It is hard to believe that we have completed another year and I am once again reviewing and looking ahead with our yoga studio in mind. Creating Space Yoga Studio is in its forth year and we have grown in so many ways. Each year brings new triumphs and challenges and always so much inspiration. I am always happy to take this opportunity to look back on our year together and reminisce about our achievements. This is how I saw 2010.
- We started the year by welcoming back an excellent teacher Nicole Patton to our schedule. Nicole was part of the studio when we first opened and then took some time away to focus on family. We were thrilled to have her back!
- We hosted three unguided meditation classes with the focus of stilling our minds and raising funds and awareness for the Ian Anderson House. We were happy to hand over a donation to this very worthy local organization in memory of a fellow yoga student, Judith Clyde
- This year we brought many interesting workshops to the studio including a Mindfulness Meditation Workshop, a Fabulous over Forty Wellness workshops series, a study group on Twists, Yoga for Stiff Guys and many more. We are looking forward to our new workshops and events coming up in 2011. Take a look!
- We ran a Back To School Food drive to collect lunch bag items for the kids in need to fill their backpacks. It was a great success as always and we delivered a trunk load of lunch items to the local food bank.
- We continued to grow our studio blog, Looking for Space. It is a pleasure to use this media to layer our message of our yoga community in a new forum. The Looking For Space readership is growing monthly and it is amazing to see how far our little blog reaches beyond our corner of the world. The worldwide web is truly mind blowing!
- Along with our studio blog, we have created a Creating Space Yoga Facebook page. This has been a great venue to get quick and daily messages out to our community regarding changes to our classes and workshops as well as a resource for yoga/meditation/environment related articles and links. “Like” this page and stay updated.
- Many of our classes continue to flourish but in particular it has been rewarding to watch our Gentle Yoga class on Wednesdays at 11:45am develop. This group has been very inspirational and a joy to teach. A wonderful class for those who need a slower, gentle approach in the middle of the week. Take a look at our Winter 2011 Yoga Class Schedule.
- We have increased our presence in the community to extend beyond Oakville. We are thankful for those students who travel distances as far as Hamilton, Erin, Burlington, Mississauga, St. Catherine’s, Milton and more. Your dedication and time travelled is appreciated!
- We organized a book drive again this spring to help support the Oakville Literacy Council. This is always an anticipated event and usually turns into a book exchange first, and then we deliver a huge carload of books to the Oakville Literacy Council. They are always very grateful for your donations.
- This Earth Day our students all shared ideas on ways to help the earth and environment. Take a look at the helpful list that was compiled.
- We were very excited to host an art exhibition, "Koi" for emerging artist Karin-Lynn Cumming. The exhibition was a great success and it was exciting to see the studio filled with vibrant pieces of art. The energy was palpable and we welcomed many of our yoga students as well as newcomers to the studio. Take a look to see images from the exhibition.
- This year our teachers have worked with other influential teachers such as Judith Hanson Lasater, Jason Crandell, Diane Long and Natasha Rizopoulos. It is our belief that the best teachers are curious students first!
- Two of our teachers, Nicole Patton and Robyn Bowman both earned their Relax and Renew Teaching Certifications with Judith Hanson Lasater. The Restorative classes will be starting in the New Year! Check out the schedule here.
- We hosted two “Karma” Restorative Yoga Classes to introduce the Restorative Yoga to the studio as well as raise money and awareness for the Halton Women’s Place. Both classes were full and we not only raised donations but were also able to relax and renew before the holidays! Thank you for your support.
- For the second year, we organized a Holiday Pajama Drive for the children in the care of the Halton Children’s Aid Foundation. We had a great success and this year was joined by Grace Academy of Dance and the Performing Arts. This year we collected 119 pairs of pajamas for the children in our community. All of the pj’s were delivered before the holidays. The kids were cozy because of this successful drive. Thank you!
- Creating Space Yoga Studio was featured several times in the Oakville Beaver because of our charitable work in the community. Something we as a yoga community should be very proud of!
- We have witnessed breakthroughs and challenges in our practices and our lives. Our teaching and our practices have developed. We have made new yoga friends and continue to develop an accepting and generous community of yoga minded individuals. Our Creating Space Yoga community is growing and developing and we are thankful.
Our wishes to you for a healthy and prosperous New Year!
Namaste.
