RICHMOND, Va. – Project Yoga Richmond (PYR), located in Richmond’s West End, is innovating ways for yogis and non-yogis to give back to the community all while engaging in the practice they love.

“[Project Yoga Richmond’s] mission is to make yoga affordable and accessible to the greater Richmond area,” Project Outreach Manager Nadia Gooray said.

The program began in 2010 with “pay what you can” studio classes. According to Gooray, PYR is a 501(c)(3) non-profit, meaning it is approved by the Internal Revenue Service to be tax-exempt.

The “pay what you can” structure allows students to donate what they have in exchange for yoga sessions. PYR suggests $10 per visit to their studio–a vast price difference to the traditional for-profit studio.

PYR accepts their donations in a glass jar at the registration desk. Even if someone is unable to give, they will not be turned away.

"The Jar" located in the front office of PYR. Students "pay what they can" to assist PYR's outreach programs in exchange for yoga sessions. Photo © Sidney Randolph for The Odyssey at VCU.

“We want our classes to be affordable to meet the needs of every single person,” Gooray said.

The donations are redistributed to PYR’s various outreach programs. PYR partners with community agencies, organizations, and schools to “bring yoga to underserved communities,” Gooray said.

A 2012 survey developed by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) via their National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) via their National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) found that approximately 21 million adults and 1.7 million children practice yoga. This is nearly double the amount found in 2002.

The survey attributed yoga’s increased popularity to evidence of its healing properties and mind-body connections to “manage pain and reduce stress.”

PYR’s outreach covers children/youth, seniors, those in economically disadvantaged communities, adults with special needs, those recovering from addictions, and juvenile delinquents.

Gooray moved to Richmond in 2014 from Rochester, New York, where she had been teaching yoga for eight years. When Gooray arrived, she strived to find a yoga studio with the same strong sense of community as her previous studio.

Project Outreach Manager Nadia Gooray has been with PYR since 2014. Photo © Sidney Randolph for The Odyssey at VCU.

Randomly, her husband met a PYR co-founder at a coffee shop, and immediately forwarded the information to Gooray.

The day she found PYR, there also happened to be a job posting.

“It’s always really cool to hear how people get involved,” she said. “I [don’t know] how many people have [told me] they were new to Richmond like me.”

PYR has over 30 yoga instructors trained in countless yoga styles from general yoga practices to styles that target certain areas of mind and body. Instructors–or “ambassadors”–also work closely with a variety of PYR’s aforementioned outreach programs.

PYR places yoga instructors who are specially trained to teach specific populations, since the needs of the student are different in each respective class, said Gooray.

Anna Meshejian is a yoga ambassador at PYR who has instructed at a number of PYR’s outreach programs since she began teaching in 2012. Most recently, Meshejian is working alongside students at Brook Road Academy in suburban Richmond, teaching students with learning disabilities.

“For me, it’s that ‘feel good’ feeling,” Meshejian said. “I can’t believe I get paid to do this!”

Meshejian substituting PYR's "Breathe. Bend. Be." class on Thursday, March 31. The class focuses on "movement and meditative aspects of the breath" (PYR's website, 2016). Photo © Sidney Randolph for The Odyssey at VCU.

Alexandra Anderson, a PYR ambassador and local Richmond health and wellness blogger who has been yoga-certified since 2009, said she is involved with PYR because of its diversity and “warm and welcoming community.”

“When you walk in the door, whether it's your first class or your hundredth, you are put at ease by the kindness of the volunteers and instructors,” Anderson said. “You can come completely as you are.”

PYR also has volunteer opportunities for anyone, whether they are yogis or not, to get involved with the program’s outreach.

Natalie Gianninoto, PYR’s studio manager, began her journey with the project as a volunteer after meeting two co-founders a few years after her move to Richmond in 2007. Later she essentially began “interning” with co-founder Dana Walters, providing marketing assistance to jumpstart PYR.

Gianninoto works diligently to keep studio operations running as well as increasing PYR's outreach through numerous communication channels. Photo © Sidney Randolph for The Odyssey at VCU.

Gianninoto was promoted to part-time studio manager on a volunteer-basis; about two years later, it morphed into a paid position. She now manages the studio as well as PYR’s communications outreach.

“It’s a story of connection, really,” Gianninoto said. “That’s essentially what the organization is [truly] about.”

According to Gooray, the founders of PYR chose to bring yoga into the community because they believe yoga is a “powerful healing modality.”

“Together we can do more” is PYR’s motto. Gooray said the healing modality from yoga allows students to feel “empowered” and “connect with their bodies and minds.” In turn, the connection allows students to also connect with others in the community.

PYR connects to its student through a variety of outlets. Gianninoto, who manages the communication channels, said PYR works through word of mouth, social media, the PYR website, and through their numerous outreach program partners.

Since the program’s inception in 2010, PYR has been successful in using the donation-based structure to better the community as a whole. PYR holds events such “Root and Renew” alongside local Richmond churches where participants assist the church with their community garden. In return, the event holds a yoga session taught by a PYR ambassador.

As a “grassroots organization,” said Gooray, PYR prides itself on its use of personal connection to bring the community of Richmond together through the practice of yoga. PYR also attends health and resource fairs to promote their work.

The program offers classes seven days a week with a diverse platform of styles. Gooray said PYR “teaches to the first time student.”

“We want anyone who is interested in trying yoga for the first time,” Gooray said. “We want to be accessible.”

More information about class schedules and outreach programs sponsored by Project Yoga Richmond may be found on their website. PYR is also on Richmond’s Meetup page, Instagram, and Facebook.