Meet Our Teachers
NICOLE CHUMSKY
Nicole is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor, Mindfulness Coach and Registered Trauma Informed Yoga Instructor. She specializes in helping people build self-awareness, learn how to be powerful in their lives, strengthen their ability to tolerate change and guide them in making choices that are meaningful. She is the owner and founder of Be Embodied, LLC and has been in private practice since 2013, teaching mindfulness since 2015 and teaching yoga since 2016.
With years of experience she realized how many people suffer from being out of touch with their bodies. She was able to draw upon her own experience and the experiences of her clients to clearly see the ways in which disembodiment increases stress levels, reactivity and discontent with life. Using her expertise she created Mindflow™ Yoga.
Mindflow™ teaches you how to keep your mind in flow with your body through mindfulness meditation based instruction. These classes teach you to train your brain to pay attention to everything happening inside the four corners of your mat. You are encouraged to let your body inform your pose rather than the pose inform your body. In this way, you embody self-compassion, focus your mind and master taking yoga off the mat and into your life! Nicole realized that everyone can greatly benefit from yoga practice and was eager to share her secret to living a more fulfilled life!
DONNA PHILLIPS
Donna C. Kester Phillips, Ph.D. has been an educator since the early 1970’s beginning in the elementary classroom. Experience as a reading specialist and a classroom teacher eventually led her to the college level where she is currently an Associate Professor of Education at Niagara University. She has authored the monthly children’s book review column “Pick of the Literature” for the Western New York Family Magazine since 1994.
Dr. Phillips was introduced to yoga in the late 60’s and eventually became a certified trauma-informed Yoga teacher. Her resulting interest in mindful movement led her be become a certified QiGong instructor. During this time, she began formally studying mindfulness which she now integrates into her teacher preparation classes. This work led her to establish the annual Mindfulness Conversations conference and more recently the Center for Mindful Practice at Niagara University where she is currently the Director.
ALLIE DORAN
Yoga for me started at a young age, thanks to my mom who would do Lions Breath late at night. Having this influence, I have been doing some form of yoga on and off for many years. Over time I started to become more committed to my practice and found the Yoga of 12 Step Recovery (Y12SR) training and completed it in 2018. It was through this training I found the passion for incorporating the practice and philosophy of yoga into my professional world and decided to further my experience through the Yogis in Service 200-hour teacher training in 2019. I am grateful for my yoga practice as it continued to lead me where I needed to go and discovered a bridge to meditation through learning and practicing Yin yoga. In the midst of 2020, I completed a 25-hour Oracle Yin Yoga training. I love the idea of practicing life skills on my mat, and finding a deeper connection to myself, and the people around me. Yoga is so much more than movement, and I hope through teaching I can share a piece of my heart and breath with you.
LAURA GRAY
Laura is a certified 200-hour yoga instructor and registered with the Yoga Alliance. She teacher Hatha and Vinyasa styles of yoga. Her personal practice began more than 20 years ago and has evolved and deepened over the years. She recently completed an online trauma informed yoga certification. Laura believes in striving towards a holistic practice through breath (pranayama), poses (asanas), and self-contemplation (svadhyaya). Most importantly, she promotes the idea that anyone can do yoga and everyone should have access to a safe and welcoming space on their mat.
Namaste!
Tami Rowh
Tami is a 200HR-E Registered Yoga Instructor with more than 15 years of experience teaching yoga in a variety of settings. She is passionate about helping her students adopt the principles of mindfulness into their everyday lives. Tami is currently pursuing advanced training in yoga therapy and works with students in the use of yoga therapeutically for both mindset and physical outcomes.
When she’s not on the mat, Tami can most often be found out hiking with her Shiba Inu dogs.
Courtney Hall
Courtney believes that centering yoga in your life is key to deepening the spiritual, emotional, and physical relationship you have with yourself and the world, both on and off the mat.
She holds her RYT-200 in Tantra Yoga from Vira Bhava Yoga School. She also has her BA in English, Creative Writing from the University of Mary Washington. Courtney currently teaches Restorative and Hatha yoga at University at Buffalo to students, faculty and staff. When she’s not teaching, she enjoys spending time with her husband, 2 sons, 2 cats, and old dog.
Monica Zucco
I love yoga and meditation because they offer opportunities for fresh perspectives and insights into well-being.
My classes and personal practice emphasize mindfulness and self-compassion. I believe that being fully present in our bodies is key to experiencing the richness of life. I enjoy attending to the individual needs of my students and supporting the growth of their personal practices.
Through years of teaching, I have noticed that many people struggle with chronic stress. Drawing on my training and experience in restorative yoga and meditation, my classes help people unwind and calm their nervous systems.
As my personal path continues to evolve, so does my teaching. My current class offerings include slow flow, gentle and restorative yoga, therapy ball massage and mindfulness meditation. I love sharing and supporting others in these life enhancing practices.
Betsy Eberle
I Love Yoga!
My practice began 16 years ago as a way to prevent and ease running injuries. It was a beautiful surprise to find that not only my physical Body felt better, but that both my Mind and Spirit had also gone through Wonderful changes…on and off my mat. This inspired me to become a certified yoga teacher(CYT), with a strong desire to share some of the beautifully transformative aspects of Yoga with others.
I received my CYT-200 certification in 2017 at East Meets West Yoga in Buffalo, NY and was very fortunate to learn from and teach among many of the area’s best, until the studios closed in 2022.
I am ever grateful for all I’ve learned and continue to learn, as my Yoga practice has changed my life! I welcome you to practice with me as a seasoned Yogi or beginner 🙂
Namaste, Betsy
Molly McDermott
Molly McDermott has been a Certified Hatha Yoga Instructor since 2012. She received her training at Center at Healing Waters in East Aurora, N.Y. She discovered the value yoga brought to her own life during major transitions several years before. Molly loved the practice so much that she wanted to share her experience with others and teach. Molly started teaching pregnant and postpartum women in 2014 and became a Certified Birth Doula, as well. She became certified in Prenatal Yoga in 2015 through Open Sky Yoga in Rochester N.Y. Molly is also a Certified Bereavement Doula. Molly has taught at several yoga studios in the area and focuses on gentle restorative and gentle flow. Working with the body, mind and spirit in a supportive, intentional and thoughtful manner, is what Molly shares with students in her yogic teachings.
Lauren Etu
I am a 500 hour registered yoga teacher, a trauma – resiliency coach, and a 20-year veteran school psychologist. I reside in Williamsville, NY with my family.
My passion is to teach others about their nervous system and how yoga and mindfulness can be healing tools for such. I specialize in Yin, restorative, slow-flow, and children’s yoga. I believe yoga should be accessible to all and healing towards the mind and soul, in addition to the body.
Myari Ware
Myari Ware is a vinyasa and restorative yoga teacher based in Upstate New York. She has been practicing yoga for nearly a decade and earned her 200-hour certification from East Meets West Yoga. With a focus on mindfulness, Myari strives to create an environment free of judgment and comparison and encourages students to challenge themselves and to make this practice their own.
