Melissa “Bee”: Owner, E-RYT 500, YACEP, Reiki II, Yoga Therapeutics
Melissa has been teaching yoga since 2003 in yoga studios, gyms, corporate facilities, summer camps and public schools. She graduated from TCNJ with a degree in education and a minor in theatre. Years later, she went back to school to earn a Masters Degree in Special Education. Yoga helped her cope with the demands of teaching and theatre direction and continues to inspire her life! To date, Melissa has completed over 700 hours of extensive yoga training in NY, NJ, Massachusetts and Arizona. Melissa has studied under the tutleage of teachers from the Kripalu, Iyengar and Anusara traditions. She has also received both a Level I & II Reiki Certification, a Mat Pilates Certification from PIA, a Group Fitness Certification through AFAA, and is trained in Meditation, Aerial, SUP Yoga and Restorative Yoga. Most recently, Melissa completed 72 hours of extensive training in trauma-informed yoga therapy. Melissa continues to be a student and embraces yoga as a way of life. In her classes, she enjoys sharing a diversified, accessible yoga practice for students of all ages and backgrounds, where joy and balance are the ultimate goals. Melissa leads the 200 hour teacher trainings at Country Flow Yoga and in her spare time, loves connecting with nature and creating fiber art. “To do what you love and feel that it matters; could anything be more fun?”— J.Child
Lara: Owner, E-RYT 200, Reiki II
Lara studied at Younique Yoga in Cedar Grove, NJ, where she earned her 200RYT with a specialty in Vinyasa Flow Yoga in 2015. She is also a Level I & II Reiki Practicioner. Lara discovered yoga after teaching five years in an urban district when she felt the sudden urge to find a new way to not only exercise for physical health, but to also “work out” her inner self. Amazed at how the practice alleviated the stresses of teaching in a high school as well as finding a much needed personal balance, she began to do more studying on the subject. Applying ancient wisdom to our contemporary western world in a useful and understandable way, Lara thinks “outside the box” in her teaching style and encourages physical and spiritual growth for the modern yogi in our modern world. She loves being part of a community where people come to practice with open minds and hearts, no matter where they are in their yoga journey, and feel really good about themselves without any judgement. Lara also serves as an adjunct English professor at William Paterson University. To her, yoga is best defined as staying balanced and present in each moment, not just on the mat, but in all aspects of this life. “Just remember to breathe through it and go with the flow.”
Michele: RYT 200, LMT
Michelle has been a fitness instructor for many years. She has taught Pilates, Spin, and Kettle Bell group fitness classes and is also a massage therapist. Michelle began her yoga journey several years ago as a student and soon after, became a certified yoga teacher. Yoga has helped her grow stronger, more flexible and more fearless, both on and off the mat. Michelle enjoys yoga because it allows her to sweat, breathe, break boundaries and connect her mind, body and soul. In her classes, Michelle loves to help others thrive and deepen their practice while listening to their bodies. Her hope is that her students step off the mat feeling refreshed, balanced and stronger than when they stepped on it. Yoga has inspired her to truly live in the moment. “Love is my religion.” ~Ziggy Marley
Amber: RYT 200, Reiki Master & Bellydance Instructor
Amber Chazukow is a devoted yogini and mother of two who has been sharing her passion for yoga since 2013 in Northern New Jersey. Trained in the Sivananda lineage by Maria Ortega-Murphy, Amber embraces yoga as a vital tool for maintaining physical and emotional well-being, a practice that supported her through two pregnancies and postpartum recovery. As a Reiki Master and intuitive, Amber weaves energy work and spirituality into her classes, offering a holistic experience that nurtures both body and soul. She believes that yoga is for everyone, regardless of age, body type, or fitness level. Her classes are joyful, inclusive, and invigorating, creating a welcoming space where all can thrive on their yoga journey.
Patty: RYT 200, Reiki II
Patty, who has been a lifelong public school educator, received her RYT- 200 here at Country Flow Yoga in 2019. Patty’s restorative and gentle yoga classes incorporate her light-hearted spirit with stretching, breathing and guided visualizations to promote peace of body and mind!
Kim: RYT 200, Reiki II
Kim has been drawn to the magic of yoga and all that it has to offer since elementary school. Working in the medical field for over 13 years, she has always found the human body fascinating. Once she discovered the true mind-body connection through yoga, breathwork and meditation and how much it enriched her everyday life, there was no looking back. She decided it was finally time to help enrich the lives of others and received her RYT-200 certification in October of 2020 through Country Flow Yoga. It’s a true passion of hers and she is honored to share it with all of those she practices with!
Karen: RYT 200
Karen Westhelle started her classical ballet training at an early age. After majoring in dance at college, she studied modern dance at the Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance as a trainee student, simultaneously teaching both classical and contemporary ballet to others. In 2006 Karen was certified as a pilates instructor through the Romana Krysanowska’s True Pilates Certification Program in New York City and continues to teach today. In 2015 Karen began taking Iyengar yoga classes and noticed the profound change it had on her body and decided that she wanted help others with theirs. Yoga became her primary focus. She was accepted into the 2019-2021 Iyengar Teacher Training program at the Iyengar Institute of New York where she continues to study with her mentors. Learning yoga was and continues to be a life-changing process for Karen, who revels in her work, helping others change their lives through the practice and power of yoga.
Luba Gavrilova, RYT 200
Luba has been practicing yoga for years, but it made a major impact on her life during/after COVID, when she (like many others) was forced to work from home and move less. Experiencing spinal tiredness and discomfort, Luba was eager to fix it by doing yoga on a regular basis. And it helped! Realizing the positive effect on physical health, Luba felt like she owed it to herself to take this yoga journey to the next level, and enrolled in the teacher training. The decision had proven to be right, as learning about mental and spiritual aspects of yoga gave her new means and instruments for self-care. Outside the studio, Luba is a wife and mother who loves reading, hiking, playing pickleball and wood burning.
Sue: RYT 200, Reiki Master
Yoga has been a part of Sue’s life since 1998. She completed her 200-hour teacher training in March of 2014 at hOMe Yoga in Mahwah, NJ. Immediately after completing her YTT she started teaching at Kozy Yoga in Ringwood until 2020 when the studio closed. During the summer of 2020, Sue started teaching her own classes on “The Curran Island” where her parents live in Skyline Lakes in Ringwood, NJ. Through yoga, Sue gained a depended awareness of her body and learned to turn her yoga practice into a moving mediation, connecting deeper to her authentic self. She invites all people of all levels to come to practice with her and bask in the positive energy. Yoga is a vessel of uncovering ways to love, honor and respect yourself fully and completely. Sue has been a Reiki Master since 1998. She lives in Ringwood with her husband Michael and their dog Magic. During the day, Sue is a middle school special education teacher, and she loves sharing her yoga mindfulness in school with her students and colleagues.