Let's transform and forward the mission of The New Jersey Yoga Collective (“NJYC”): to engage, support, and empower all members through education, opportunities, and advocacy for the NJ yoga community at large.
To our colleagues, students, teachers, friends, family, and any other person who has found and followed this page: thank you for being here. It means a lot, and we want to thank you in advance for reading this message – it’s been a long time coming.
When we started the NJYC in 2017, our hope was to create a platform and database for everything happening in NJ yoga – events, trainings, classes, workshops, immersions, experiences, retreats, and more. Within days of starting our slow build, we heard the call for information and inspiration and decided to start sharing expressive, passionate, educational, and personal writings from wellness-focused friends and local experts who were willing to share what they know and love.
So was the NJYC a blog? A directory? We weren’t sure.
And then came events. Opportunities began to pop up for event creation – though we never planned anything beyond a random birthday party in the past – and we dove headfirst into the world of marketing and management, budgeting, partnerships and sponsorships, and so many other things…all with a huge learning curve. HUGE.
But we loved it. Two fantastic VibeWell Festivals. Fundraisers for incredible causes that change the world every day. Collaborations with remarkable teachers, leaders, and speakers. Our New Years’ Eve celebrations with Jen and MettaMade. The Global Mala!
And yet…
We were making mistakes. Our business choices, and specifically a white-washed yoga scene, undoubtedly marginalized some members of our community.
Today, we are in a unique position to apologize, transform and pave a path forward.
Since March, our yoga world has been turned upside down. We are at the intersection of the Black Lives Matter movement, a call-in and call-up to honor the full yoga tradition without cultural appropriation, and a pandemic that has pushed many NJ yoga studios to a breaking point. The time to listen, learn, CHANGE, and come together in a new way is NOW.
Our mission? From this moment forward, the mission of The New Jersey Yoga Collective (“NJYC”) is to engage, support, and empower all members through education, opportunities, and advocacy for the NJ yoga community at large.
With that in mind, we are taking steps to form a non-profit, with a well-established advisory council, to ensure that the NJYC will progressively elevate the yoga community. All of the members of the council are diverse, skillful, accomplished, and purposeful leaders, firmly grounded in the experience of teaching accessible yoga, with a deep belief and dedicated interest in the unification of our yoga community in this ever-changing world.
The NJYC is committed to listening, learning, and becoming active agents in spearheading the creation of inclusive yoga spaces in New Jersey for ALL.
The conversation has started, and it will flow through what is now a fully formed organization, led by an Advisory Council committed to conscious, sustainable social change. Thank you Janessa Mondestin, Erica Garcia, Miles Borerro, Cristal Sharma and Ellen Mosko for stepping up and signing on. Together you all bring more than 100 years of experience in yoga as practitioners, teachers, studio owners, and leaders in the yoga world.
We have listening, learning, and major work to do. We know it and are sorry for our past mistakes.
However, we feel we are blessed to be in this unique time with the right tools to move forward and do better.
We call ourselves the New Jersey Yoga Collective. That means YOU. We will only succeed in our mission if we actively engage all yoga studios, teachers, and students, and work side-by-side to continuously improve access and commitment to education, inclusivity, and equity.
To that end, we offer this: our door, hearts, and ears are always open. As the Yoga Sutra 1.1 of Patanjali states, atha yoga anushasanam – “NOW, we begin the practice and discipline of yoga.”
We hope you’ll join us (in the future, and in the very immediate moment on August 13, 2020 at 7:30 PM for a Town Hall meeting with the NJYC council. Link for free tickets, here).
Thirteen years ago, Janessa Mondestin received a diagnosis for Lupus, an autoimmune condition that motivated her to recommit to wellness. Yogasana was a way for Janessa to balance her weekend-warrior athletic events and the stress from corporate banking. Over time, Yoga and Ayurveda became a central part of her life, both personally and professionally. She left corporate banking to teach yoga and wellness as an Adjunct Professor for Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken and Adjunct Faculty of Uncommon Charter School in Newark, NJ. Today, Janessa is the Director of People and Culture focused on Equity and Inclusion, a Producer, Advocate and Business Coach, and Founder of Soulthentic Yoga Registered Yoga Teacher Training. She was awarded the title of Yoga Ambassador by India’s Travel Ministry and Prime Minister in 2018. She is a practicing Yoga Therapist holding a safe space for sexual assault survivors. Janessa uses her experience as a first generation American Afrolatina, a change agent for racial, cultural and gender-based adversity, to educate the public on healing, resiliency, and authenticity.Erica Garcia is an ERYT 500 yoga teacher, Yoga trainer and continuing education provider. She has a personal practice spanning over three decades and teaching over one decade with thousands of teaching hours under her belt. She is the owner of Nueva Alma Yoga and Wellness Studio; founder and Director of teacher training at the A.L.M.A Institute – center of yoga and holistic education; and the founder of the Ceiba Soul Foundation, Inc. Currently she is facilitating all class offerings and training virtually. Erica is often sought after for her wellness coaching, corporate speaking events, leading mindfulness meditations and even for her Mentoring offerings by newly registered yoga teachers. As one of the rising Latina faces of yoga, this Nuyorican Sage has brilliantly learned to skillfully make the ancient yogic teachings accessible and applicable to all, reminding everyone that the soul has no color. This urban yogi has always been at the forefront fighting for diversity and equality in the yoga spaces and after over a decade of teaching, certifying and mentoring yoga teachers has been duly given the respect of the younger generation of Latinx yoga teachers as being dubbed “La Dona.” She is often quoted stating that she is a teacher of yoga; not a “yoga teacher” because when you encounter her you will realize there is quite a difference. Taking class with Erica is often called “an experience.” She is in the business of activating souls, providing a safe space to heal, igniting your zest for life and finding your own dharma as her classes are influenced by her love of Iyengar, Vinyasa, Kundalini, Vinyasa, the power of senses weaving in Mudras, Mantras,Scents,and sound. Having experienced this type of embodied practice, you will be sure to always leave her classes feeling like your Chakras did the cha-cha, which is why her studio was appropriately named… a Nueva Alma (translated New Soul). Erica has had the fortune of being featured in several regional and national magazines such as Mantra magazine and NYYoga+Life Magazine. She was featured in the 2019 Jade Yoga Mats calendar and 2020 International Yoga day ads and pending release book My Yoga, My City. She has been the featured presenter and fan favorite at yoga festivals such as the NYC Soulfest, Ahimsa Festival and Ekhart Yoga Festival. She is represented by Yama Talent. Erica is a native New Yorker who is currently residing in New Jersey, with her life partner, dog Luna and working on her first book. However, you can easily find her and attend her classes daily and yoga teacher training under her studio Nueva Alma Yoga and Wellness offered via zoom and her Erica Garcia Yoga Instagram and YouTube channels.Ellen Mosko is a recognized, respected, and much loved yoga teacher, with deep roots and years of study in Iyengar, Alignment-Based Vinyasa, Yin, Hatha, and Sivananda Yoga. A practicing yogi since her sophomore year in college (when a friend needed a few bodies to help her through a fitness thesis), Ellen began her teaching career in 2003. Her first 200 hour training created the foundation for both her teachings and an unwavering commitment to always learn more; today, she is a sought after “teacher’s teacher”, known for seamlessly using her cues, sequences, and every prop in the room to help students transform, connect, and better understand their alignment, anatomy, philosophy, and subtle body energetics. Ellen is an E-RYT 500-Hour, YACEP certified yoga instructor with a library of yoga classes and writings featured by Yoga International. Ellen teaches public and private classes, trainings, and workshops nationally, and offers mentoring sessions to certified teachers seeking to explore and develop their own authentic voice. “Our world moves at a very fast pace, and in the midst of it, we can easily lose ourselves. I believe that yoga practice is a tool to help anchor one’s awareness in the present while also encouraging more discernment and responsible action within the global community.”Each day as a small business owner, yoga educator and mother of 3, Cristal Sharma commits to finding peace, presence and power in her beautiful chaos. Self-care is a big piece of her daily juggle – whether it is rolling out her yoga mat, reading the Sutras, or binge watching Netflix. She found yoga during an autoimmune flare in college and consistently shows up on the mat when her body is in a flare allowing her to reclaim her health through her mind, body and spiritual practice. With her sister Pooja, the Soul Power sisters, carry forward their family lineage in the study & practice of Ayurveda, meditation, Sanskrit, philosophy & asana. She is humbled to bring her 20+ years of teaching, educating and lifelong learnings to NJYC and the conversation of representation, equality, inclusivity and diversity on and off the mat.Miles Borrero is a NYC-based yoga teacher who has led sought-after retreats and trainings around the world since 2007. A tireless explorer, Miles has done a deep dive into many lineages: Bhakti, Forrest, Parayoga, Om Yoga, Iyengar, Ashtanga. Over the years, these influences have converged to create a unique hybrid style of teaching that is dynamic, creative, and soulful. The athletic physicality that first drew him to the mat has since inspired deeper inquiries in anatomy, as well as cranio-sacral therapy and osteopathy – techniques that delve into the equally magnificent subtle body. As a teacher, Miles is wonderfully skillful and intuitive. He understands technique from the depth of his own practice and is able to articulate it simply and clearly, making it readily accessible to his students. His subtle and powerful insights stay with you past the duration of his classes. And his chants will crack your heart wide open. His love of people is infectious and has translated into building a thriving community and creating inclusive spaces for all. As an anti-racist Latinx and LGBTQ+ trans activist, his hope is to leave the world a bit better than he found it. www.milesyoga.com
With love and gratitude,
Bridget and the NJYC
Bridget Riepl is the founder of the NJ Yoga Collective and the VibeWell Yoga Festivals, as well as the co-founder of Boss Up and Brunch, a women’s networking movement, founded to host female-lead power panels and masterminding events. Bridget has grown her teachings and business from a single yoga class to something that has touched almost every town and studio in the state of NJ through events, social media, and her online platform for connecting our incredible yoga community. Bridget has taught thousands of yoga classes in her career and has a profound belief in the practice’s ability to transform lives, open eyes, increase compassion, enhance awareness, and make our world a more inclusive, diverse, and wildly wonderful place. To that end, Bridget serves as the chairperson for the Global Mala in NJ and will be the host of the 11th Annual Mala in 2020. A native Jersey girl, Bridget lives in Rumson, NJ with her husband and two children, Sadie and Patrick. She spends her days by the beach, taking deep breaths, and figuring out new ways to grow as a human, mother, friend, and teacher.
Never Miss a Post!
The Top Three Reasons for Joining NJYC
The greatest teachers, studios, classes and communities are in the Garden State.
You are ready to inspire and be inspired.
You believe in living a life you love, supported by a practice that makes you feel amazing
Success! Now check your email to confirm your subscription.
