practicing various forms of yoga for 25 years and is a 2020 graduate of the 250 hour trauma-conscious yoga teacher training program through Svalja Yoga's House of the Gathering Yoga School. She is also a Massage Therapist, Evolutionary Astrologer, mom, wife/partner, gardener, knitter, cook, musician, meditator, and more. She has a BA in Women's Studies, studied Massage Therapy at Heartwood Institute in Northern California, and studied Evolutionary Astrology with its founder, Steven Forrest. She has been a seeker and a dreamer all of her life, studying with psychics and astrologers, energy workers and shamans, meditators and yogis, musicians and artists, therapists and spiritual advisors. A passion for learning, a desire for deep personal healing, a search for meaning and purpose, and a calling to help heal and change this world have been the driving forces on her meandering life path. Heather is an assistant to Hilary Buckwalter-Wilde through Indwelling helping facilitate workshops and retreats on bodymind integration, imaginal ways of knowing, trauma informed care, and engagement with nature and the ancestors. She sees clients for Evolutionary Astrology readings at the Duluth Hub on 9th street. You can reach her at heather.evoastro@gmail.com

Jubilee Walls, American Council of Exercise certified fitness instructor (she, her)

Jubliee has been a certified fitness professional for over 7 years, however her journey began many years earlier. Since she was a young girl, she understood that her love of movement was a gift that God had blessed her with. Whether it be dancing, cheer or running, movement has always filled her with both giddy excitement and peace. Sharing the experience of movement with others has proved to be yet another gift in her life.

Seth Currier, MA, RYT 200, Certified Qigong Practice Group Leader (he, him)

Seth has been practicing Qigong since 2019 and yoga since 2015. He has been guiding Qigong and yoga since 2021.

Seth is a Certified Qigong Practice Group Leader through Spring Forest Qigong. He is also a 2021 graduate of Svälja Yoga’s House of the Gathering Yoga School and Yin Yoga Certification Program. Though these ancient traditions are different in many ways, he has found them to be congruent and helpful in his life as they have allowed him to find more awareness and connection to his body. They are both powerful, healing and enlivening in their own ways. He seeks to bring a trauma conscious lens into all of his practices.

Seth loves being in nature and is often in the parks throughout Duluth, in the woods in Northern MN and WI, or in the Boundary Waters. He loves being in nature in whatever way possible, including walking, sitting, swimming, hiking, mountain biking, or canoeing.

Through Qigong, yoga, and intentional time in the Forests, Seth has learned to connect with his body and with the Earth. He has had so many deep healing experiences with Nature that have expanded his understanding of community, sensuality, and communication. Seth has been outside his whole life-- spending his childhood barefoot in the Woods, sleeping in the Trees, breathing in the Forest, and immersing himself in Water-- Nature is in his bones. It was the draw of Nature, the draw of the Wild, the draw of the Boundary Waters, the draw of Lake Superior that brought him to Duluth.

Seth works in the non-profit human services field as Executive Director of Damiano Center among people experiencing housing insecurity, poverty and all that comes with these realities. Seth is also a Rule 114 Facilitative Mediator through the Conflict Resolution Center.

Jessica Roeder (she, her)

Jessica believes in dance as a mood lifter and a vehicle for joy. This lifelong passion led her to train with the Dance for PD® program of the Mark Morris Dance Group and to found, in 2012, Parkinson’s Dance Studio, a weekly class for people with Parkinson’s and their families and friends. She taught modern dance with Minnesota Ballet for seven years and has performed with Aspen Dance Connection and in Dances on the Lakewalk. Jessica teaches generative writing classes online for Lighthouse Writers in Denver and also works as a writer and freelance editor. Her prose chapbook Staircases Will Outnumber Us is available from Red Bird Chapbooks.

Yvonne Rutford, RYT200 (she, her)

Yvonne completed her training through Sutra Seekers/Runa Yoga in May 2022. She has also completed training in 5 Elements Yoga Practice (Janet Stone Yoga, July 2022), Yin Yoga Training (Svälja Yoga, November 2022), and will complete Trauma-Conscious Yoga Training through Svälja Yoga in March 2023.

Prior to training in yoga, she worked 20 years as a writing teacher, guiding students as they explored creative expression and discovered—or uncovered—their voice. She brings that same philosophy to yoga, providing a safe and supportive (and hopefully fun and casual) environment as students explore movement, breath, and presence.

Yvonne is particularly drawn to yoga that fosters connection to the outdoors, explores creative movement in nature, and deepens our respect and reverence for the natural world and our place within it.

Abigail Venuso, RYT200 (she, her)

Abigail experienced the transformational power of yoga during a period of change and uncertainty in her life. Since then, yoga has been a grounding and healing practice for her. Yoga taught Abigail how to cultivate inner resilience and learn about her body's abilities and limitations. In 2021, Abigail graduated from Svalja Yoga’s HGYS YTT. To Abigail, teaching yoga is about helping others find healing and peace.

Abigail loves to be in nature and enjoys gardening, hiking, kayaking, rock climbing, and camping. Her other hobbies include crochet, reading, and vegan cooking. Recently she has been cherishing time with her new baby girl.

Sophie Hillmeyer, RYT200 (she, her)

Sophie began her journey as a yoga guide in 2022 after years of practice and a true passion for sharing yoga with her community. Her teaching style is inclusive, creative, and grounded. Sophie truly believes yoga is for every body and strives to make yoga accessible and approachable for all who seek it. Off of the mat, she is a passionate reader, writer and nature-lover. She loves to be outdoors all year round, but never passes up a chance to cozy up at home with a book and her cat, Loon. Join Sophie Sunday evenings for a cozy, all-levels slow flow.

Susan W. Fackler, LCSW RYT-200

Susan moved to Duluth in 2021 from the Chicagoland area to be closer to her son and his family. She is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and was the director of a community family social work program. Additionally, she is a Registered Yoga Teacher, teaching at Total Body Yoga, guiding restorative yoga and yoga nidra with sound healing. Susan enjoys weaving her life experiences to create and encourage a safe place of wellness and joy. She completed her 200-hour yoga teacher training in 2014 from Emerald Heart School of Yoga. Her training includes Yogi Sprouts Kid’s Yoga in 2014, Divine Sleep Yoga Nidra at Kripalu in 2016, Sound Practitioner Training in Phoenix, Arizona, Restorative Yoga Training at Kripalu in 2020, Trauma Conscious Yoga at Svalja in 2022, and MMTCP Mindfulness Meditation 2-year certification program from 2021 to 2023. Currently, Susan is enrolled in the 75-hour Yoga 4 Cancer training.

She presently guides Yoga Nidra at Svalja, Gentle Yoga at St. Luke’s Hospital, and Preschool yoga for 2, 3 & 5-year-olds. Susan also guides Mindfulness Meditation and Yoga Nidra via Zoom. Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with her grandchildren Calvin and Ruby, her pup Bitsy, hiking, traveling, gardening, cooking, knitting, and other yoga practices. Susan's passion lies in guiding yoga nidra and weaving the healing sounds of crystal bowls, chimes, bells, and more to promote deep healing and restoration. She invites others to join her as they journey through the 5 levels of being, the koshas. Together, they will explore the physical body, the energy-breath body, thoughts and emotions, the wisdom body, and arrive at the bliss body.

Yoga Nidra, Susan explains, is a guided meditation where participants might hear everything or fall in or out of conscious hearing. They might follow her journey or go off on their own. There are no yoga poses required; one can lay down, recline, lay on their side, or sit. Susan highlights that one hour of yoga nidra is said to be equal to 2-3 hours of deep sleep. She finds joy in watching people come out of the journey with a beautiful smile on their face, feeling clear-headed and often able to sleep better at night. Susan emphasizes that Yoga Nidra can help with sleep, may decrease depression and anxiety, lower blood pressure, and increase overall well-being.

Matt Muecke, RYT 200 (he, him)

In 2021, Matt found House of the Gathering Yoga School’s Teacher Training program, which taught him how to truly connect with the unlimited knowledge within and ignited his passion for continuous learning and guiding others. He graduated from HGYS’s cohort 4 in 2021 as a Trauma Conscious yoga teacher, completed a Yin Certificate training in 2021 through Svalja Yoga, and earned both a Meditation Guide certificate in 2023 and a Holistic Nutrition Coach certificate in 2024 through Arhanta Yoga. Following YTT, he embraced the teachings of Ram Dass and developed a love for psychology. He completed a Dream Work certificate program in 2022 and is currently working toward a Sacred Counsel Guide certificate.

Matt has been active at the studio as a substitute guide, regular host, musician, and by taking on weekly maintenance and cleaning duties. A lifelong resident of the Duluth area, he now lives in the woods north of town with his adult son. He can often be found riding his motorcycle alongside his son, gardening, tending to his property, bonding with nature, especially Lake Superior, or playing his guitar with friends.

Ed Heisler (he/him)

At the very core of his being, Ed is a storyteller, spirit doula, and healer whose practice and teaching is rooted in curiosity, love, joyful learning with others, and his own journey with healing and spirit reconnection. With a background in violence prevention and peacemaking, Ed’s daily work focuses on nourishing individual and community connection to spirit, healing, and wholeness as a pathway to thriving for future generations–and ourselves. Ed (Koshin) Heisler was Ordained as a Rinzai Zen Priest in Anko-in, an Independent Branch Temple of Chozen-ji by Norma Ryuko Kawelokū Wong Roshi in 2022. He loves learning and sharing spirit and wholeness practices with others. Ed’s core practices include Zazen (meditation), Kado (flower arrangement), Ten Step Tai Ji, Okyo (Chanting), Shodo (Calligraphy), Reiki, and everyday storytelling that connects the depths of our wisdom, ancestors, and spirit.

Melly Weidendorf, RYT200 (she, her)

Hi friends! Melly here, and she's new to the area. She completed Svalja’s HGYS trauma conscious yoga teacher training with the 2022 cohort, after being invited by her fascia to do some healing.

Melly's educational background is in clinical mental health counseling, and recently she has been on a path of dismantling all the ways that her education taught her how to support the status quo of white supremacy and heteronormative culture in her own body.

Yoga has been instrumental in this process.

Yin yoga was Melly's first real exposure to yoga in a way that offered her the opportunity to slow down and listen to what her body is saying to her. What a gift this has been! The things she has learned in her yoga practice translate into her daily life with ease, and allow her to be more fully aligned with her purpose in this world.

Because of this, Melly offers a wide range of healing modalities in her therapy practice, such as meditation and breath-work, somatic remembering, and plant and fungi medicine work.

Sharing space during an asana practice is one of Melly's core self-care strategies, and she is so pleased to be able to offer this here in her new community! She’s looking forward to meeting everyone soon!

Melissa Hepokoski, RYT200 (she, her)

Melissa grew up near the St. Louis River and has lived in Duluth and the surrounding area for most of her life. Melissa has experienced healing and growth through the practice of yoga for over twenty years. More recently, she enhanced her knowledge and skill by completing Trauma Conscious Yoga Teacher Training through Svälja Yoga in September of 2022. Additionally, Melissa completed a thirty-hour Yin Yoga certification from Svälja Yoga in November of 2023.

Melissa is an experienced educator and is passionate about building community and taking part in the creative process through writing and other modalities. As a yoga guide, Melissa is dedicated to providing a safe and inclusive environment for all.

Savannah Swanson, RYT 200 (she, her)

Savannah has practiced yoga for over 15 years, and graduated from Svalja's House of the Gathering Yoga School in 2023. She grew up here in Duluth and developed a strong connection to Lake Superior and the nature that surrounds us. She is a descendant of the Lac Courte Oreilles tribe and has found growth, healing, and understanding through reconnecting to her Ojibwe heritage. Yoga, and more specifically trauma conscious yoga, has been another significant factor in Savannah's personal healing as a trauma survivor, and she guides yoga through a gentle, compassionate, trauma conscious lens.

Savannah has always worked within human services. From disability services to domestic violence advocacy, she has most recently joined the YWCA as director of their young mother's transitional housing program. She hopes to venture into death work in the not-so-far future as well, having felt called to this work in recent years, specifically as a death doula.

With her free time she enjoys being with her family and friends, being an auntie, reading, writing poetry, music, dancing, traveling, cooking, and snuggling up with her cat, Violet.

Kristin Fogard, E-RYT200 (she, her)

Kristin attended her first yoga class in 2002 and two years later found herself at David Swenson's Ashtanga teacher training. She completed her first Yoga Alliance specific teacher training in 2005, through Yoga North Duluth. In the following years she attended workshops in the Ashtanga tradition led by Manju Jois, Doug Swenson, Matthew Sweeney, Michael Gannon, Michelle Lynn and more. She began to see a disconnect between "tradition", Western bodies and inclusiveness which led to her personal interest in safety and alignment for a general population. In 2013 she attended her first workshop with YogaFit and found an organization that upheld the values of safety, alignment, and making the practice more accessible.

Kristin taught at Yoga North from 2005 to 2015, and at the Duluth YMCA from 2008 to present. She has training in Restorative, Hatha, Ashtanga, Vinyasa, Yin, Yoga for Healthcare, Yoga for Backs, the Wounded Warrior program and yogic philosophy. She has conducted workshops in sun salutations, inversions, arm balances, vinyasa flow, Ayurveda and the Bhagavad Gita. Kristin feels learning doesn't stop with a certificate, and she continues to attend training as often as feasible for personal growth, inspiration, and to keep her classes fresh and engaging.

Kristin works full time for the St. Louis County Land and Minerals department helping to maintain 850,000 of tax forfeit land and healthy forest in Northern Minnesota. In her free time, she enjoys relaxing with her Husband, working out, road cycling, gardening, knitting, sewing, reading, cooking, hiking, snowshoeing, and playing with her pups.

Laura Sellner, RYT 200 (she, her)

Laura Sellner is a trauma-conscious yoga guide at Svälja Yoga. She is a 2020 graduate of Svälja Yoga’s House of the Gathering Yoga School and was the Teacher Assistant for Svälja’s 2021 Yoga Teacher Training.

Laura has practiced yoga for over 14 years. She was first introduced to yoga at a music festival, then went on to take an in-depth study of Hatha Yoga at Lake Superior College. Since then she has continued to develop an authentic home practice and participate in different styles of yoga. She has found growth and transformation on the mat, which she incorporates into her journey of healing and self-discovery.

Laura’s main passions are music and yoga. She is a singer-songwriter and guitarist, and leads the eerie-folk project Superior Siren from Duluth, Minnesota. Laura is inspired by the human experience, the depths of the psyche, and the beauty of natural surroundings. She continues to promote creativity and compassion in hopes of encouraging a more connected community. Laura is excited to expand her practice of yoga alongside her career in music, and aims to be a vessel in which the tools of meditation and art can pass through.

Laura also is employed as a server and bartender at Lake Avenue Restaurant & Bar, and is a member of the Washington Studios Artist Cooperative.

Julie Deters, RYT200 (she, her)

Trained at Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health in Stockbridge, MA, Julie guides in the style of Kripalu, an asana practice that weaves moving meditation with pranayam, encouraging inward focus and connection of body, mind, and spirit.

With 20+ years of a personal practice and 10+ years of guiding others, Julie knows the importance of meeting the body where it is in each moment, empowering practitioners to approach the practice at a level that is appropriate for them.

Julie’s philosophy is that we all have an inner guru that we understand through our breath and sensations in our body and that we can access immense knowledge with a sweet balance of effort and ease, coupled with kindness and compassion.

“I am deeply grateful for the loving wisdom and meaningful lessons my teachers have shared with me throughout the years. I continue to be a student and am honored to be your guide.” ~Julie