Monroe yoga studio offers free community class
MONROE — Usually, when people gather on the Monroe green, it’s for a vigil or to commemorate some sort of tragedy, said Elaina Weiser, owner of Blue Lotus Yoga.
Wouldn’t it be great, she thought, if the town’s residents could get together for something positive — possibly even enlightening?
“I wanted people to come together to cultivate peace and joy,” Weiser, 48, of Monroe.
That’s why she organized the inaugural Blue Lotus Peace Project Free Community Yoga Class, which will take place from 9 to 10 a.m. on June 22 on the Monroe green at Route 111. The yoga class will be for all ages and all abilities, with food trucks providing refreshments afterward.
Weiser has taught yoga in Monroe and neighboring towns since 2006, and has owned Blue Lotus, at 731 Main St., Suite 115, in Monroe for roughly two years. She said she got the idea for a community yoga class after participating in a class that had more than 50 people in it.
“The energy of taking a class that size was palpable, and much different than what you might find in a smaller class,” Weiser said.
She decided to have the community event on the large town green — not the one owned by the town of Monroe, but the one shared by Monroe Congregational Church and St. Peter’s Episcopal Church. Weiser said she asked officials at both churches for permission and they were enthusiastic about the project.
In addition to bringing the community together to create a feeling of peace and well-being, Weiser also hopes the event will help get more people interested in yoga by providing it in a low-pressure atmosphere.
“Maybe people who are intimidated by yoga won’t be intimidated by it in this environment,” she said.