The Team at Sukha Studios
BELEN RUIZ
Hello, my name is Belen. I work the front desk here at Sukha, and I am also a licensed massage therapist. You will see me checking clients in for class, cleaning equipment and maintaining an organized environment. I also enjoy occasionally taking class with you! Yoga and Pilates was incredibly effective in healing my knee injury a couple years ago. These practices enhanced my flexibility, improved balanced, built core strength and helped stabilize my knee joint. In the near future, I’m looking forward to becoming a certified mat pilates teacher. Combining these two modalities, I aim to offer a holistic approach to wellness that addresses both muscular tension and physical fitness, helping clients achieve their health goals.
CHRISTINA PARISH
I found yoga briefly in the early 2000s. Practicing on and off while going through personal battles. After working 4 years as a vet tech, my lower back was in so much pain all the time, my sciatic nerve pinched to the point where I couldn’t walk or stand in an upright position. I tried yoga as a last resort to resolve it hoping to avoid back surgery, which it did and I am forever hooked. Yoga is my life for life!! I am trained in Bikram (26/2), IHP, and currently in Vinyasa training.
DELANEY MEDINA
Hi! My name is Delaney and you will see me behind the front desk, taking class with you, or substituting an IHP class! I grew up a pre-professional ballet dancer and supplemented my dancing with Reformer Pilates here are SUKHA. Pilates allowed me to stay in shape while recovering from my career-ending ankle injury. I have been working at SUKHA since 2020 and truly feel like this is home. I am in currently in nursing school at Stanislaus State, but plan to stay with my SUKHA family as long as I can!
EMILY BARRAGAN MORALES
Hi everyone, my name is Emily Barragan. I’ve been working at SUKHA SINCE 2021. I absolutely love this job, the clients, and the staff!
GLORIA MOE
My name is Gloria Moe, and my journey with hot yoga began in 2014 after a rotator cuff injury sparked my interest. I immediately fell in love with the heat, and within a year, I became an IHP-certified teacher. This led me to expand my expertise by learning to teach Vinyasa. Staying healthy and fit is my ultimate life goal, and I enjoy surrounding myself with people who share the same passion for wellness.
HAVEN LEER
Hi my name is Haven! I love all things dance! I am currently studying at MJC for my AA in Dance and since being there have become a part of one of their dance companies. I love to be active, one of my favorite forms of working out would have to be Reformer Pilates. I have 4 sisters and on top of that, an amazing big family coming from multiple different cultures. I am so excited and grateful to be a part of this community and can’t wait to see where I go from here! 🙂
Heather Brown
I fell in love with Pilates 13 years ago. Having struggled with an eating disorder the practice helped me discover my body in a positive light and now I hope to share my passion and the magic of Pilates with as many bodies as possible. I received my Pilates certification through the Physical Mind Institute 7 years ago and have been teaching full time ever since. I graduated from The Pacific Conservatory for the Performing Arts and spent a lifetime performing. Who'd of thought that my training as a performer would prepare me for a career as a Pilates teacher but I have found a little entertainment goes a long way. Besides, what better way to activate your abdominal muscles than a good belly laugh? Having been a competitive gymnast and professional dancer my teaching style is an energetic balance of focused mind body connection and athletic movement that is rooted in Classic Pilates technique. My hope is that you leave my class with a sense of confidence that comes from feeling strong, balanced and positive about your body.
HEMIE RAMIREZ
Hi, I’m Hemie! I devout yogi and meditation facilitator. I have been holding healing spaces for over 16 years. From Mental Health Counselor to Yoga Teacher, Energy Healer, and Meditation Guide. My expertise lies in helping my students and clients go through their pain and into their empowerment. At Sukha I teach both heated Vinyasa and Sivananda Yoga. What I love most about Sukha is our students and community.
JAMEE RICHARDSON
While navigating the hardships of a military lifestyle, Jamee discovered the medicine of yoga and meditation. She is an avid explorer and wellness guide with a contemporary approach to ancient teachings. Jamee is on a mission to guide others to discover their inner life-force. Her company, Trek Nectar, offers eco-friendly goods, wellness programs, and global adventures, all designed to heal and elevate the body, mind, and soul. Jamee is a Yoga Alliance certified Yoga Instructor and Breathwork Facilitator.
Janet Nicholson
I have three children: Nicole, Lauren and Sam. They are my world. Two are in college and one is still at home. Yoga, specifically Bikram method has been a blessing to me as it calms me in all areas of my life. I am having a difficult time adjusting to having my children leave the nest. This is why I decided to take a teacher training class. Not only to learn more about what I love and to help me through the emotional trauma of an empty nest, I also want to share and teach others what has benefited me greatly. I do not have experience, other than I have been practicing Bikram method for a little over four years. I did teacher training through True You Hot Yoga in Lodi. I am looking forward to growing in all areas of teaching and excited to be a part of Sukha. My daughters love Hot Pilates which I will train for in the near future. Also, would love to learn how to teach the True Fusion, which incorporates Vinyasa Flow and Bikram Yoga.
KARA HUNSINGER
I am a recent graduate from the University of Arizona with a bachelors of fine arts in dance. I grew up in Ceres, California and trained at Steps Arts Dance Center and Juline’s School of Dance. I will be teaching at Sukha only for the summer because I will be moving to Chicago to begin my professional dance career with DanceWorks Chicago. While attending college, I was introduced to Pilates after facing an ankle injury. I loved how deeply I learned to understand my body and felt so strong while dancing intensely in college. I received my Fletcher Pilates certification under the direction of Kyria Waugaman with Bodyworks Pilates in Tucson, Arizona. While finishing up school I worked at Bodyworks as an instructor and also taught private classes for my dance major friends. At Bodyworks I worked with many different types of bodies and many different ages. I enjoy getting to know my clients so I can tailor each session to any individual’s needs. I look forward to helping others build strength, balance, endurance, and most importantly feeling the joy or movement.
KARINA TORIBIO
Hi everyone, my name is Karina Toribio. I’ve been working here for almost 2 years, so far the experience has been great! It’s been a very good environment to be in.
Mario Guzman
Mario's journey led him to yoga, receiving his RYT200 in 2013. Having a background in Kinesiology and Health and Wellness, he was no stranger to the benefits of exercise, but it was yoga's ability to connect mind and body with breath and movement that caused him to rethink how the body operates and how to bring balance to the mind and body. Mario loves to share his passion of yoga through his classes: energy healing Restorative Yoga and heart pumping, mental challenging Vinyasa Yoga. His deep belief in "balanced living" is what fuels his passion for helping others restore balance in their lives.
RUSSELL IRWIN
Russell Irwin is a retired school principal with a deep commitment to learning and personal growth. He began practicing yoga 25 years ago, initially focusing on the Bikram method before expanding into various other styles. His teaching now focuses on using breath control and movement to develop higher states of consciousness and encouraging practitioners to integrate things they learn on the mat into every aspect of their lives.
SARA SCHWEGAL
I started Pilates at SUKHA as a continued form of physical therapy after injury and fell in love with Pilates. I decided I loved Pilates so much that I wanted to be able to share it with others so I became certified as an instructor. I enjoy tailoring my classes to meet client needs and help them work toward their goals.
SARGENA YOUNAN
I enjoy working out and doing yoga at SUKHA studios. On my free time I like going shopping and get coffee. I also enjoy spending time outdoors in the sun and doing outdoor activities. Playing tennis and swimming are some of my hobbies.
SHARON TAPORCO
Sharon is a Modesto native, returning home after more than two years spent traveling the globe. In 2010, Sharon completed her 200hr Vinyasa Teacher Training Program at Yogaworks in San Francisco, a program that she credits for helping to deepen and enrich her own personal practice, as well as laying the foundation for her more rigorous studies abroad. Whilst traveling the world she had an opportunity to practice yoga under many varied teachers and modalities, but it was within the practice of Ashtanga that Sharon really found the grounding, stability and routine that she needed within her nomadic life on both a physical and an emotional level. She loves the combination of strength building, self reflection, and exploration as well as the humbling challenges that Ashtanga provides. Sharon's most recent adventure took her on a five month journey across India, where she had the opportunity to deepen her practice within a traditional yoga environment, completing her 200hr Ashtanga Vinyasa Teacher Training at Tattvaa Yogashala, on the banks of the Ganges River, in the stunning Himalayan foothills of Rishikesh. Now that Sharon is back in her hometown, refreshed from her travels, she's very excited to be a part of the growing yoga community here in Modesto, and she is really looking forward to meeting everyone and sharing her love for Ashtanga.
SHARRIE (BERRY) NEEMANN
Sharrie has been a practicing yogi since 2004. Her passion to help others has brought her from a home practice with a television and DVD’s to instructing in the studio where she guides others through their yoga journey. With her gentle, soft spoken nature and friendly personality, she excels at teaching relaxing, restorative classes while being skilled in other types of yoga as well. Her style can be described as eclectic because she incorporates Hatha, Vinyasa, and Iyengar into one unique class making it a fun and stress relieving experience for all students, young and old. She offers a feel-good class that leaves students with an overwhelming sense of calm and well-being. She is also a big hit with the kids, having taught many children’s classes over the years. Sharrie is a writer and author, and just like with her yoga practice, she infuses love and heart into all that she does.
TESSA DENNARD
I started Yoga because I was an addict and alcoholic. I lost my kid to Cps and I found my way into a yoga studio. I started Bikram and it changed my life been sober 8 years. The discipline from Yoga has taught me the love for myself. Makes me a better parent, a better daughter. My daughter also practices, yoga, and Pilates. My daughter has excelled in everything. Her grades are better. Her attitude is better. She no longer hides in a corner. Giuliana was 6 when I got sober 13 when I left her dad she will be 15 in July. This practice does change the mind-body and spirit. I have turned my life around, changed my ways. My kid is amazing. We have a best relationship. I am a human being, that people want to be around. The struggles I have faced Yoga has kept me grounded. The love and support I get from everybody from the studio. Yoga has given me the strength to leave a domestic violence situation that I’ve been stuck in 18 years. And it was not pretty at all !!! There is a love for this practice and the studios that I can never repay. and that is the truth.
TRACI SPRAGUE
Traci Sprague began practicing yoga in 1997 to help her through a challenging pregnancy, but it wasn’t until 2016 that she ventured into her first Bikram yoga class. Afterward she thought “I don’t know what that just was but I’m coming back, ” and she did, and she kept coming back. She became a huge fan of daily practice challenges and often challenges herself to 100 days of practice in row ‘without a break or intermission’. She found that the daily practice really helped her navigate life outside of the hot room. She believes that her yoga practice helped her cross completing the Kalalau Trail off her bucket list which lead her to wanting to share and teach the powerful practice with others.