Instructors

Photo by Amanda Marie Mason

Cheryl Chaffee: Cheryl Chaffee (ERYT-500, YACEP) has been teaching yoga since 2005 and is one of the country’s top teacher trainers in Ashaya Yoga. She has studied intensively with Todd Norian, the founder of Ashaya Yoga, and has studied with Tantric Yoga philosophy scholars, Paul Muller Ortega, Douglas Brooks, and Bill Mahony.

Cheryl loves the depth and intensity of Ashaya Yoga. She feels that the purpose of yoga is not to do the most difficult asanas, but is to go deeper into the understanding of the Self through the body, and connect to the Heart. Ashaya Yoga invites students to look at the places where yoga (and life) is challenging, and encourages everyone to connect to their own authenticity. Cheryl teaches authentically from her heart in order to help her students bring about their own transformation.

Cheryl is also a kirtan leader. She enjoys chanting the sacred names of the Divine with others. Her sweet melodies are uplifting and easy to follow along with. Her first album, Prashamana, is available wherever you stream music.

Photo by Amanda Marie Mason

Stephanie Cole: Formerly a certified personal trainer and nutritional consultant, Stephanie has been in the fitness industry since 1993. Her yoga journey, which began in 2001, has included Ashtanga, Vinyasa, Yin, and Bikram traditions. Her dedicated practice and further studies led her to become a certified yoga teacher, registered with the Yoga Alliance, in 2005. She expanded her certifications to include Aerial Yoga in 2011. Her teaching is most influenced by Kino McGregor, Govinda Kai, and Sarah Powers. She takes these teachings, and others, and blends them with her own caring style for a wonderful yoga experience. The joy and lightness she creates in the room is her beautiful parting gift to take with you out into the world.

Kelsey Cooke: Kelsey's journey into yoga started in 2008 as a practice of learning to sit with long term chronic illness. Growing up between Canada and the States, she had suffered from misdiagnosed symptoms for years, ultimately leading to the diagnosis of a severe autoimmune disease with some scary complications due to lack of proper treatment. Yoga helped her to find strength in a body that was struggling--a lesson that followed her while she battled cancer in 2020 and won, and later on, in 2022, when she underwent major abdominal surgery to put the autoimmune disease into remission, as well. Through it all, Kelsey has believed it is a privilege and a blessing to be able to show up and take care of your body through yoga.

These days, Kelsey gets to hold space for others to similarly find strength in their yoga practice. As a Reiki Master and an RYT-500 graduate from Heartwood Yoga Institute, Kelsey weaves all eight limbs into each practice, from physical postures, to breath work, to meditation. Her intention for her students is to create a safe space to meet the inherent stillness that exists within.

When she isn't teaching classes, you can find Kelsey on the mat doing her favorite thing--the Ashtanga Primary Series!

Photo by Amanda Marie Mason

Meredith Kaplan: Meredith Kaplan, RYT 200, received her teacher certification at Garden of the Heart Yoga Studio in Sarasota, Florida in 2009 and has been teaching in the community ever since.

Meredith’s training and teaching style is a Hatha based alignment yoga which focuses on the connection between breath and movement bringing an overall sense of greater freedom, strength, and empowerment to each student, and harmonizing body, mind, and spirit.

Classes always include modifications and cues so that everyone at any level may participate comfortably and safely.

We will weave some core work into our flow of yoga asanas (poses), stretching and strengthening, and always conclude with a deep relaxation to recharge and set a positive mindset for the day.

Chelsey Lucas: Chelsey’s devotion to Yoga began as a healing journey in 2016 that has since blossomed into a love for the practice and craft. Since 2021 she has completed two 290-hour Yoga Teacher Trainings, and is currently enrolled in the Yoga University of Florida’s 670-hour Yoga of Compassion Teacher Training. The foundation of her training is in the BKS Iyengar tradition of alignment-based Vinyasa Yoga. She is also trained in the Paul Grilley method of Yin Yoga (a personal favorite), Thai Yoga, and Yoga Nidra. She can use her skill to help you light the fire within, but prefers the quieter Yoga of tending the steady flame.

A Sarasota-native, Chelsey recently returned home from spending a year in the wild mountains and backcountry of Alaska. When she’s not exploring the outdoors, she’s strength-building in the gym, reading books of all different genres, and drinking coffee with friends somewhere cozy. Her teaching aims to bring groundedness, curiosity, playfulness, and deep gratitude to the studio and its students. She is eager always to share her passion for Yoga on and off the mat.

Photo by Amanda Marie Mason

Laura Mahoney: Laura has been teaching yoga since 2000 and teaches several styles of yoga. Her classes are on the gentle side of effort and complexity. She is a healer, a channel, and an Angel Therapist. She loves sharing healing energy and angel messages and their Light with her students during class.

Lauren Peltz: Lauren is a 200RYT and has been teaching yoga since 2012. She is classically trained in the Hatha Style but also enjoys the Principles of Yin Yoga for those deeper fascial poses. She has been an LMT for over 20 years, bringing her hands on knowledge to her yoga classes. Lauren loves helping students and clients to heal and empower their own body, mind and spirit.

Photo by Amanda Marie Mason

Michelle Roy: Michelle Roy is an RYT-certified yoga instructor with more than 25 years of experience. Her system is alignment-based, teaching each student how to safely move and arrange the body for each pose. Michelle’s yoga instruction is heart-felt, empowering and introspective, providing an atmosphere in which each student can explore the practice free of competition and judgment. Her extensive anatomical and therapeutics training, combined with her skills in other healing modalities, offer a more holistic approach to the yoga practice.

Jessica Sanchez: Jessica (500 RYT) has been sharing her love for yoga since 2019. This was also the year she moved to beautiful Sarasota and chose sobriety, embracing health fully, both physically and mentally.

Her path started in Texas when after years of trying to find comfort in excess, she turned to long-distance running as a way to connect with her body through discipline. This in turn, reconnected her to yoga, where she experienced a new form of inescapable mind-body connection.

Interestingly, she also discovered her love for Ashtanga the same year. With the changes the pandemic brought, she found herself practicing on her own at home. Although a bit frustrating at the time, it would be the genesis of her immense love for the introspective space that self-practice brings. Later, she was able to connect in-person with who would now be her teachers to continue developing her practice and solidifying her love for Ashtanga. She feels immense gratitude that she has been able to study with Kino McGregor and Tim Feldmann as well as many other teachers that have openly shared their knowledge for asana, pranayama, philosophy and spirituality.

Jessica is excited to be part of the Rosemary Court Yoga community and share her love for the practice. There’s nothing that makes her happier than holding space for others to connect with the fire and light that lives within.

If you’d like to keep up with Jessica or chat some more you can find her in IG @jess.energyflow

Photo by Amanda Marie Mason

Valerie Schneiderman: Valerie Schneiderman (ERYT - 500) has studied and practiced ashtanga yoga for the past 25 years. Under the guidance of many exceptional teachers, including Tim Miller, Beryl Bender Birch, members of the Jois family and many others, her individual teaching style has been nourished and developed over time. Valerie believes that yoga practice is open to all, and she actively seeks to dispel the misconception that a student need be physically flexible in order to practice yoga. The traditional yogic teaching of mindful movement, breathing technique and meditation are of benefit to all interested practitioners, regardless of age, technical ability and/or level of experience. At its heart, Yoga is about getting to know ones true nature...a place of joy, stillness, abundance and well-being. Valerie's goal as a teacher is to share with others, the traditional teachings that have been transformational in her own life...those practices which enhance and support mental, physical and spiritual growth and well-being. It is with a deep sense of gratitude and commitment to the teachings, that she shares this practice with interested students.

Photo by Amanda Marie Mason

Liana Sheintal Bryant: Liana truly lives her yoga both on and off the mat. Joyfully dedicated to her practice and her students, Liana empowers all who come to yoga to live it as fully and as happily as she does, whatever their level of fitness or experience. Known for her bright smile and infectious warmth, Liana infuses her classes with the same spirit of nurturing care. With a background in gymnastics and college cheerleading, Liana soon discovered her passion for yoga after graduating from the George Washington University in 2002. After four enjoyable years working at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, she has now made yoga her full time career. Previously a YogaWorks Studio Manager in New York City, Liana has now returned to her hometown of Sarasota, FL and in addition to teaching her beloved classes, she is also the owner of Rosemary Court Yoga. She is an active part of the yoga community, and after helping to launch the lululemon athletica store openings in the Washington, DC area by serving as one of their first Ambassadors, she was honored to return to Sarasota and be invited to serve as an Ambassador there as well. She is also a Product Ambassador for Manduka. She has completed the YogaWorks Teacher Training Program and is a 500-hour Experienced Registered Yoga Teacher (E-RYT 500) through Yoga Alliance. Liana has drawn inspiration from all her teachers, including Jenny Aurthur, Erika Hildebrandt, and Kino MacGregor. For more information about Liana, visit her website at www.lianayogasrq.weebly.com.

Stacey Steig: Stacey Steig is a registered yoga teacher (RYT-200) with Yoga Alliance and is excited to return to Rosemary Court Yoga. She teaches soulful, energizing Vinyasa classes that emphasize strength, breath, alignment, and the healing power of movement.

Stacey completed her yoga teacher training at Corpo Yoga in Miami and is also certified to teach Yin Yoga. She has taught in a variety of settings throughout Sarasota, as well as serving as a guest yoga instructor at The Cove, an exclusive resort in the Bahamas.

Yoga has been a powerful source of healing throughout Stacey’s life. After surviving a serious illness that affected her balance and motor coordination, she turned to yoga for recovery, grounding, and strength. More recently, her rehabilitation from major knee surgery deepened her understanding of injury, modification, and the body’s remarkable ability to heal. Her classes are infused with compassion, mindfulness, and the belief that yoga should meet each student where they are.

In addition to teaching yoga, Stacey is an artist, writer, and gifted English teacher in Sarasota. She is passionate about inspiring others—on and off the mat—to cultivate strength, confidence, creativity, and balance.

Photo by Amanda Marie Mason

Stacy Tarter: Stacy Tarter is a sound healing and energy balancing expert. She has trained with sound healers around the globe, David Gibson and the Globe Sound Healing Center and is a member of the inaugural online program at The Open Center, NYC with a certification in Sound and Music. Stacy combines Kundalini Breathwork and Full Moon Sound Workshops with astrology and ritual. A Kundalini Yoga (KRI level 1) teacher, Stacy is certified in many modalities including Reiki and Stanford University's Compassion Cultivation. Stacy has experienced the way Kundalini Breathwork combined with Sound Baths can awaken the soul in mysterious and cosmic ways. She is honored to teach her humming classes and sound baths at Resilient Retreat, www.resilientretreat.org, offering people who have experienced trauma and helping professionals with compassion fatigue simple and easy self-regulation practices and healing sound baths. www.soundbathsrq.com

Kerry Tice: Growing up I never saw myself as particularly spiritual until my travels, teachers, and inner journey ignited a flame that now burns brightly within me. Through this journey, I found a love for simply being with myself and truly getting to know Myself. I wish to share the acceptance, connection, and love I've discovered with you and teach you how to connect to the power within.

Yoga played a crucial role in healing my body, mind, and soul after a severe back injury in my early twenties. Through teaching yoga, I've helped hundreds of students learn to embrace this powerful practice and connect within. I've learned to lean into the stillness and connect to Nature. To remember the feeling of being whole, connected, and present.

My studies have profoundly impacted me, especially in Yoga Therapy & Yin Yoga. Each study has opened my heart, helped me heal my body, and activated a powerful strength within that allowed me to become more and more myself.

I finally found what I had been searching for my entire life— I discovered that what I sought outwardly was already inside me. I'd love to share the skills, experiences, and teachings that helped me find my way home. I invite you to join me for one of my weekly classes or workshops at Rosemary Court Yoga.