Meet Our Teachers

Erin Szwajda – Yoga Lead

Erin’s yoga journey began with a quest to help her mother who was diagnosed with MS.  She began researching the disease and almost every article spoke of the benefits of yoga for MS patients.  That was when she began studying yoga and began a practice of her own.  Before long, she was reaching out to local instructors who were interested in teaching her and her mother privately.

It didn’t take long before she fell in love with the practice.  Within that same yea, she started her official studies at The Himalayan Institute.  Erin received her RYT200 in May, 2017.

She has been teaching since and brings her empathetic nature to each class.  Her students are able to focus on awareness, intention and unconditional love for themselves and others.  Her goal is for her students to feel mindful & present as much as they feel relaxed, leaving them feeling empowered and with a peace within.

Jennifer Stern

Jen is a RYT-E500hr Level Yoga Teacher and Certified Ayurvedic Yoga Specialist. She completed her training through the Himalayan Institute in Buffalo, NY and has practiced yoga since the late 1990’s.  She continues to study and develop her experience in yoga, meditation, Ayurveda, functional movement and is currently in the process of receiving certification in herbalism.

Jen enjoys sharing yoga and Ayurveda with students, helping them discover the many benefits of practice on the body and mind.  She emphasizes breath awareness, proper alignment, and relaxation in her classes. 

Nikki Wallace

Nikki is a Certified Personal Trainer through NCSF.   For the last five years she has been involved in training at various Western New York health clubs, working with clients ranging from age 15 to 75.

Nikki specializes in strength and mobility training, emphasizing functional exercises to improve balance, muscular endurance, and overall quality of life.  She also has a 200Hr RYT Yoga Certification.

Kristie Stephens

Kristie Stephens is a Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT) with Yoga Alliance, which acknowledges the completion of a yoga teacher training with a Registered Yoga School (RYS).

Kristie brings with her years of experience, knowledge, a deep passion for yoga and a love for all her students. She will be offering an All Levels Flow class every Sunday at 9:30am and a Gentle/Restorative on Thursday mornings at 9:30am.

Carley Buck

Carley has been practicing yoga for 15 years, using the physical asana portion of the practice to stay fit, flexible and feeling good. It wasn’t until attending teacher training in 2014/15, that she fell in love and dove deeper into philosophy, pranayama and meditation.

Yoga has helped Carley navigate her mental health and infertility struggles with a bit more grace and now allows Carley to stay sane through being a momma to twin boys!

When attending Carley’s class, be prepared to listen to your body and experiment with intuitive movement. Also, each class will contain a little bit of core work and a little bit of mobility to ensure longevity in our physical practice!

Elizabeth Graham

Elizabeth is a RYT-200Hr level yoga teacher working on completing her additional 300Hr teacher training.  She has been practicing yoga for nearly 26 years and was drawn to how the practice helped calm her nervous system.  She is certified in many different styles of yoga including Yin Yoga, Yoga Nidra and Mindfulness Meditation, among others.

Yoga was a grounding practice for Elizabeth when she moved coast to coast, then north, south and back up the East Coast.  Yoga also helped her navigate her healing journey while battling chronic illnesses and all the physical/mental stressors that surfaced during that period of her life.  Her passion for yoga has extended to her family; her husband is in the process of becoming a yoga teacher himself and their beautiful 5 year old daughter loves to practice and “teach” yoga and meditation.  

She enjoys helping people feel comfortable in their own bodies, encouraging them to slow down and go inward, as well as teaching them to move their bodies in ways they didn’t think they were capable of.  Throughout each class, she encourages students to bring awareness to their breath and become more aware of how their mind, body and soul are feeling in the present moment, without judgement or a need to change.  

Julie Lefler

Julie has been a yoga and meditation practitioner for over 25 years and has found these practices to be transformative, healing, life changing and ever evolving. 

She received her 200 hour teacher training through the Himalayan Institute and her 300 hour training from Beryl Bender’s The Hard and The Soft Yoga Institute.  Julie also has obtained Level 1 certification from The Baptiste Institute and Trauma Informed Children’s Yoga Teacher Training from Yogis In Service.

She has taught in local studios over the past 6 years and has led yoga and mindfulness classes to children, parents and teachers in the KenTon School District, where she recently retired from teaching kindergarten after 22 years.

Julie is looking forward to bringing healing, grounding, strength, flexibility and open hearted connection to her classes. 

Katherine Lehman

Deeply intrigued by meditation from an early age, Katherine has always been a student of the mind/body connection.  She began her YTT in 2009 in Pittsburgh but had to relocate back to Buffalo. Unable to find a yoga studio that felt like home, she became a running coach with a side focus on teaching private meditation sessions. In 2019, she found her way back to yoga, lost 100 pounds through the pandemic and found the path back to teaching and sharing. Her passion is sharing the gift of yoga, meditation, wellness, and joyful movement with everyone while encouraging every single person as they move through their unique journey.

Certifications:

RYT200 – Vinyasa, Yin, Restorative, and Karma Yoga, 20 hour Ayurvedic Self Care, Barre Intensity, Yoga Massage, & in progress to become a certified personal trainer & nutrition coach (CPT, CNC)

Erin Verhoef

Erin cannot touch her toes without bending her knees. Growing up, she fell down a lot; and she was convinced that she could make herself invisible.  When she developed a regular yoga and meditation practice, her life changed significantly. Now she falls more skillfully and is content to fully occupy the space of a body. She completed the 200 hr (2021) and 300 hr (2023) teacher trainings at the Himalayan Institute in Buffalo.

Since moving to the Buffalo area in 2001, she has held various occupational labels: bookseller, archivist, librarian, beekeeper, dog-walker, bookkeeper, and farmer, to name a few. As it turns out, everything is yoga. And flexibility is—first and foremost—in the mind.

Maria Pelow

Maria discovered the benefits of yoga practice over 15 years ago while working as full-time member of the NY Air National Guard and raising her young daughter.  Maria fell in love with the idea of her and her daughter being able to find peace on their mats and learning skills to maintain a healthy physical and mental balance.

In 2018, Maria’s yoga journey changed when her daughter moved away.  This shift led to her becoming a Registered Yoga Teacher (RYT-200) with Yoga Alliance, and a NASM Certified Wellness Coach and participatation in the Veteran Yoga Project (VYP) Mindfulness Resilience for Trauma Recovery training, and Warriors at Ease – Level 1 training.

Maria applies what she learned in her training to share a deeper understanding of the yogic philosophies, the benefits of a proper mediation practice, and positive effects of mindful breathing exercises. She also uses these skills to aid others in their personal life through stress reduction, relaxation, and recharging.

_____________________________________

We look forward to practicing with you in our beautiful nature-based space!

Cancellation Policy: Students must be registered for class using the MindBody app. Class registration closes 1 hour before class time.

Questions?  Email us at Info@CardeaHealthWNY.com