Stacy Abbattista

I discovered yoga in 2001 while living in Arizona. Yoga inspired me to escape my tension filled life and evolve my personal practice to life off the mat. I completed my yoga teacher training with Cathy Morse at Blue Turtle in July of 2006. And I am a registered yoga teacher (RYT) with Yoga Alliance. My teaching has been influenced by workshops with Tim Miller and Cyndi Lee.

While living in Arizona, I graduated from Arizona State University in 1998. I went on to work with the Arizona Diamondbacks and then Fox Sports Net Arizona.

I moved to Charleston in 2002, after spending many summers and family holidays here growing up. I still return to Arizona to take the music inspired power yoga classes that brought me to yoga.

I am very energetic and have a love for the sunshine and the outdoors, especially the beach. I encourage my students to use yoga as a vehicle to reduce stress, tension, and increase happiness and self acceptance.

Annie Banks

A low country native, Annie Banks received her instructor certification from the Asheville Yoga Center in Asheville, NC. She has been practicing yoga for eight years and teaching for four, in a number of unconventional settings.

In her classes she emphasizes the importance of balance between the ‘hard and soft’ aspects of yoga, and particularity the necessity of true relaxation. In addition Annie believes that yoga should be accessible for everyone and can be of benefit to all bodies, no matter the age or condition.

Caitlin Craig Hunt

Caitlin Craig Hunt, RYT
Simply, I believe in yoga. Yoga makes us better people on every level, or rather, reveals the best person already living within each of us. I discovered yoga ten years ago while attending the College of Charleston and immediately knew I had found something that resonated with me on a deep level. Walking out of that first class, I felt more like ME than ever before. Since then, I have established a strong personal practice, read all kinds of literature on yogic philosophy, methodology and anatomy, practiced with many teachers, taken classes and workshops in various schools of yoga and ultimately, earned a 200-hour teacher’s certification in 2007 through Blue Turtle Yoga. I can’t get enough of it. With steady practice, I have become more confident in my ability to handle any situation this life has to offer, more connected and responsive to the world around me and more comfortable in my own skin. I’m grateful to have the rest of my life to continue the process and share this journey with others. Teaching yoga is one of my great joys and I am so honored to belong to this warm, inspiring community!

Harry Dinwiddie

For the first 30 years of my life, I can easily say I never had a passion. I never concerned myself with it since I did not know what I was missing. However, practicing yoga for seven years and being a teacher for the last two, I found something that not only do I love, but love to share. The benefits of yoga (like physical flexibility, strength, calming the mind, tolerance, acceptance, among the thousands of other benefits I am discovering daily) have transformed me from a scared, fat, little kid into a not so scared, less fat and somewhat taller big kid.

To me, yoga is about connecting to the Universe and allowing ourselves to accept our roles within it. My traditions are usually conflicting to other teachers and principles. While I respect the traditions of other teachers, they do not work for me. Knowing that, I do what I can to have you see your own potential. I want to make you uncomfortable. I want to open you up to new ideas. I want to take you away from norms. Not to punish you, but for you to see who you truly are. Yoga is self-awareness. Find yourself. Not a person to emulate.

Suzanne Hancock

Born in Columbia, SC, Suzanne Hancock moved to Charleston in July of 2008. Suzanne attended the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, where she attained a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration with a concentration in finance. After several years in the "real world," she realized that though she was groomed to be an investment banker and had a passion for numbers, the setting and hours of a profession rooted in her specialty were rigid and did not fulfill her on a personal level.

Suzanne had been practicing yoga for several years prior, yet it was her exposure to Blue Turtle's yoga studio and its amazing instructors that changed her life in ways she didn't recognize until they were deeply rooted within her. Yoga helped her get through a difficult time in her life and changed her outlook on... well, pretty much everything. She began practicing regularly three to five times a week and decided to partake in the 200-hour program with Kelly Jean Moore in 2009. She recently became a certified yoga instructor after a dedicated process of self-study and heightened awareness. Suzanne then went on to study Yin Yoga. She embraced this style of yoga that couples breath and surrender and was fascinated by the shifts that occurred within her body's connective tissue-- almost immediately. Under the guidance of Sarah Powers, she completed the Yin Yoga teacher training program in Chapel Hill, NC in 2010.

In her classes, she emphasizes the importance of staying internally present rather than "going through the motions." Suzanne is quick to prescribe yoga to anyone and everyone (and she does!) for its benefits both on and off the mat.

Erin Hopkins

Born in Richmond, VA, Erin moved to Charleston soon after graduating from Virginia Tech (Go Hokies!) with a Bachelors Degree in Marketing Management. She came to yoga to get in shape and lose weight. What she found was a source of therapy for her anxiety and body image issues. On her mat, she finally found a place to let go, calm the mind, reduce stress and practice self acceptance. Yoga has changed her life and made her a better person. It has given her the confidence and energy to reach other goals in her life.

Erin completed her yoga teacher training at Blue Turtle Yoga in 2009 with Kelly Jean Moore. She has a 200-Hour Yoga Alliance Certification in Power Vinyasa, which is her favorite style of yoga. After her teacher training, she interned at BTY and is now a regular teacher. She is honored to teach at Blue Turtle where her love affair with yoga began, alongside so many amazing teachers that have inspired her throughout her journey.

Besides working full time and teaching yoga, Erin loves to run and bike. Health and Fitness is her passion. She’s recently completed two sprint triathlons, a half marathon and is now training for her first marathon.

Ashley Kennedy ERYT, BTY Director

I grew up studying art and dance in southwestern Virginia and received a Masters Degree in Art Education at Columbia University’s Teachers College before moving to Charleston in the summer of 1999. I became a certified yoga teacher in 2003 through the 200-hour program at the now defunct but often remembered Gaea Yoga Center, formerly of Mount Pleasant, and received a prenatal yoga certification from Asheville Yoga Center in 2004. I have taught yoga to children, teens and adults in a wide variety of styles, including Gentle/Restorative, Vinyasa Flow, Power Yoga, and Hot Yoga and truly enjoy teaching the basics. I also assist with Blue Turtle Yoga’s Teacher Training Program.

Regardless of the style of yoga that I’m teaching, I work to cultivate a class environment that permits students to practice their truth, to strike a balance between effort and surrender, to drop fear and feel what’s real. I love that though this practice can be perceived as introspective, the benefits can extend beyond the individual practitioner. I believe that yoga provides an incredible opportunity to see ourselves without the destructive lens of judgment, and that as we cultivate compassion for self we can begin to drop our misgivings about others.

As the Studio Manager at Blue Turtle, I always welcome your questions, concerns and feedback via info@blueturtleyoga.com.

Kari Kim

Kari took her first yoga course at the college of Charleston while a student there in 1993. After graduating from MUSC’s College of Nursing in 1998, and pursuing a career in nursing, she revisited her yoga practice while pregnant with her first child. At the point she knew yoga would be ever present in her life. after having her second child, and still working as a nurse, she decided to pursue a more holistic approach to healing and became a certified yoga teacher.

She received her certification through Holy Cow Yoga Center in 2003 and has been teaching ever since. Kari loves to share with her students ways to find a more peaceful and joyous life through the practice of yoga and meditation. as a mother of three she loves the balance yoga has brought to her and her family. Kari lives in Mount Pleasant with her husband Mike and children Baylor, Mia and Scout.

Mark Knowles

800 hr. CERTIFIED JIVAMUKTI YOGA® TEACHER
Mark began studying Zen Buddhism and Aikido in 1990 with Master Robert Balker. This planted the seed of Self-Study-svādhyāya and Tapas-discipline.
Mark earned his Class IV 3000 Ton Master’s Licence from the UK Department of Transportation/Maritime Coastguard Agency after years of training and practical experience. Born and raised in the Bahamas he felt most at home on the water, and would pursue a long and happy career at sea.

It was this love that brought him to his first yoga class in Charleston. On what would be his final journey he found his first Jivamukti Yoga class and had his whole view of Yoga change. Far from sleepy and flowery he found a great practicality in the practice that demanded use in everyday life, finding challenge not only in the postures, but also in the spiritual activation and social awareness that was so ingrained in the Jivamukti Method.

As a Type I diabetic Mark has experienced firsthand the life-enhancing qualities of a vegan diet and a daily yoga practice.
From teaching business moguls on the beaches of the Bahamas to the dedicated students of South Carolina, he’s never looked back on his former life as a Dive Instructor, Bungee Operator, or Ship’s Captain.

After a nearly two year apprenticeship with Jeffrey Cohen acting Facilitator and formerly Lead Mentor for the residential Jivamukti Yoga® Teacher Training Program, he completed his 800 Hour Certification.
Recognizing the great role music plays in our daily lives, you’ll hear many of the uplifting musicians of our times in class, from Krishna Das to Wah!, Guns ‘n’ Roses to Bob Marley. Come experience yoga as a practical method, a challenging practice and supreme devotional gratitude.

He bows down at the lotus feet of the Lord and His many forms:
Sharon Gannon and David Life. Andrea and Jeffrey, Sri Swami Satchidananda, Manorama-ji, Jennifer and Bill.
तपः स्वाध्यायेश्वर प्रणिधानानि क्रिया योगः॥१॥
tapaḥ svādhyāyeśvara praṇidhānāni kriyā yogaḥ

www.bahamayogi.net

Aimee Koon

Aimee is originally from Pittsburgh Pennsylvania. After graduating college in West Virginia she moved out west to Tempe Arizona where she fell in love with yoga. She began her yoga journey at The Southwestern School of Holistic Health in 2000. This experience opened up a whole new world for her. Aimee moved to Charleston SC in March of 2003 where she continued to practice yoga.

Yoga inspired Aimee to continue her education in Psychology and she earned her M.A. in Professional Counseling in October 2006 and began her 200 hour yoga certification in September of 2006 at Blue Turtle Yoga. Yoga philosophy and psychology are her passions. The combination of mindfulness, self-awareness, stress reduction, and the openness we find with being aware of our thoughts and feelings have transformed her life. Yoga plays a huge part in her busy life, and keeps her feet grounded and her heart and mind open!

Cathy Lipp

What brought Cathy Lipp to yoga in 1996? Her sailing team coach insisted she do ANYTHING to make her look “less like a bull in a china shop” during regattas. Lo and behold, she loved it! Cathy had a great teacher who assured her it didn’t matter if she ever touched her toes and that message of non-competition during years of competitive sailing kept her sane. Cathy sometimes wishes her physical practice was as awesome as the yoga CD mixes which she loves to make! No… but she does love the use of music interwoven with her class themes.

Those of you who are totally “by the book” yogis will want to know the following: Cathy studied with Vishwanath and David Swenson in Goa, India (yet she is prouder of the fact that she spent the whole time setting up her best friend with a fancy British gent and they have since married!) Cathy is certified at a 500 hour level and has taught at The Bodhi Tree and Charlotte Yoga (both in Charlotte 2001-2004). And has been teaching for Blue Turtle since 2005.

Originally from Richmond Va, Cathy spent 4 wonderful, awesome, totally exquisite years at College of Charleston where she met her rock-star hubby James on the sailing team. Just recently Cathy has explored the new dynamic of “motherhood.” Her son Elliott is her pride and joy and probably the reason she looks blissfully sleep deprived (not to mention in TOTAL awe of any woman with more than one child!!)

Bottom Line: If you’re coming to Cathy’s class, she hopes you laugh a little, relax a lot, and find a new gratitude for this wonderful life.

Jim McKenrick

In February 2005 I moved to Charleston SC from Atlanta GA and I am still trying to adjust to the slower small town pace of Charleston and the Low Country. I am 44 years old, born and raised in Atlanta and a graduate of Clemson University. I have been a certified group fitness instructor for 25 years.

As part of my fitness training, I became very interested in nutrition and therefore, long before I became an ERYT with Yoga Alliance, I became a practicing vegetarian. I took my first Yoga class in Atlanta; back in the early 1990’s when Yoga first began to expand out of the Yoga studios and into the gyms as a form of group fitness. I was already teaching Aerobics, Sculpting, Step, Kick Boxing, and other forms of group fitness and immediately became interested in expanding my certifications to include Yoga. I attended some basic 2 day Yoga training sessions through Fit Yoga, Fitour and the YMCA and then began teaching Hatha Yoga classes in the Ashtanga style at the local gyms in Atlanta. I then became a certified Spinning instructor through Mad Dog and in 2000 I started teaching Spin / Yoga classes at several gyms in the Atlanta area.

As Yoga became more popular and more studios opened in the area, I started practicing many different styles of Yoga including Iangar and Bikrim (Hot Yoga) and wanted to learn more about Yoga and really grow my practice. I then enrolled in a 200 hour Yoga Alliance approved certification curriculum to become a Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT) with Yoga Alliance. Since completing my initial training to become a RYT, I have taught an average of 5 hours of Yoga every week and after 2 years was able to register as an Experienced Registered Yoga Teacher (ERYT) with Yoga Alliance. In addition to teaching 13 hours of fitness each week including Yoga, Step, Spinning, Sports Conditioning, and Body Sculpting, I work full time at Heritage Trust Federal Credit Union as an Assistant Vice President, managing their Default Administration Department. Cross training is very important and although I teach a lot of classes each week, they are all very different types of classes, which allows me to train my body mentally and physically in many different ways. All the classes I teach work together to keep me balanced and in good physical and mental health. My other hobbies include outdoor cycling, hiking, camping, theater, movies, and getting together with friends. I am energetic and enthusiastic; I always work hard and play harder! I enjoy life to the fullest and always take the necessary steps to take care of myself. I am passionate about fitness and currently maintain multiple fitness certifications allowing me to teach many different forms of fitness.

You can find me on the Eco Group Fitness schedule, the Eco Spin schedule and the Blue Turtle Yoga schedule at various times during the week teaching a variety of different classes at both the Mt. Pleasant and Downtown locations and I look forward to seeing you in class sometime in the near future. Namaste, Jim

Kelly Jean Moore ERYT, Teacher Training Coordinator

Kelly began teaching in 2004 at Blue Turtle Yoga. Her primary style is vinyasa based but incorporates the varied practices of Ashtanga, Power Yoga, and the Yin practices popularized by Sarah Powers and Paul Grilley. Each practice varies greatly depending on the particular theme being explored. Regardless of the style or theme of a class, there are consistent alignment points used, not to create the perfect pose, but to help people realign their structure and rediscover their center. She is known for injecting an irreverant sense of humor into her classes but has no fear of tackling the serious psychological issues of waking up which include aversion, attachment, addiction, and fear. Kelly found Yoga at a pivotal time in her early twenties and experienced a profound healing. This is why she is now a relentless advocate of students rolling up their sleeves and getting into the dark and dirty aspects of the self in order to penetrate the veil of delusion and step into their birth right, their calm and compassionate Buddha nature. Though she would not call herself a Buddhist, Kelly’s long standing mindfulness meditation practice has been an endless source of support for her as a teacher and a seeker. She is the creator and primary instructor of BTY’s Teacher training program and has currently wrapped up a long stint as the studio director to create more time for personal inquiry and the counseling of private clients. She travels nationally teaching workshops on the Chakra system and on liberating the creative process. Her understanding of the chakras is informed by her study of Carl Jung and the ground breaking theories of Anodea Judith. Kelly is also proud to represent Manduka as an ambassador of their reliable yoga props.

Cathy Morse

At the persistence of a good friend, Cathy Morse was persuaded to take her first yoga class in 1999 at her local gym. A former track star, Cathy had always been an avid athlete. Over the years, she has experimented with weight lifting, kick boxing, cycling, kayaking, rock climbing, hiking and even participated in multi-sport racing. She continues to run and completed her first marathon in 2006. Cathy recalls her first introduction to yoga as truly humbling. She was so moved by this experience that she went directly to the bookstore and purchased Yoga Masters - the first book of her now extensive yoga library. Cathy has been committed to the practice ever since. She is convinced that the inevitable aging process, accelerated by strenuous activity necessitates the commitment to yoga. She believes that taxing the body ultimately creates a leak in our life force (prana) and yoga provides the “sealant”. Cathy feels yoga is the way to mix life and love rendering a lovely and vital human being. In February of 2000, Cathy began practicing Ashtanga under the guidance of Tim Miller and now honors him as her senior teacher. Over the years, Cathy has studied with Tim repeatedly in Columbus, Ohio, Tulum, Mexico and at his studio in San Diego. She has completed the first series (yoga chikista/yoga therapy) and is currently working on dwi pada sirsana of the second series (nadi shodana/nerve cleansing). In March of 2008, Cathy will have the privilege of studying with Tim’s teacher, Sri Patthabi Jois in the Florida Keys. Cathy has studied with other renowned teachers such as Seane Corn, who sparked her interest in the energy body (Chakras), David Swenson, who fascinated her with floating, Rodney Yee, who opened her eyes to the details of asana, Anna Forest, who inspired her with amazing feats of strength, and Paul Grilley who enlightened her with his comical, yet challenging grasp on our anatomical challenges. Each teacher offers what she calls a “nugget” - something small that has had a big impact on the student and teacher that she has become. Cathy opened her first studio, Positive Postures in Columbus, Ohio teaching and practicing there for a year and a half. Finding an old vacant warehouse nearby, she later opened the Yoga Factory. This new location was developed as a larger more personal place to practice and continues to thrive today under the guidance of nine beautiful teachers, all with Cathy’s training. Cathy has since relocated to Charleston, South Carolina, where she hopes to develop the popularity of Ashtanga yoga in her new warmer home. Though Cathy has been teaching for 8 years, she subscribes to the notion that one is always a student of life/yoga. Once these forces have become linked they cannot be separated. Cathy has also come to realize that as much as she strives to inspire the student, it is often the student that inspires her. She challenges her students to practice for progress not perfection, and to find new ways to take yoga off the mat and into their hearts and minds.

Michelle Sabido

It amazes me how life hands you what you need when you're ready for it. It also amazes me how many fascinating people step into your life when you try to better yourself.
As a philosophy major in college, I was particularly interested in the study of the nature of consciousness, morals and ethics, religion, and the mind body connection. After graduation, I had difficulty finding a place to fit my passion - philosophy- into my life and still function in the everyday world. Then, as fate or synchronicity would have it, I found yoga and an amazing teacher, Kelly Jean Moore, at Blue Turtle yoga in Charleston, South Carolina. Her teaching style drew me in and kept me inspired, humbled, and rooted.
After some time, I began to view yoga as a functional philosophy. It allowed me to dabble in the deeper existential profundities of life and at the same time I found a functional and relative connection to the world around me through my body. I became an avid student and practitioner and I still am. The great thing about yoga is that you don’t have to be interested in philosophy to walk away with the health benefits that a regular practice provides.
My intention as a teacher is to bring my students fully into the present moment through conscious breathing and challenging flowing postures. The intended result is a calming of the mind, reduction of stress, and a healthier body. My wish is that the consciousness and stillness cultivated on each student’s mat is carried into his or her daily life. When we are able to be still, we are able to receive all that is being offered to us on a daily basis.
I attended Blue Turtle Teacher Training with Kelly-Jean Moore in 2008 and received my 200 hour Registered Yoga Teacher certification through Yoga Alliance in December 2008.

Michelle Seay

A local artist and licensed Coast Guard Captain, Michelle brings her connection to the outdoors inside to the yoga studio. By conscioulsy connecting to the breath as a foundation to being completely present, yoga becomes a true reflection of the real living, on the mat and in the world.

Michelle is certified at the 200 hour level in Ashtanga and also at the 40 hour level with David Swenson. She has completed Bikram Yoga intensives, and has been fortunate enough to have studied with Dharma Mittra, Shivra Rea, and Gurmukh Kaur Khalsa. The presence of Gurmukh and the fluid power of Shiva Rea proved to be an astonishing, inspiring experience. To embrace the evolution of a personal practice, to begin to feel the movement surface from the inside out, and to find the balance between movement and stillness can take a lifetime, so let’s enjoy the ride!

Kris Ward

Kris Ward grew up in Columbia, South Carolina and has just returned east with her husband Kraig from over a decade on the West Coast. A lifetime student of creative movement, Kris has taught self-empowerment through yoga, hip hop dance, and other wellness modalities since 1996. Kris's yoga teachers include Shiva Rea, John Friend and Baron Baptiste among others. Their influence, coupled with Kris's dance background, gives her classes a playful, fluid style that doesn't let you skimp on postural alignment OR mental engagement.
An avid student of the Law of Attraction as well as Nonviolent Communication, the Human Potential Movement, and numerous personal development courses, Kris has spent much of her life reflecting on the connection between what we believe, how we behave, and the lives we manifest. She and her husband Kraig originally founded Trikaya Yoga in 2006 to organize local awareness events and seva (service) projects such as the Global Mala San Diego—which raised money for several worthy charities while inspiring hundreds of participants to transform their yoga into a launching platform for their most abundant and authentic lives. Kris's sister company, Abundant Yogi, empowers yoga teachers and wellness practitioners to become Rock Stars in their field and make great money doing what they love, both on- and off-line. She has coached a wide variety of people ranging from Billionaires to the blind elderly, from professional dancers and athletes to sufferers of stroke and Parkinson's disease. She facilitates Trikaya classes, retreats, and events nationally and internationally, as well Abundant Yogi™ Lifestyle Design courses and tele-classes. Teaching is her absolute bliss.

Tricia Wylie

In 1994 Tricia decided to leave her cold Pennsylvania winters behind, packed up the car (bike in tow) and moved to Charleston. Now in 2007, she calls Mt. Pleasant home with her new husband Brian, fuzzy dog Maggie, and deservidly spoiled kitty Samadhi.

A vegetarian for 23 years, Tricia moved to the Lowcountry in hopes of opening a veggie cafe, but as fate would have it she discovered yoga and found her true calling. (She Still loves to cook!) Tricia is now devoted to helping others discover the abundant benifits of praticing yoga, both on and off the magic carpet (yoga mat). With numerous teacher trainings and workshops behind her Tricia has created her own unique teaching style (which at times can be called intense). Classes usually include core workout, asana, pranayama and chanting.

In addition to teaching a fun, powerful and vigorous vinyasa class, Tricia also teaches a yin yoga class, and offers private instruction. Her favorite teachings are Dharma Mittra, Shiva Rea, Andrey Lappa, Desiree Rhumbaugh, Paul Grilley, and Ana Forrest.