About Banyan tree yoga

RYT 200 | REIKI II | POSTNATAL YOGA | OWNER

Kim is passionate to share with others the ways that yoga is both versatile and universal. Having practiced yoga for 18 years, Kim has had experience in using yoga as an outlet of expression and as a helpful tool during the transitions of her life.

Yoga has been a home for her throughout times of change, especially during her journey through becoming an adult, of pregnancy, and of motherhood, becoming a mom in 2017. During her classes she loves to be playful with movement, and emphasizes bringing awareness to the breath, the flow of energy in the body, and what emotional feelings poses may allow.

Kim graduated from her 200-hour Yoga Teacher Training in May 2020 through YogaNH, after welcoming her second child in 2020. She welcomed her third child in 2021, after taking over ownership of Banyan Tree at the end of 2020.

Kim is taking a break from teaching yoga at the moment to nurture her children at home, and to manage the operations at Banyan Tree Yoga! She continues to have a strong yoga practice and is grateful for the teachers that have given her inspiration, strength, and grace along the way.

RYT 200 | YIN | SLOW FLOW FUSION

Valerie is a licensed clinical mental health counselor and completed her 200-hour yoga teacher training program in August of 2014. Prior to her completion, she had already begun to teach Yin yoga locally. While she enjoys teaching Hatha and Vinyasa to keep things fresh, her passion has become Yin and the need for people to understand why deep stretch is so important (whether you practice yoga or not) and how to make your body work smarter so that you lessen the chance of becoming injured. Val is quick to remind her students that it is their practice and their body and the importance of listening to it.

RYT 200 | REIKI I | VINYASA

Jeremy (Jay) Hansen, RYT200, REIKI practitioner & Martial Artist, began practicing yoga in 2015 and recently graduated the Yoga NH Teacher Training Program at Banyan Tree Yoga. Jay loves helping to guide others to find a little more peace in their day. He finds that (with the right combinations of movements, your state of mind and the proper breath) Vinyasa can be both vigorous and relaxing! Jay brings at least one unconventional pose to every class!During his free time, Jay likes to hit the gym, attend a spinning class or search YouTube for inspirational yoga sequences.

RYT 200 | REIKI MASTER | YIN | YIN/YANG

Sue graduated from the Yoga NH Teacher Training in August 2015 and from Josh Summers YIN training in April of 2016. Sue is a Reiki Master and is also continually developing her knowledge of crystals, essential oils, medicinal herbs, meditation and other topics she sees as complimentary to yoga. Sue’s blended style ranges from gentle Hatha to a more vigorous Vinyasa Flow. She focuses on the basics of breath and alignment while keeping things fresh, often incorporating something just a bit different, never teaching the same exact class twice! Having started her journey a bit later in life, Sue is sensitive to the diverse needs of all levels of students and offers modifications and challenging poses as necessary while never forgetting the importance of rest during a practice.

RYT 500 | REIKI I | INTUITIVE MOVEMENT| YOGA FOR WOMEN’S HEALTH

Leah was first introduced to the physical practice of Yoga while living in Key West in 2012. Her yoga journey has most recently included graduating from her 500-hour Yoga Teacher Training program with My Vinyasa Practice, based in Austin, TX.

Leah feels strongly about interweaving many of her passions into her teaching, such as chronic illness advocacy, body awareness, and anatomy & physiology. It is her goal to continuously hold the space for people of all different backgrounds and create a welcoming and inclusive environment where her students can feel happy, safe, and at peace.

Leah teaches Vinyasa, Power Vinyasa, Hatha, Gentle, and Yoga Nidra. She holds a certification in Yoga for Women’s Health and is available for 1:1 classes.

RYT 500 | HATHA | SLOW FLOW

Brittany graduated from the Yoga NH Teacher Training in May 2020 at Banyan Tree Yoga. As her job shifted to working from home back in 2015, she started practicing yoga at a local studio to break up her day. She turns to a vinyasa style yoga when she needs to move energy and release tension.

She sees yoga as a holistic and balanced practice to reconnect the mind, body, and breath that helps us not only physically but mentally, energetically, and emotionally. Her training also includes Yoga Nidra and Restorative Yoga completed in 2019.

Brittany is also a librarian, crafter, traveler, animal lover, and a lifelong yoga student

RYT 200 | REIKI II | MINDFUL FLOW | YIN & SOUND | RISE & FLOW

Arianna has been practicing the art of yoga since 2015 and has been teaching since 2020. Arianna first found yoga when she needed to accommodate an old knee injury. She wanted to remain active, but needed a low impact activity. Yoga ended up becoming so much more for her, on and off her mat.

Arianna received her 200-HR, Restorative, and Chair Yoga certifications through Yoga & Ayurveda Center in Pennsylvania. Arianna also has Usui Shiki Ryoho Reiki Second Degree certification.

Arianna believes that yoga is for anyone in any type of body and demonstrates this in her ability to offer modifications for injury or skill level. Arianna has a passion for pranayama, hand mudras, Yoga Nidra, and tries to incorporate them into her classes as much as possible.

In her spare time, you can find her enjoying a cup of iced coffee while getting lost in the woods with her husband or closest friends, buying crystals, and making malas.

RYT 500 | AYURVEDA | RESTORATIVE YOGA NIDRA | SUNDAY RESET & RESTORE

More of a bookworm than an athlete, Shelli had little experience being present in her body when she stepped onto the mat at a crowded, sweaty Baptiste Power Yoga class two decades ago. She felt the energizing and calming effects immediately. Since then, her practice has been a refuge from overthinking, anxiety, and burnout.  It has been the place for her to cultivate kindness toward herself and to feel connection to the divine. 

An RYT-500, Shelli completed her 300-hour certificate under the direction of Natasha Rizopolous at Down Under School of Yoga in 2015.  A passionate student as well as teacher, she has over 300 hours of continuing education in yin, restorative, and yoga for emotional health and healing, and will earn certification as a yoga therapist from The Mindfulness Center in 2023.  She credits Kate Graham of Soulful Yoga Therapy for inspiring her journey into healing-focused yoga.

Shelli combines her yoga training with 10 years as a certified health coach and over 20 years as college writing faculty.  Her practice and teaching style are shaped by the movement of vinyasa and the stillness and nurturing components of restorative.  Her classes promote self-discovery and help students feel more grounded and balanced as they work through sequences, breath work, and visualization that promote emotional regulation.  She uses props and offers modifications, but never shies from building a little heat.  She encourages her students to move and breathe in a way that feels good in their bodies and to carry their practice into their lives off the mat.

RYT 200 | VINYASA | SLOW FLOW

Amelia Filloramo completed her 200-hour training at Coolidge Yoga in Brookline, MA in 2018 and studies under Laura Ahrens. Her mission is to cultivate a space for beginners and experienced practitioners alike to explore the liberating connection of breath and movement. Her style mixes pranayama, meditation, and thoughtfully designed asana sequences built on the foundation of yoga philosophy.

Amelia graduated from UMass Amherst in 2016 with a BFA in Comparative Literature. In the warmer months, you can find her outdoors hiking the mountains of New England or dancing to live music.

RYT00 | HATHA | HOOP YOGA

Shelly is a yoga enthusiast and has been teaching since 2016. The hoop yoga training called HoopYogini occurred when teaching in person stopped in 2020. The hoop helped Shelly find a new mindful practice while building strength and confidence.

Outside of teaching yoga, Shelly is an engineer and is always solving problems. Yoga and meditation have brought in a chance to ‘see the good’ instead of the problems all the time.

RYT200 | VINYASA | CHAIR YOGA | AYURVEDA

The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art: NY, NY. B.F.A. 1990

The Ayurvedic Institute, Ayurvedic Practitioner; Albuquerque, NM 2020-22

With over 30 years of experience, Joy has been a certified International Association Yoga Therapist, since 2017. She took her first Yoga teacher training back in 1992 with Erich Schiffman and Rod Stryker at YogaWorks and in 1995, she was certified through Ana Forrest's training at Forrest Yoga.

Her classes are especially focused on alignment and giving modifications or advancements to individualize the practice for each student. Her background of teaching Anatomy and Physiology at the Massage School of Santa Monica gives her that advantage to detail.

Joy graduated as an Ayurvedic Practitioner in 2022 after having studied for two and a half years under the tutelage of Dr. David Frawley and then Dr. Vasant Lad. Joy is a true believer that Ayurveda and Yoga are for EVERY body and that these ancient healing arts can heal the world through their beautiful and profound simplicity. She creates a safe atmosphere, whether you've been doing yoga/practicing Ayurveda for decades or are a tentative newbie.

You can find her hanging out with her five furbabies on any given day, taking further herbology and Sanskrit courses, painting, writing, or hiking.

RYT 200 | REIKI II | SUBSTITUTE EXTRAORDINAIRE

Roberta, our substitute teacher, is a retired nurse of 43 years. She realized that during the second chapter of her life she still wished to help people stay healthy and active. She wanted to be more pro-active in educating people, especially those who felt that they were “too old”, “not flexible”, or “out of shape” on the benefits of leading a healthy lifestyle and the wonderful benefits of a regular practice of yoga. After firsthand experience and 10 years of yoga she has seen and felt the benefits physically, mentally, and spiritually. Yoga is for all. Roberta’s days of running marathons are behind her, but her life is full with the love of yoga, long walks, and the love of golf.