Yoga for a cause

Photo: Contributed

While yogis across the globe celebrated International Yoga Day last week, three well-known local yoga teachers took to the roof top of the Eldorado Hotel to do a lot more for their community than just stretching people’s hamstrings.

Yoga teachers Pam Radar, Shauna Nyrose and Chelsea Ray led more than 60 yogis in a sunset yoga class atop the iconic Kelowna hotel.

With stunning views of the lake, live guitar music and an exquisite Okanagan sunset, it was the perfect way to spend the summer solstice.

The event, which sold out in less than three weeks, was also a fundraiser for the Lit from Within Project, a grass-roots organization founded by the three teachers to raise money to support the integration of yoga and meditation into mental health, trauma and addiction recovery programs in Kelowna.

The event raised $7,820, nearly doubling the proceeds from last year.

“This is truly what yoga is all about,” said Nyrose, co-founder of Lit from Within and yoga teacher at Oranj Fitness. “Yoga isn’t just about stretching people’s hamstrings. It’s about taking care of one another, supporting our community in real and meaningful ways.”

Launched two years ago, the Lit from Within Project has facilitated weekly yoga and meditation classes at the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) Kelowna as well as several private recovery centres.

“For every $50 raised, we are able to provide one class in the community,” says Pam Radar, also a co-founder and owner of Shift Power Yoga in West Kelowna. “So many of us have been touched by addiction and mental health issues and while we can’t always fix the conditions that cause these illnesses, we can do our very best to facilitate recovery and healing in the best way we know how – in this case, through yoga and meditation.”