WHO WE ARE
Our Yogavita instructor team is supportive of one another and their students. We encourage you to try different class types and instructors to find your favorites!
Meet Your Instructors
Lissa Farkas, Owner
Lissa’s first power vinyasa practice was in 2010 after completing a half marathon. She was looking for recovery, and ended up in discovery instead. Her regular yoga practice provided the shift in vision and skills necessary to proactively parent her 3 sons, including special needs twins. Her life has been immersed in yoga, meditation, and inquiry ever since, and she never looked back.
Lissa has been teaching yoga since 2014, and purchased the studio in January of 2020. Some told her that her pre-Covid timing wasn’t very good, but she thought it was “just right”.
She has completed several programs through Baptiste Institute, including Levels 1, 2 and 3, and is a 750 Hour Baptiste Certified Educator. Lissa also enjoys co-facilitating teacher training and 40 Days programs. Running a studio is a true calling for her, and she finds deep satisfaction in leading our talented and tight-knit group of instructors (they make it so easy).
Yoga is Lissa’s 3rd career. She was a Delta flight attendant for 3 years out of college, then moved into the financial planning and portfolio management world for 12 years, earning her CFP in 2002.
Christina LaMarca, Lead Teacher Richmond Heights
Christina began practicing yoga in 2000 at Atlanta Yoga, an Ashtanga Yoga studio. Christina is known for fusing different yoga methodologies, sequences, and mobility work in her classes. Her classes are focused and accessible in a relevant way. She has been teaching yoga since 2009, has a bachelor’s degree, and a massage therapy certification specializing in sports and neuromuscular therapy. After moving to Cleveland in 2004, Christina earned her 200-hour YTT with Tami Schneider in 2008. She has completed additional training with Jonny Kest, Kathryn Budig, Patrick Beach, Carling Harps, and Tiffany Cruikshank. Her teaching methods combine her western knowledge of the body (anatomy, kinesiology and physiology) with the eastern tradition of yoga. Christina has also taught anatomy for the Academy of Somatic Healing Arts in Atlanta and Cleveland Yoga’s teacher training programs.
Chris Ballard
Chris Ballard began his yoga journey in 2012. His introduction to practicing yoga stems from his weight loss ups and downs. He had been working out in various capacities and finding good results through his physical efforts, but something was missing. In the hunt for a new fitness video Chris was handed 2 yoga DVD’s at a used record shop. He was very skeptical having never practiced yoga before. He set up a practice space in his family room, bought a yoga mat and headed in for what would be the beginning of his story. Immediately he recognized the reconnection between his mind and his body that had been unnoticed prior to slowing down and connecting breath to movement. It also set his spiritual fires ablaze. After months of self-study and practice, he decided to join a studio. Chris first focused on Bikram yoga, and stayed dedicated for nearly 3 years. A turn of events for the studio he was at forced them to relocate and that is when he decided to seek out other styles of yoga. This was the point he discovered Cleveland Yoga. Practicing regularly under Marni Task, Tami Schneider, Christina LaMarca and many other amazing CY teachers he realized that this was the style of yoga he had been looking for. Influenced by Bikram, Baptiste, Jivamukti, and Anusara, Chris brings an amazing diversity of experience to the table. He earned his 200 hr CYT under teacher Marni Task in May of 2018. Classes taught by Chris are grounding yet challenging. You will feel welcomed and respected. Chris considers himself a student for life and wants to keep learning as he teaches others this life changing practice.
Suzanne Borders
Suzanne Borders knows firsthand the healing power of yoga. As a practitioner for nearly 20 years, she found solace and strength in yoga, especially after being diagnosed with breast cancer five years into her practice. Throughout her treatments and surgeries, yoga was the one constant that quieted the chatter in her mind and made her feel strong. After reaching remission, Suzanne felt compelled to share her experience with others, believing in healing “one breath at a time.”
In 2018, she made the life-changing decision to enroll in yoga teacher training with Marni Task, a choice she considers one of the best she’s ever made. For Suzanne, meeting people where they are when they show up for themselves is a privilege, and being part of a yoga community is an honor. Sharing her knowledge with others is, in her words, pure magic. Suzanne looks forward to meeting students on their mats, where the healing journey begins. Namaste.
Katie Kiker
Katie’s yoga journey began in 2010 after being shut out of a cardio class. Frustrated, she found a vinyasa class at the same time and walked into coming home to her body. Moving and breathing in a different way physically was a wonderful discovery! She has been a CY community member since 2011.
In 2021 Katie completed her 200 hr Teacher Training with Awake To My Soul led by Ylonda Rosenthal-Greene. Katie views yoga as a multi-faceted practice of patience, listening to the body, honoring what you need and finding power and peace in the breath while gaining clarity in the mind. Her superpowers are showing up with full authenticity, compassion, and holding space for all.
Katie is grateful for her family, music and all the teachers who have made an enormous impact on her through yoga with love and support. She is very excited to be a part of CYLI teaching team!
Christina Carroll
Christina began practicing yoga in 2010. Getting a great work-out from a Power Vinyasa class was her original intention. She wanted to improve her physical well-being but found that her whole being had remarkably changed. To satisfy an insatiable curiosity about the practice, Christina enrolled in a 200 hour RYT training program at Cleveland Yoga. This training and self-discovery sparked greater interest. To continue growing and learning, Christina went on to complete her 500 hour RYT Certification with “Live, Love, Teach”. Both teacher training certifications started out as learning opportunities but became the catalyst that called Christina into teaching. She wanted to share the life changing effects breath and movement had on her. Christina continues to study with the Baptiste Institute and plans to continue growing and learning every day. She takes pride in maintaining a beginner’s mindset which keeps her open to growth and expansion of her comfort zone. Christina does not take herself too seriously. Her classes are light hearted and stress the absolute beauty of being human, thus imperfect and genuine. Christina truly teaches from a place of love and sees strength and possibility in every student.
LaRaun Clayton
LaRaun came to his mat in 2017 at a pivotal moment in his career as a Nonprofit leader. What started an a Non-negotiable time to decompress, turned into an unexpected life changing experience. LaRaun completed his 200hr teacher training in 2018 with Gary Dacanay through the Urban Warrior Yoga Teacher Training Program at Vision Yoga. LaRaun is also a United States Army Veteran with 10+ years of Nonprofit Leadership experience. He is currently the Director of Compliance and Quality Improvement for an organization that provides services to Veterans, Families and returning citizens across Ohio and Indiana. Most of his personal and professional life has been dedicated to supporting/Advocating for underserved and vulnerable populations including the LGBTQIA community, People living with HIV/AIDS and Veterans. LaRaun is inspired to hold space that is safe and inclusive while encouraging exploration and heart-centered growth for all, because Yoga is for EVERYONE. He’s Looking forward to seeing you on your mat and stepping up to your EDGE.
Gary Dacanay
Gary Dacanay is a 500 Hour Certified Baptiste Yoga Instructor who trained at Baptiste Levels 1, 2, and 3 Teachers Trainings, Art of Assisting, Advanced Art of Assisting, and Unbreakable – Yoga Teacher Training for Veterans and First Responders. Gary has led teacher training and several inversions and meditation workshops.
Gary has been teaching since 2013, serving the NE Ohio community in public schools, family recreation centers, corporate settings, hospitals, and outdoor events. Gary’s background is in music and martial arts, and he incorporates live music into his meditation and asana practice.
His classes invite students to step up to their edge and discover what’s possible for them in their yoga practice. Gary still plays and teaches music professionally and enjoys bringing his two kids to yoga classes.
Judge William L. Dawson is the administrative and presiding Judge of the East Cleveland Municipal Court in East Cleveland, Ohio. Judge Dawson was born in the City of East Cleveland, attended all the schools and then returned with purpose and passion as its Judge. Judge Dawson has been running his court with a mission to help positively transform lives and empower greatness. To achieve that goal Judge Dawson conducts programs on “Avoiding Negative Interaction with the Police,” “Emotional Intelligence” and now, “Yoga.” As a 200 hour RYT graduate of Cleveland Yoga in 2015, Judge Dawson teaches yoga to offenders right in the Courtroom where the offenders were sentenced. Judge Dawson’s philosophy is that Yoga is a life changing practice. “I have been able to reach a common ground with people in my Courtroom by exposing them to Yoga.” To make sure he reaches as many people as possible, Judge Dawson starts every court session by asking the people in his courtroom to stand and take three deep breathes before starting the proceedings. Judge Dawson calls his movement of change “Cycle Breakers!”
Halley has many interests but her mission is simple – to bring peace of mind, confidence, and health to as many people as possible, including our little ones.
Halley grew up dancing and cheerleading and began her yoga practice 25 years ago when she found yoga to be a more beneficial way to express herself. In 2007 she committed to a 200 hour teacher training with Tami Schneider, owner of Cleveland Yoga and she has never looked back. She has been teaching, all while committed to her own growth, her generous sharing and wants to help others on their personal yoga path. She says…
Educating folks about mindfulness and yoga has been the biggest gift. It never gets old witnessing an “aha” moment in a 6 year old’s or a 86 year old’s eyes. I just love teaching!
Halley is so excited to work with this amazing crew at Yogavita!
Leslie Graf
One of Leslie’s greatest passions is the practice of yoga and she is grateful to share the practice as a teacher. Leslie earned her credentials as a yoga teacher (RYT – 200) in 2015 and also completed Level 1 and 2 and the Art of Assisting through the Baptiste Institute. Through her trainings, Leslie gained a new awareness…..”The practice of yoga provides all beings with the ability to practice on the mat the way they want to show up in their everyday life.” Leslie encourages her students to explore the significant positive shifts that can happen through breath, movement and stillness. Her classes are designed to be accessible to all yet also challenging and awakening.
Julie DiBiasio
Julie took her first yoga class at Cleveland Yoga in 2012. She was instantly hooked. She quickly fell in love with Baptiste Yoga, found a sense of community she was longing for, and so much more. What draws Julie to her mat is the physicality of the practice, and the mind-body connection. Julie is an encouraging and supportive teacher. Her classes are athletic and fun, and will push you to find your edge. Julie completed Cleveland Yoga’s 200 Hour Teacher Training Program in 2017 and is a certified Health and Wellness Coach through the Institute of Integrative Nutrition. Outside of yoga, Julie works at CSU’s Cleveland-Marshall College of Law and is a member of the Rainbow Babies and Children’s Foundation Associate Board. She lives in Fairview Park with her husband Matt and their dog Sawyer.
Sarah Ezzie Haines
Sarah started practicing yoga in 2010, and found it to be a blissful retreat waiting for her whenever she needed it. Sarah became particularly fond of Cleveland Yoga early on in her quest to discover more. As a personal trainer, weightlifting and running always stayed as the mainframe of her weekly routine. Yoga gradually made a bigger appearance as she noticed the aches and pains eased away and she felt more grounded in daily life. Sarah found peace and clarity on her mat.
Sarah’s style is a blend of a powerful flow and restorative asanas with careful attention to alignment. The hope is that you will leave class feeling physically energized with a renewed sense of gratitude, clarity, and spirit.
Sarah believes that yoga is growing to love yourself just as you are. To accomplish that you don’t need much – just you, your mat, and an open heart. The journey is spectacular and there’s no finish line.
Hannah Hinrichsen
Hannah has been a part of the CYLI community since early 2022, and credits her practice for giving her the strength to manage and heal from depression, anxiety, and an eating disorder. Something about the CYLI community gave her the space to show up fully as herself. Hannah felt a call to teach yoga and share her experience with others, graduating from Cleveland Yoga’s 200 hour teacher training in May 2023.
Hannah’s intention as a teacher is to instruct classes that allow space for students to feel empowered, supported, and strong. She hopes to share and create the same sense of belonging for her students that drew her into the community to begin with.
When she isn’t teaching yoga you can find her immersed in her other passion, working with special needs children. Hannah has a masters degree in special education with a specialization in applied behavior analysis.
Jenni Juan
Yoga has been in Jenni’s life for almost 20 years. Some years she turned to it more than others. It wasn’t until recently that she found the value of a regular practice, and decided to make it a permanent part of her life. In Spring of 2023, Jenni completed her 200-hour Yoga Certification with Tami Schneider at Cleveland Yoga. Since graduation, she has been volunteering her time teaching yoga at a women’s crisis shelter on the west side of Cleveland. She’s relatable, thoughtful and occasionally cues students to smile. On this journey to becoming a yoga teacher, she’s discovered that the lessons truly never stop. Jenni’s favorite life/yoga lesson is: Hold on and breathe through the difficult times; Enjoy and embrace the easier times. Neither position lasts forever.
If she’s not on her mat, you’ll find her designing projects for her clients, running around with her kids, baking in the kitchen, chasing Lake Erie sunsets, or walking her dog, Buffy (yes, the Slayer).
Ylonda Rosenthal Greene
Ylonda Rosenthal-Greene is a certified yoga instructor as well as a classically trained cellist who has been performing for over 20 years. After discovering yoga in 2009, she completed 3 different 200-hour trainings and a 300-hour yoga teacher training in 2015.
Through her studies of yoga, Ylonda fell in love with many of the traditional aspects of the practice and its philosophies. On a soul searching trip to India in 2014, she discovered how to combine music and art into her yoga teaching. She has since studied sound healing in the U.S.A, India, and Mexico. By using a number of instruments for sound healing, combined with her voice and vinyasa yoga, Ylonda’s class is geared toward finding fluidity in the body and harmonizing strength and flexibility. She infuses her storytelling abilities with spirituality and her training as a professional musician to create a dynamic yoga journey for each student.
Jen Seaman
Jen Seaman began practicing yoga as a teenager, circa 1991, through the Lakewood Recreation Department in a basement of a local elementary school. Though the class was not the power yoga style she has come to love, it was a true representation of the power that the yoga practice holds through breath, movement, and meditation. The seed was planted there, but she wouldn’t return to her mat until January 2005 after training for and running a marathon in Phoenix, Arizona.
Jen reengaged her practice taking classes at a power yoga studio in Downtown Cleveland, and eventually found Cleveland Yoga – in that tiny hidden away space at the Hamptons in Beachwood. Jen credits her yoga practice for bringing her to an awareness of her breath and its power to remove energetic and emotional congestion in order to heal – physically, mentally and spiritually.
Jen completed Marni Task’s Jivasara 200-hour teacher training program in May of 2012. She subsequently completed Level I Baptiste Yoga Training in 2018.
Jen’s classes are inspired, carefully crafted and vigorous. She loves finding a universal theme for her classes each week to allow for a point of focus during asana practice. With each theme she finds poignant readings and thoughtful music to reinforce the intention. Her style of sequencing moves you through familiar postures in a unique way to challenge the body and the mind. Jen’s classes inspire awareness, engage the body, and allow space for release.
AJ Short
Aaron Short completed Cleveland Yoga’s Accelerated 200-Hour Summer Immersion Teacher Training program in 2019 with Tami Schneider and Ylonda Rosenthal-Greene. His studies continued with Baron Baptiste at both his Baptiste Level 1 and Baptiste Foundation Unstoppable programs.
AJ serves as a strength and conditioning Coach for St. Ignatius High School, training all athletes. He is a Registered Strength and Conditioning Coach with the National Strength and Conditioning Association, holding further certifications through USA Weightlifting and Precision Nutrition.
He is grateful for all of the teachers in his life, his family, and the entire CY community.
Melissa Spigutz
Melissa Spigutz first tried yoga as a supplemental fitness routine in 2001. In time and with the help of the inspiring teachers at Cleveland Yoga, her practice transformed from a workout into a way of life. Baptiste yoga helped her find inner peace and possibility, but also allowed her to feel strong and challenged. She completed her 200-hour teacher training with Tami Schneider at Cleveland Yoga in 2013. The community has inspired and supported her in many ways, elevating her yoga practice on and off the mat. When she isn’t teaching yoga or science, Melissa can be found enjoying the outdoors with her family.
Amy Stover
Amy Stover has been an athlete her whole life. She was a competitive figure skater growing up, played tennis in college, and competed in triathlons and marathons until she had children. She took her first yoga class in 2010 with Tami Schneider and never looked back. At first, it was the sweat the kept her coming back to her mat. Once she learned to use her breath with movement, understood the sequencing of the postures and the ability to control how she reacted on her mat, her practice and life changed immensely. Amy completed Cleveland Yoga’s 200 hour and 300 hour trainings with Tami Schneider and Baptiste Level 1.
Izabele Wade
Izabele started practicing yoga in 2014 while attending John Carroll University for her undergraduate degrees in Math and Classical languages. She fell in love with the physicalness and beauty of the practice and got certified to teach yoga through Cleveland Yoga in 2016. She recently completed Cleveland Yoga’s 300 Hour Advanced Teacher Training to become a 500 Hour CYT. Izabele’s non-yoga hobbies include Lithuanian folk dancing, traveling, and eating delicious and fun foods. Her favorite foods include but are not limited to sushi, donuts, and bubble tea.
Ted Lardner
Ted Lardner (E-RYT, Certified Baptiste Power Vinyasa Yoga Instructor) began teaching in 2007. Married and father of two, when he isn’t teaching yoga, Ted likes to write, garden, travel or walk in area metro parks. Ted’s classes are grounded, methodical, earthy and playful. They consist of simple sequences of poses targeted to major muscle groups and range of motion to cultivate strength and agility. Calmness of body and mind result from diligent focus on breath at the foundation. From beginners to advanced, regardless of your skill level with yoga, in Ted’s classes you will cultivate the practices of centering, mindfulness, flow, grace and power.
Marissa Nelson
With a profound passion for yoga and a deep commitment to personal growth and well-being, Marissa specializes in the transformative Journey into Power sequence. This dynamic and empowering practice is designed to elevate both the body and mind, helping students unlock their fullest potential.
Drawing on Marissa’s experience through her own practice and her 200-hour YTT completed at Cleveland Yoga with Tami Schneider, each class offers a unique opportunity to explore the depths of your practice, build strength, and cultivate inner peace. Whether you are a seasoned practitioner or new to yoga, Marissa’s classes provide a welcoming and supportive environment for all levels.
Nora Willauer
Erica Young
Erica Young’s passion for yoga stems from its ability to teach presence, resilience, and self-compassion—qualities she believes are essential for living an optimal life. She loves how the practice of aligning the body with the breath enhances daily life beyond the mat, fostering mindfulness and clarity in a world that is both chaotic and beautifully complex.
Yoga, for Erica, serves as a reminder of the duality in all things—the light and the dark, strength and softness, the bitter and the sweet. She believes that welcoming these aspects without judgment is key to achieving balance. In her classes, Erica brings enthusiasm and support, welcoming variations and celebrating yogis of all types and levels.
When Erica is not practicing or teaching yoga, she can be found designing jewelry, spending time with her pets, and exploring nature and new places. Yoga has profoundly changed her life, and she is grateful to have it as a constant source of strength and peace. Erica is excited to share both the mental and physical techniques of yoga, helping others have fun, calm their minds, strengthen their bodies, and invigorate their spirits.
Courtney Roth
Courtney Roth is thrilled to be part of the YogaVita team. A 200 RYT certified instructor since 2022, she trained at Cleveland Yoga and has spent over a decade learning from some of the best yoga studios in the area.
Courtney’s yoga journey began years ago when she attended a class with her cousin. After just one session, she was hooked and knew she had to learn more. Yoga quickly became an essential part of her daily routine, helping her stay centered, focused, and present.
In her classes, students can expect an energetic, challenging, and fun experience. Courtney aims to help people access their own power, vitality, and new possibilities while moving with their breath. She believes yoga should create a sense of calm and peace while also making you feel powerful and fearless.
A Cleveland native, Courtney loves college sports and enjoys spending a great day in the sunshine.
Samantha Driver
Sam was inspired to become a yoga instructor after spending many years building a dedicated personal practice. Yoga has had a very positive impact on Sam’s life, and she hopes to help others experience the positive impacts of yoga as well. Her goal as an instructor is to help people feel empowered and to help them create moments of mental calm and clarity through breath and movement.
Sam completed her 200 hour YTT with Ylonda Rosenthal-Greene in the Awake to My Soul program. When she is not practicing yoga, Sam loves to learn about history, visit botanical gardens, and hang out with her cats (or any cats, really!).
