Beth Albrecht, MA, ERYT-500, RPYT, TCTSY-F, YACEP

Beth Albrecht, MA, ERYT-500, RPYT, TCTSY-F, YACEP

she/her

Beth is an ERYT-500 through Yoga Alliance and has been teaching yoga since 2013. She was introduced to yoga in 2006 as a way to cope with stress and improve her mental health. Since then, yoga and meditation have helped guide her and continue to be a force that gives her life and peace. She holds certificates in Children & Family Yoga from Rainbow Kids Yoga (2015), Trauma Center Trauma Sensitive Yoga from the Center for Trauma and Embodiment at JRI (2018), and Fertility, Prenatal & Postpartum Yoga from Amala Prenatal Yoga School (2018).  Since 2004, Beth has worked in a variety of areas of the mental health field, ranging from drug & alcohol education in middle schools to residential treatment with teens and young families. Beth believes in the healing power of yoga and sharing her love of yoga and meditation has since become a passion and life mission. She opened Blue Lotus School of Yoga and the Blue Lotus Community Fund as a way to create an accessible and healing space for her community and spread the yoga love to all. She resides in Woodlawn with her husband John, son Leo, daughter Vivian, and their two fur babies Quinn, Frankie, Ricky & Pearl.

You can contact Beth directly at beth@bluelotuschicago.com

Kenya Butts, ERYT-500, LCSW, CLD, CPD

Kenya Butts, ERYT-500, LCSW, CLD, CPD

Kenya began practicing yoga in 2006 as way to find peace and calm in this hectic world.  She found peace and patience on the mat.  Kenya found herself always in a yoga class she enjoyed the challenge of yoga and how it made her body and mind feel.  In 2009 Kenya decided that she wanted to spread her love of yoga to others.  Kenya completed her first 200hr yoga teacher training at Corepower Yoga.  And as a lifelong learner Kenya decided to continue her thirst for knowledge and completed a second 200hr yoga teacher training through Pure Yoga lead by Allison English and Jim Kulackowski and a 500hr teacher training through the Darshan Center lead by Jim Kulackowski.  Kenya loves everything about yoga and knows that when life gets hectic she can always get on her mat and everything will begin to make sense.
Anna Counts, RYT-500

Anna Counts, RYT-500

she/her

With a background in both dance and social science, Anna brings a keen body awareness and unique perspective on the mind to her classes. She holds a 500-Hour RYT designation in yoga, and has a wide range of teaching style experience, including fitness yoga sculpt, meditation, vinyasa flow, and most things in between. Her classes never fail to include finessed and mindful movement, and are likely to give you a quirky laugh and something non-physical to ponder and learn from too.
Alesha Daniels, RYT-200

Alesha Daniels, RYT-200

Alesha is a dedicated practitioner and certified RYT-200 through Breathe for Change since 2024. She brings a passion for holistic wellness and inclusivity to her teaching. Initially drawn to yoga as a means of staying active, Alesha quickly discovered its profound impact on her spiritual, physical, and emotional well-being. With a heart set on fostering accessibility and representation, she aspires to extend the transformative power of yoga to communities often underrepresented in mainstream media. 

Alexis Dupree, RYT-200

Alexis Dupree, RYT-200

she/her

Alexis is a 200hr RYT through Yoga Alliance. She completed her certification with Yoga Blue Fitness School (RYS) in 2020. As a movement and healthy living advocate, Alexis honors the intentionality and freeing independence yoga offers. Being a jovial mover and shaker with over 5 years of group fitness instruction as a certified Zumba Fitness instructor, certified Strong x Zumba leader, and youth dance instructor, Alexis feels the path of yoga offers a much needed balance in this thing we call life. Hailing from Kansas City, MO, Alexis currently resides in Bronzeville. When not on the mat she’s a full-time graduate student, teacher, and artist. She enjoys running, jogging, dancing, and anything that offers up creativity, connection, and movement.
Dana Fortner, RYT-200

Dana Fortner, RYT-200

she/her

Dana came to yoga over 20 years ago as a disconnected young adult and quickly fell in love with the practice.  After several years working as a recreational therapist, she took a hiatus from her career to reasses where best to focus her energy.  The thought of studying to become a yoga teacher had been a reocurring thought for over a decade, and Dana decided that she should start paying attention to what her inner voice was communicating.  The Covid-19 pandemic was the ultimate signal  that time was not guranteed, and that it was a good time to answer the call to share yoga and mindfullness with others.  Dana is a yoga teacher who believes that connection is the key to peace. She hopes to help people find the balance they need to live their best lives by teaching them yoga, meditation, and mindfulness techniques.

“I believe that connecting with others is the most powerful thing we can do as humans. It’s what brings us together, makes us feel less alone, and helps us find our place in this world.”

Mariel Galvan, RYT-200

Mariel Galvan, RYT-200

Like many, Mariel grew in her yoga asana practice during the pandemic. She credits her undergraduate yoga practicum instructor and the Down Dog app for planting the seeds of yogic principles and postures within her during her budding years. Mariel completed teacher training with Corepower Yoga in 2022. Accessibility, awareness, and radical self-love are the essential ingredients of her classes. Her biomedical and community care background informs her instruction and unyielding belief that yoga is for every body. Her sankalpa is to support her student’s journey of finding trust, safety, and bliss in their bodies. Her heart is filled by her village of friends and family, her cat Blue, creating sonic experiences, and symbiotically interacting with nature.

“Concepts like self-acceptance and body neutrality are not without value. When you have spent your entire life at war with your body, these models offer a truce. But you can have more than a cease-fire. You can have radical self-love because you are already radical self-love.”
― Sonya Renee Taylor, The Body Is Not an Apology: The Power of Radical Self-Love

Aiko Hibino, RYT-200

Aiko Hibino, RYT-200

she/her

Aiko has been practicing yoga since 2002. She started with alignment-oriented Iyengar yoga, and has practiced power flow style for some time. She completed her 200 hour RYT training in 2017 at Corepower and has been teaching beginner power yoga classes since then. Most recently, she has found slower flow with stretching very beneficial to her body during quarantine and is curious to explore those styles of yoga.
Regan Jameson, RYT-200, LCSW

Regan Jameson, RYT-200, LCSW

she/her

Regan’s love for yoga began in 2017 when she found mental and emotional healing on the mat. Since then, yoga has been a solace and escape for her, knowing that the mat always shows up as long as she does. Regan emphasizes the value of choice in her own practice and through her teaching. Your body may be experiencing something different every single day and it’s important to her to honor that on the ma. Some days feel different than others, and she strives for folks to feel a sense of comfortability with her in class to take their practice wherever they like. 

Regan is new to the Chicago area and was previously living in Boston, not too far from her hometown in New Hampshire. She is a licensed social worker and therapist, and likes to utilize breath-work from yoga with her clients. Regan’s goal with teaching yoga is to encourage people to connect with their inner selves and give them permission to rest and relax. Regan graduated from JP Centre Yoga’s 200 hour RYT Teacher Training Program in Boston, MA in May 2023. She is grateful for her teachers there who have supported her on this journey. 

Off the mat, you can find Regan playing ukulele or watching reality tv with her boyfriend.

Katharine Lassiter, RYT-500

Katharine Lassiter, RYT-500

she/her

With a voice that calms nerves, Katharine specializes in the Taoist yoga tradition. She completed her 200-hour training with Matt Eshelman at You Do Yoga, focusing on functional anatomy and yin yoga, and her 500-hour training with Will Brashear at Lotus Yoga Temple, focusing on the integration of Thai Yoga, the meridians, and five element theory of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

Katharine came to practice yoga regularly during her doctoral studies when what she was studying related to religious practice felt so divorced from what everyday people, including herself, lived. Katharine draws from her background in yoga as well as her studies in religion, psychology, and culture to invite students toward embodied wisdom and inner knowing.

If she’s not on her mat, you’ll find Katharine outside on a bike, in a kayak, in a lake, on a mountain…

Kyla Lee, RYT-500

Kyla Lee, RYT-500

With a love for health, wellness, and education, Kyla started her journey of getting to know herself and then wanted to share that journey with the world. She found the best way was becoming more intuitive to her body and spirit. Already experienced in yoga, she reconnected and recommitted to the practice. After falling back in love with yoga, she earned her 200 and 300 hour certification with Yoga Blue Fitness in 2020. Initially starting to teach virtually, she has since expanded to teaching for conferences, celebrities, and hopes to continue to inspire everyone to be well!

Kyla uses her a background in psychology, education, and public health to inform her classes and students to help others on their own healing/spiritual journey!

If she’s not on her mat, you with find Kyla at home watching movies with her dog.

Be Luecke, CYT-200

Be Luecke, CYT-200

she/her

Be Luecke is a 200hr certified yoga teacher who learned under the guidance of Suddha Weixler at Chicago Yoga Center in 2015. She discovered yoga in 2011 while recovering from a running injury and since then yoga has become her way of life.

She continues studying and practicing daily to be able to better serve her students, taking the Yoga for All training that has given her the tools to teach yoga to everyone, regardless of age, shape, or ability. She teaches yoga from her heart, opening the space for her students to explore through their movement and to inquire and be curious during moments of stillness. Her classes are designed to guide you to reconnect with yourself, always encouraging you to find your love and your peace within you.

Danielle McConnell, RYT-200, SEL+F Cert

Danielle McConnell, RYT-200, SEL+F Cert

she/her/hers

Born and raised in the Metro Detroit area and a University of Michigan graduate, Danielle McConnell believes that the key to addressing education inequity is through investing in holistic wrap-around supports and a continuum of mental health care and wellness strategies for communities of color.  Danielle has spent the past 10 years of her career growing and glowing up in the ranks of numerous positions at her former non-profit, One Million Degrees. It was not until March 2020 that she realized the time to invest in her own mental health and care could no longer be shelved or put to the side. In 2021, Danielle received her yoga teacher training certificate through the training program Breathe for Change. For the first time in a long time she felt connected to her purpose and energized by her passion to help others find theirs. Yoga is truly for EVERYBODY and Danielle’s vision is to ensure all body types, shapes, and shades are welcome in the yoga community. Danielle’s teaching style ranges from restorative, hatha style, to beginner friendly vinyasa flow. Danielle currently resides in the Woodlawn community where she participates in the 65th and Ingleside block club. She enjoys traveling, reading mystery novels, event planning, and exploring Chicago neighborhoods for good eats, people, and culture.

Nikki Renfroe, RYT-200, CPYT

Nikki Renfroe, RYT-200, CPYT

she/her/hers

A lifelong mover and learner, Nikki began her journey with movement at a young age as a dancer and that lead her to find yoga as a way to move her body mindfully, without judgement and with a lens of curiosity.  She continued to explore yoga and completed her 200 hour yoga teacher training at Yoga Six and has deepened her knowledge by training in prenatal and postnatal yoga with Amala School of Yoga. In her classes you can find the space to reconnect with your mind, body, and spirit by exploring the connection between breath and movement and learning tools that you can take off of your mat.
Michael Saa Sekhem, RYT-200

Michael Saa Sekhem, RYT-200

Michael Saa Sekhem has emerged into the practice of yoga since the age of 12. His mother was the influence to give yoga a try. After graduating Columbia College of Chicago, with a B.A. in Music Composition/Screen found his love for Yoga, Breathwork and Meditation. Michael enjoys curating musical selections specific to the class and the yogis.

From the age of 12-26, Michael played tennis as an amateur, ran track in high school, (200m, long & triple jump) and soccer. Until, in 2007 an internship through CCC music composers’ program, sent him to LA to be emersed in a 5-week program at twentieth century fox. There he learned he needed more than wits to stay grounded. He enlisted help from Dr. Asar Hapi, a breatharian from Chicago.  He learned breathing techniques to slow the mind and evoke his spiritual power through correct breathing.

In 2009, Michael met his first instructor of Ancient Egyptian Kemetic Yoga (Smai Tawi) Neter Ankh Ahku. Smai Tawi meaning, joining of the two lands of Upper & Lower Kemet (Egypt). This can be seen as symbol of Heru (divine will) and Set/Sebek (divine creation) tying ropes around the Smai Tawi symbol which is a depiction of the spine and lungs. Two most important parts of the human body. By practicing Smai Tawi, you are uniting higher self with your lower self through the alignment of the spine, and the proper allocation of air & gases, ultimately transforming you into the hero of your life and a pillar in your community. Hince Smai Tawi.

In 2010 Michael received his 200-hr certification and was on his way to teach. Military Academy, dance studios, after school programs, mental health facilities & group homes to name a few, were the instructed after Michael became certified. As of 2017, Michael set out to work with the community in a deeper way by instructing Silver Warrior Yoga, yoga for elders. Oak street health being a facility that saw benefit in his service. 2018- present, Michael was one of faces of the Hot Yoga program for La Fitness in Lombard. He was quickly a hit after HotLAF dissolved and began teaching yoga in the fitness room. In effort to be a greater presence in his own community, he is glad to be a part of Blue Lotus Yoga.

Nykia Scott, RYT-200

Nykia Scott, RYT-200

Nykia discovered yoga in middle school, when a teacher introduced her to breathwork for stress relief. She never imagined her practice would grow to support her through so many seasons. Nykia completed her 200-hour teacher training at Reflections Yoga Center in 2019, and she continues to draw inspiration from traditional Hatha practices and the world around her. As an instructor, Nykia is known for creating affirming, inclusive spaces that help clients meet themselves on the mat with grace. Yogis from all walks of life can expect mindful movement, a space to breathe and a healthy dose of laughter in her classes. She enjoys reading, traveling, brunch, knitting and long walks with her dogs, Bando and Grizzly.
Allie Williams, RYT-200

Allie Williams, RYT-200

Allie fell in love with movement as a child, dancing in her driveway in the Appalachian mountains of North Carolina. As a kinesiology major and dance minor in college, she began to more consistently practice yoga, taking early morning Ashtanga classes to supplement her dance studies. Through the process, Allie discovered her passion for yoga. In 2019, she completed her 200hr. YTT at Samma Karuna in Koh Phangan, Thailand. Since then, Allie has taught around the world and most recently, in her theology masters program in Atlanta, GA. For Allie, yoga is a practice of nurture. In her classes, she hopes to not only nurture her students with calming presence and gentle guidance, but also to contribute to a more compassionate world by fostering spaces for inclusion, patience, and mindfulness. When not practicing yoga, Allie can be found walking by the lake, baking, or spending time with her partner Noah and their orange tabby cat, Theo!

Amy Woehling, RYT-200

Amy Woehling, RYT-200

Amy is an educator, foodie, writer and yogi with a passion for all things wellness. She’s originally from the Chicagoland area, but recently moved back from Arizona. She specializes is vinyasa flow and children’s yoga.