Shannon Dievendorf began her yoga journey in 2013 as a tool for stress reduction. She instantly fell in love with the way it nurtured her body, mind and spirit. She not only felt less stressed, but her balance and strength were improved as well as her overall health. She felt stronger both mentally and emotionally. She knew she had found a treasure and wanted to share it with the world. Shannon completed her yoga teacher training with Yoga for the Planet in February 2016. She is an RYT, registered with Yoga Alliance. She teaches mixed level Hatha and truly believes that yoga is for every BODY.
Ali Katz is passionate about sharing her love of meditation and mindfulness with her clients in a relatable and authentic way. After Ali embarked on her journey and began meditating in 2012, she noticed she had lower levels of stress, less anxiety, more patience, better sleep, never got sick, was making better decisions, and was more present in all areas of her life.
Ali feels it is her calling to connect with other women, and help them understand the many benefits of meditation and mindfulness, the techniques to get started, and how inspire them to truly make these tools a part of their lives. Ali also offers self-care and mindful parenting coaching to women who are looking to leave overwhelm and guilt behind and embrace a life full of balance and joy.
Ali is a certified meditation teacher and a certified life and parenting coach. She has been featured on Fox News, Plug into Dallas Ft. Worth, in the Houston Chronicle, in the Public News and various other outlets. She is also the author of the best selling book “Hot Mess to Mindful Mom: 40 Ways to Find Balance, Joy and Happiness in Your Every Day. You can learn more about Ali at www.hotmesstomindfulmom.com
Dawn Murphy is the author of "Physical Stuff & Mental Junk: A Minimalist Path to True Abundance." Her work has been been endorsed by Dr. Will Tuttle, author of "The World Peace Diet," Phil Borges, Ph.D of Bridges to Understanding, and Dr. Howard Zinn. She’s currently working on her fourth book, "So Vegan Easy" available in 2017. Visit her Blog/Website: www.veganminimalist.com
Sofia Reddy, LICSW, is a full time clinical social worker and adjunct assistant professor for MSW students learning to work with Veterans and their families. As a therapist she teaches clients who have experienced both civilian and military traumas how to manage their recovery with mindful self-care. She also blogs about self-care as a way to manage stress and has an FB page called Sofia's Sanctuary. Sofia has been practicing mindfulness and meditation for the last 5 years and is passionate about bringing this practice to others.
Sofia says, "As caregivers we learn that we need to put others' needs ahead of our own but that is a quick path to burnout. There are times when we must be available to others, but it's also important we make time to care for ourselves." When she's not working or blogging, she enjoys exploring new hiking trails and going on day trips with her two rambunctious children and awesome hubby. Visit her blog: sofias-sanctuary.com
Anthony A. Cernera, M.Ed. founded the New Leaf Meditation Project in 2014. Anthony started meditating in 2007 and took formal vows as a student of a Zen Buddhist order in 2009. When he isn't meditating, skydiving or playing with his cameras, Anthony is a non-profit fundraiser. He received a Master's in Education in 2014 and continues his research as doctoral student focusing on habit formation and motivation for new meditators. Anthony says, "I have benefited greatly from a daily meditation practice and want to share what I've learned with others."