Our Teachers

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Mimi encourages mindful movement through traditional teaching methods using Sanskrit terminology, chants, and Pranayama.  She aims to create a warm and safe environment for students to go to their edge while honoring their limits.  She believes that practicing present moment awareness is the gateway to inner peace and wants every student to feel that they can take principals used in class off the mat and into their life.

 (E-RYT 500) Mandy has studied and practiced yoga for over 25 years now. When Mandy teaches her intention is to awaken an inner awareness that expands consciousness in the body, mind, and spirit. She is very descriptive in her cueing, often using anatomical terms and metaphors to guide students to feel the subtleties of the practice. Mandy's classes are slowly paced, strong in nature, and very grounding. Her aim is that each student leaves feeling more aligned, refreshed, and with a feeling of wholeness that is lasting.  

    (E-RYT 500) Michele is a Colorado yoga teacher, massage therapist, health coach, and life long learner. She infuses her weekly classes with humor, playfulness, and poetry. Her instruments of instruction are effective cueing and humor. Michele, a trail blazer, uses her calm presence and intuition to encourage her students to play at their edges and try new things. She is described by her students as interesting, intuitive, patient, and graceful. Off the mat you might find her meditating in her hammock or knitting by a fire.

 I am passionate about yoga. Yoga has been a part of my life for twenty-three years. I have learned over the course of twenty-three years that I am forever a student of this thing we call Life. When I guide a class, it is an exchange of energy, I am giving to the class, and the students are also providing energy. I truly feel we create the class together. I am only the vessel to create the class. I began teaching yoga seven years ago. I am trained in Hatha, Yin, Restorative, and Aerial Silks. I am Yoga Therapy trained in Trauma, Grief, and Functional Yoga. I enjoy bringing my entire tool kit to the table. I honor my mentors before me and honor you as you part the legacy of Yoga. I hope you to meet you on your mats soon. ERYT-500 

 Jamie Martinico is a 500 Hour RYT additionally certified in Yin and Kids Yoga. Yoga has been an opportunity for her to focus on her self care and personal journey to transform her life, physical body, and mental health. Yoga has enabled her to breathe fully, live slowly, speak intentionally, and have more fun. She has a background in massage therapy and brings a knowledge of the body to help individuals safely create more possibilities in their practice, with integrity in each pose.

Jamie teaches from the heart. She will guide you through a Baptiste inspired Vinyasa flow with a focus on breath, drishti, and alignment. She chose Baptiste style of yoga because she loves how it encompasses not only movement of the body, but movement of the mind and to help grow beyond our limiting beliefs. She empowers you to find the greatness in yourself, so you can take that out into your everyday life.  

     Danny enjoys connecting the mind and body together while practicing yoga and enjoys creating that avenue for others that takes his classes. Stepping on the mat is about eliminating the mental chatter and checking in with yourself. He hopes that after the class you leave feeling refreshed and rejuvenated. He recently graduated from his YTT 200 hour program in February 2024 and is excited to lead each of you on your own personal journeys. 

 Kelsey has been teaching movement in one form or another for nearly 20 years. Drawing on her extensive background in Pilates, dance, yoga, somatics, embodiment, breathwork, and transformational depth coaching, Kelsey is passionately dedicated to teaching in a way that cultivates authenticity, curiosity, creativity, and self-empowerment. No matter what she is facilitating, her approach prioritizes fostering safety, intimacy, trust, and resilience in the systems of her clients. Through her classes, workshops, and one-on-one sessions, she facilitates holistic experiences designed to help people reconnect to their bodies, authenticity, highest wisdom, deepest desires, and sacred power.
 

 Tawnya is a 200-hour RYT with training rooted in power vinyasa and holds certifications in All Abilities Yoga and Adaptive Yoga. Her teaching integrates a decade of serving adults in the Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD) field, ensuring her classes are accessible, nurturing, and supportive. Blending strength, mindfulness, and flow, Tawnya creates dynamic and inclusive classes designed for students of all levels. She believes yoga is a deeply personal and evolving practice and is dedicated to helping students find their own path, honor their bodies’ needs, and cultivate inner peace. Passionate about practicing yoga as a lifestyle, Tawnya inspires students to embrace their unique yoga journeys with confidence and curiosity. 

 After discovering yoga in college, I have spent the last 8 years practicing yoga on and off the mat. After bouncing around different studios, it was not until I found Sunny Isle Yoga that I truly found my place in the yoga community. Spending my days as a classroom teacher, my practice offers a moment of tranquility into my hectic life and schedule. I hope as a teacher to provide a positive and peaceful environment for every student in the room. A yoga practice is unique to every individual, and my classes will encourage modifications and offer many variations of poses during class. Students can expect to be challenged but honored in their personal practice. I cannot wait to meet you and welcome you to our wonderful community at Sunny Isle! 

Brittany is an E-RYT 500 Yoga Alliance accredited yoga teacher training facilitator and certified Baptiste Power Yoga instructor. She has over 1,200 hours of training, has taught over 4,000 hours of yoga and is the founder/owner of Red Lotus Yoga (formerly Container Collective Yoga), now called Red Lotus Yoga in Lakewood, CO since 2014. Whether you are newer to yoga or are a seasoned practitioner, classes/trainings Brittany leads will have you feeling empowered in the physical yoga poses and invited to look at the parts of yourself that are holding you back from living your most authentic and fulfilling life, as a student, teacher, leader. Her love of the yoga practices shine through in how she shares the teachings from the yogic texts and traditions from a place of continual application in her own life. She says, “No matter what modern style of yoga you choose to practice or teach, the yogic teachings and concepts are the common thread that will transform your way of being in the world.” Before opening her studio Brittany was a professional dancer/teacher and traveled/lived around the world. She is happily married with 2 small children and a border collie in Golden, CO. She is passionate about sharing the tools of yoga with as many people as possible. 

 Holly's yoga roots began with the stillness of yin yoga and grew into community practices centered on wellness for the whole family. Since starting yoga in 2010, Holly has discovered a deeper understanding of herself as well as the interconnectedness of the world around her. This newfound appreciation continues to enhance her personal focus on transformation and growth.

Her teaching philosophy builds on yoga as a journey taken together. She seeks to share the healing and acceptance that she has encountered and likes her students to feel empowered, knowing that yoga is for everyone, on or off the mat.

When she's not practicing, you might find her hiking in the mountains and spending time with her three children and two fluffy cats.

  Nicki is a registered 200-hour yoga teacher whose classes build strength through a dynamic flow which results a deeper surrender in savasana. For Nicki, yoga is about creating the life you want by becoming a person you truly love through connecting breath to movement and mind to body. Her goal is to provide a space where you can show up for yourself, no matter where you are. Expect movement, sweat, and most importantly, breath. 

 Jake Ferguson is a 200-hour Red Lotus instructor, trained under Britny Hopkins. With over 23 years of martial arts experience, Jake brings a unique blend of strength, focus, and mindfulness to his yoga practice. He emphasizes creating a fun and engaging atmosphere, with special attention to smooth transitions between postures. Jake encourages students to adjust the flow to suit their individual needs, making the classes more accessible to a wide range of differently capable practitioners. Jake hopes to support as many people as possible to reach a meditative state through movement, empowering them to build both physical and mental resilience through the dynamic flow of Vinnyasa flow yoga and the principles of martial arts. 

 Donisia (she/her) discovered yoga as a path to both inner strength and gentle self-acceptance. She centers her teaching around the belief that yoga is for everybody and every body, honoring the practice by meeting each person exactly where they are. Her classes offer an intentional space for reflection, movement, and connection. With a 200-hour Vinyasa certification and 100-hour training in Yin and Yoga Nidra, she weaves her personal experience into each class with intention and heart.  

 Rooted in the belief that healing requires both rest and resilience, Donisia brings balance to her classes, thoughtfully blending yin's softness with yang's dynamic energy. Her teaching invites students to explore stillness alongside movement, cultivating presence that extends beyond the mat into everyday life.  

 Donisia's approach is heart-led and intuitive, weaving strength with gentleness and meaning into each practice. To her, yoga is not just an exercise, but a conversation between body, breath, and spirit.  

 Valency has 20+ years in the health and wellness field. She received her first yoga certification in Hatha Yoga from the ShambhavAnanda Shoshoni Yoga Center in 2000, her Hot Yoga certification from Jeanine Armstrong of Gentle Strength Yoga in 2002, and her Prenatal Yoga certification from the Mama'hood Prenatal Yoga Program in 2019. She holds a B.A in Social Sciences-Education, from the University of Northern Colorado (1995), and a license in Massage Therapy from the Colorado School of Healing Arts (1999), and a Health and Life Coaching certificate from the Health Coaching Institute (2022). Valency has a breadth of knowledge in a number of fields including Teaching (children and adults), Business Development, Social Media Marketing, Product Development, Mind-Body Wellness, Meditation, and Nutrition.  

Valency currently lives in Colorado with her family which includes her husband (and business partner) and two awesome little humans that keep her heart full, happy and very busy. She is the co-founder and CEO of LuvBelly, a Prenatal Nutrition & Wellness Lifestyle Company that is dedicated to providing premium prenatal nutritional products, education and all-around goodness to make healthier, happier mamas and babies. Whether it be through her coaching, teaching yoga or a friendly conversation, Valency is passionate about teaching others how to turn down the mental noise, tune into their body’s messages, trust their inner guidance, and create a healing dialogue that feels like coming home to themselves.