Teachers
Geraldine Mansori
Geraldine Mansori did her initial teaching diploma with Yoga Therapy Ireland (YTI). She then went on to do her Post Grad Diploma.
Her interests are vast. She studied with the great American Paul Grilley, a chakra and yin specialist, and has developed a workshop from that, which she regularly presents.
Yoga for kids and teens became an interest while she was training, and her kids, then very young, showed a keen interest. Geraldine is one of the founder members of YTI’S Stretch Yourself programme, a three day intensive for yoga teachers thinking of teaching in schools through the SPHE curriculum. She is currently tutoring on the fourth course.
Among other great teachers, she has worked with Katy Appleton, Tara Fraser, Danielle Arin and Ruth White. She also studied with Calm Kids in UK.
Geraldine’s philosophy is that we should explore ourselves through yoga, not take ourselves too seriously, challenge ourselves but always know how far to go. Her classes are popular with young and old and she has lots of experience teaching mixed ability classes. So no matter what your level, she can bring out the best from your body, leaving you feeling physically stronger and mentally calmer with a great sense of wellbeing.
To contact Geraldine, phone 086-129 6986.
Helen Bourke
Helen Bourke-Barnwell teaches prenatal yoga at Sunrise. She has a masters degree in philosophy and qualified as a massage therapist in 1995. She began practicing yoga in 2002 after the birth of her second child but only realised the strength and importance of the breath and the fundamental mechanics of our bodies during her third pregnancy (which culminated in an unexpected and thrilling homebirth!)
She started practicing Ashtanga yoga in 2005 and completed her yoga teacher training with Veronica Larsson and Debbie Corradino. She has studied children’s yoga with Amanda Reid under the Radiant Child Yoga Programme (Level 2).
She passionately believes that women can do so much with their own bodies through yoga to make pregnancy and birth the wonderful experience it was always meant to be. She completed her perinatal training with Lisa Wilkinson of the Elbow Room, an intensive and inspiring initiative to re-teach women to trust in birth.
Helen can be contacted on 087 - 977 1864.
Jan Duffy
Jan Duffy believes that yoga should be fun and lighthearted – a place to find peace and balance. Her philosophy comes from personal practice and from studying with great teachers. She has studied internationally with renowned yogis including Tias Little (yoga meditation), Gary Kraftsow (Viniyoga therapy), Paul Grilley (anatomy intensive), Paulie Zink and Sarah Powers (Yin yoga), and Max Strom (teacher training).
Jan received her initial and post-graduate training from Yoga Therapy Ireland and has also trained in India. From 2006 to 2008 she lived in New York, and practiced regularly at centres including Kripalu and OM Yoga. She is a qualified and experienced prenatal teacher who hashelped hundreds of Irish women use yoga in pregnancy and childbirth. She regularly leads active birth workshops for pregnant women and their partners. She recently studied with Uma Dinsmore-Tuli in Londonto teach post-natal mom and baby yoga, and is currently training to become a doula.
Jan first practiced yoga with her mom when she was six years old, after the birth of her twin siblings. She relied on yoga to recoverfully from neck surgery in 2000, and to give birth to both of her baby daughters at home in 2007 and 2009.
Jan's style focuses on opening, releasing and relaxing, while building strength and remaining comfortable. She encourages her students to see how yoga can support us and help us cope with daily physical andemotional challenges, and bring a fresh and balanced perspective to our lives.
To contact Jan, phone 086 - 839 5732.
Lisa Phillips
Lisa Phillips qualified as a teacher through YogaWorks in New York and is a Registered Yoga Teacher with the Yoga Alliance in the United States. Lisa has been practicing yoga for almost 15 years and has studied with many great teachers throughout S.E. Asia, Australia and the United States.
Lisa is a dancer and choreographer and holds a First Class Masters Degree in Contemporary Dance Performance. From early on, yoga was a fundamental part of her dance training. Initially, the physical benefits of strengthening and stability were at the focus of her practice, at times helping to recover from injury. In recent years her continuing practice has infiltrated everyday life and yoga has been a great support both on and off the mat.
Lisa believes that practicing with a mindfulness of the breath helps to create freedom and flexibility in the body. Lisa is passionate about teaching with clarity and compassion and believes that yoga is accessible to everyone. Always inspired by movement, her yoga classes aim to encourage serenity, space and stability in the body and mind.
To contact Lisa, phone 086 8536411
Michele Van Valey
Michele Van Valey teaches hatha yoga, prenatal yoga, pilates and mother and baby classes at Sunrise.
Her level 1 hatha classes are designed to help you connect with the breath through a dynamic series of flowing yoga postures. You will learn alignment techniques and modifications to prevent injury and create space within the postures. You will stretch and strengthen while detoxifying and experience a relaxed state of awareness.
Michele qualified as a pilates teacher through Progressive Pilates Academy in North Dublin. Her pilates classes focus on building core stability. She specialises in making pilates accessible to all bodies and her level 1 classes are suitable for everyone including those who are looking for relief from back pain.
Michele first qualified as a Yoga teacher at Atmanada in New York in 2001. Inspired by her Iyengar teacher, Ayurvedic Practitioner Beth Beigler, Michele continued her studies at the Rocky Mountain Institute of Yoga and Ayurveda to become a Yoga Therapist. While in Boulder she began practicing Ashtanga with Richard Freeman and Troy Lucero at the Yoga Workshop. After an intensive Yoga Lifestyle retreat at Swami Satyananda’s ashram in Bihar, India, Michele returned to New York to teach. Influenced by each of these traditions, her classes can range from gentle and therapeutic to powerful and energetic, each with meditation and relaxation elements and tailored to meet the needs of the individuals in attendance.
Since moving to Ireland, Michele has completed YTTC’s perinatal yoga training and also spent a month practicing with Sri K. Pattabhi Jois at the Ashtanga Yoga Research Institute in Mysore, India.
A qualified Holistic Health Consultant, she is also a massage therapist and practices therapeutic, pre/postnatal and infant massage.
Michele returned to Sunrise in July 2010, having given birth to Senan in December 2009.
To contact Michele, phone 087 - 120 7695.
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