Raelene Hodgson
Between adventures, Raelene began to study her love of movement, completing a B.Sc. in Kinesiology, followed by a Masters in Counselling Psychology at UBC. Yearning for connection in the busy city life, she found Yoga as a place to ground down and started exploring the mind, breath, spirit, and emotion in a different context. She completed her first 200-hour teacher training training in 2012 with Anna Laurita in Mexico where she remained for the year teaching Yoga, riding horses, and playing on the beach. She has since completed a mentorship with Suzanne Slocum-Gori, her Yin Teacher Training, and a Yoga for Youth Training with Ryan Leier. Raelene is passionate about incorporating the many facets of her knowledge into a system of continuing education, she is an integral member of the Karma Teachers 200-hour Teacher Training faculty and facilitates trainings for schools on incorporating Yoga & Mindfulness into classrooms..
Raelene loves teaching Yoga and hopes to create a space for sweat and play where everyone laughs, sweats, cries, and breathes as ONE.
Read more about Raelene at www.raelenehodgson.com.
Steve Fazzari
Steve's practices of Yoga started much before he knew anything about, or had even ever seen any examples of Yoga poses. As a young teen with an extremely busy (and difficult to manage) mind, he was interested in gaining clarity of mind or accessing a space of his inner silence. Through being in nature (mostly skiing & snowboarding), and through music he was able to find some states of cohesion where the wildness of his mind was stilled momentarily and the body and mind could work together in unison; these forms of active meditation were a relief from the seemingly nonstop battle with the fluctuations of the mind.
Seeking for a greater understanding of this inner space, he began studying Eastern philosophy at the age of 13 in the form of Buddhist teachings. When Yoga started to come into his life, he was drawn back to his early years reading Buddhist scriptures. He saw the same essence in the teachings of Yoga as he did in the Buddhist teachings. He continued his journey into Yoga, but was inspired to make this his life path when he met his teacher, Dharma Mittra. Steve has completed Advanced- and Senior-level training with the living master Sri Dharma Mittra (500- and 800-hour trainings), as well as assisted at his teacher’s side. Since completion of his formal training, Steve has continued to study with his teacher, receiving countless hours of private instruction. Much like Dharma, he has been drawn towards being a teacher of teachers, having lead over 20 Yoga Teacher Trainings.
Check out more on Steve at: http://www.stevefazzari.com
Tanya Di Valentino
Love for life and nature led Tanya to open her eyes and heart to a lifestyle guided by the ancient wisdom of yoga. She loves to teach traditional styles of yoga and also enjoys bringing diversity to her classes through her training in Ashtanga, Akhanda, Sivananda, Vinyasa and Thai Yoga Massage. Over the years, she has met people from all over the world and has come to realize that a common thread that weaves through each person is a deep longing for lasting joy, peace and love. It is Tanya’s intention with the many paths of yoga to inspire others to experience the joy, peace and love that is ever-present as the essence of their own being.
Tanya is an Experienced Registered Yoga Teacher at the 200 hour level (E-RYT 200), an Advanced Registered Yoga Teacher at the 500 hour level (RYT 500), has co-created a registered yoga teacher training program (RYS 200) and has been teaching yoga in Whistler and Pemberton since 2006.
Rebekka Walker
Born and bred in Whistler, BC and the Creative Director of Vancouver School of Healing Arts, Rebekka is a Yoga Alliance Certified E-RYT 500 with a background in Iyengar, Vinyasa, Restorative, Anusara Yoga, & over 2000 hours of teacher training in these methods.
Formerly certified as an AYT1000 Yoga Therapist, her lifelong study and exploration of tantric and buddhist philosophy, Ayurveda, holistic healing and therapeutic bio-mechanics, has led Rebekka to develop and teach yoga & yoga therapy programs worldwide.
Guiding students to share in the wisdom of yoga with clarity, joy and exquisite precision has been her passion for over 18 years. With a focus on alignment and inspiration, Rebekka’s classes, courses, retreats and workshops are heart warming, poetic journeys, inside and out. A contributing writer for various publications, when she isn’t traveling to teach, write, kite board or practice you can find her at home in the mountains of Birken with her beloved and their two dogs....or at rebekkawalker.com
Vision Ley
Vision is a Statmic yoga teacher, from the beautiful remote unceded territory of Tsalalh. Vision completed her teacher training in-house at Village Yoga in 2024 and has become an integral part of our community. Vision at a young age was first introduced to yoga by a free-spirited family friend, she’d never seen a body move with such grace & beauty. Later at the age of 12 Vision would take out the same VHS yoga video from her local library weekly to teach herself asanas. She has always loved the practice of yoga and wants to share it with others.
Immediately upon graduating her YTT, Vision founded Smawal Yoga project with the intention of sharing yoga with her home community and surrounding Indigenous communities. Smawal means life spirit in Statmic, a quality she brings to life in her classes and her life.
When she’s not busy practicing yoga, harvesting her cultural foods, fishing, hunting, catering delicious meals, raising her 4 children, she is an accomplished ultra-marathon runner! Dedicating her races to all indigenous people, MMIWG & Every Child Matters awareness.
Shelley Desbrisay
Shelley has been a committed yogini and member of the Village Yoga family since day one. She was a graduate of our very first VYP Yoga Teacher training and has been offering us beautiful practices ever since. Shelley weaves her experience as a yogi, mother, skier and professional educator into her classes. While Shelley offers several styles of yoga, she is famous for her Monday evening restorative class… a class that feels like warm hug!
Catherine Mulvey
One of my most influential teachers, Nora Maskey often describes yoga as "the invitation to know oneself better". This remains one of my favorite lenses through which to view the innumerous gifts a Yoga practice offers each time we carve out space to be present with ourselves on our Yoga mat or on the stage of Life. With an ever present sense of curiosity for the innate intelligence of the body, the wisdom of the breath and the ongoing challenge of observing a busy, bossy mind, the simplicity of this invitation has served to keep me inspired as a student of Yoga throughout the last 11 years.
I taught Yoga for 6 years in Calgary before moving to Pemberton in 2016. I have completed two separate 200HR teacher training's with a focus on vinyasa flow and Anusara styles as well as obtained over 100 hours of specialization in anatomy and biomechanics. I have had the opportunity to study with Martin Kirk, David Garrigues, Kelly Kamm, Nora Maskey and most recently our local gem, the brilliant Natalie Rousseau.
To me the very essence of Yoga is connection, through cultivating a deeper connection to our selves we inevitably connect more deeply to our community and more easily recognize the interconnectedness of all life. Community connection is something I value deeply and am excited to share my experience of Yoga with the inspirational community of Pemberton.
David Cross
In 2009, a twelve-year-old David stumbled across Vanda Scaravelli's book "Awakening the Spine." The images on those pages were among the most captivating things I had ever seen, and the insights Vanda shared over a life of practice moved me. So it was that yoga found me, and while many things have changed since finding that book, my love and devotion for the tradition has only grown.
I have trained in the schools of Ashtanga, Vinyasa, and Anusara, but enriching my practice and teaching is ceaseless study of the full spectrum teachings of the Vedas, Tantra, and Vedanta. Yoga extends an invitation to discover the peace of one's own being, but the tools it offers to do this are endless... Asana, Pranayama, Meditation, Ayurveda, Jyotisha, Vastu, and most of all, the Sangha, the community that supports us all. Expect my classes to be infused with some combination of these, with the goal of sharing a broad picture of what Yoga can offer. I believe yoga is for everyone, and my biggest joy is finding the right tools to offer my students so that they can find independence, curiosity, and devotion in their own practice.
"When you support your yoga practice, your practice will support you back." - Kaya Mindlin
Julia Harvey
My journey through yoga began 13 years ago after moving from a small ski town in Quebec to Whistler. At a time in my life when it felt as though the ground had been swept out from under me, this new found yoga practice brought a sense of clarity and groundedness. It didn't take long to realize that the tools cultivated on the mat were transferring into my life off the mat. My personal practice has evolved over the years. From my daily practice of hot yoga, I have grown to love many forms and styles of Yoga such as Vinyasa, Yin and Pranayama. Although I do appreciate the physical aspect yoga provides, I am more deeply passionate about the positive effects on my mental wellbeing. Yoga is the path to the Self by the self.
After living in Whistler for a few years, and traveling in between, my partner and I naturally migrated north to Pemberton to learn about permaculture and worked on farms before starting our own small market garden. We now get to raise a small human in this beautiful valley we call home. I value family and community very high on the list and feel incredibly fortunate to live and play in Pemberton, surrounded by fabulous people..
I completed my 200hr yoga teacher training under the guidance of Julia McCabe and my 20hr Yin training with Jodi Dodd. When I am not on my mat, you can find me in the mountains, hiking, running, exploring or curled up with a coffee, a pad of paper, a pencil and my water colours. Some have even ventured to describe me as a serial hobbyist. I am very passionate about health and fitness and love to share that with those around me. I am a teacher by nature and a student for life.