History and Vision

The Mission Statement for the North County Center for Yoga and Health reads:

"The Yoga Loft will provide a safe and accepting environment that will offer participants an opportunity to choose educational, therapeutic and personal growth programs. The opportunity to make self-directed changes will have the common goal to help all participants develop insights and the tools to create peace of mind, personal clarity, love, self-acceptance and self-empowerment in their lives."

The history of the Yoga Loft begins with several simultaneous situations in St. Lawrence County. Initially, Chuck Bradt and Betsy Bommer began offering on-going Yoga classes in the Presbyterian Church, Canton, including weekends at Star Lake Campus (1997-98). Simultaneously, through funding and administration from the Hepburn Medical Center, the North Star Healing Arts Center was in the process of creating a center in Canton. Chuck Bradt and Betsy Bommer were offered positions as the yoga staff and Jan Hutslar was offered a position doing programming and education. When the Healing Arts Center administrator resigned, the project was put on hold. Meanwhile Chuck Bradt had renovated the upstairs level of a small barn on his property at 89 Riverside Drive, Canton. His first class at the new location began on Monday, October 5, 1999.

In the spring of 2000, Jan Hutslar offered to create a flyer that would include not only yoga, but other beneficial disciplines as well. The first flyer included Yoga, Meditation, Chi Kung, Stress Transformation, Introduction to the Shamanic Journey, A Day for Breathing, Journal to the Self, Talking with Animals, Reiki I, and Introduction to Massage.

Chuck Bradt also renovated a former chicken coop as a small meditation room (which is also used as part of the library). Meanwhile, Pat Glover was becoming aware that the number of alternative healers in the community was increasing and she thought it would be useful to have a central community resource where people could find information about these teachers and practitioners. Both Jan and Pat attended the workshop at Omega entitled, "How to Develop a Holistic Healing Center." Pat offered to create a data base of local teachers, practitioners and interested community members. In the spring of 2001, Pat Glover moved into the Yoga Loft apartment and became the Resident Administrator.

Since that time a Board of Directors has been appointed to oversee the operation of the Yoga Loft. The organization has become incorporated as the "North Country Center for Yoga and Health" and it has obtained its 501c (tax-exempt nonprofit) status. It has conducted several successful fundraising letter campaigns, and has advertised its services on its web site (www.yoga-loft.org) and at local health fairs. The Yoga Loft itself has been "winterized" for year-round classes and remodeled to include a kitchen with book shelves for its growing library. In 2004, the building was acquired by new owners: Allison and Michael Koch. (Allison operates the "Tree of Life Midwifery" which is also on the property.)

On July 1, 2007 the Yoga Loft moved to its most recent premises at 107 ½ Main Street above the Blackbird Café which is owned by Ken and Katrina Hebb. The entire building was beautifully renovated by the late David Garner, Esq. and adapted for Yoga Loft use by the owners and many hard-working volunteers from the Yoga Loft. The large classroom has windows overlooking the park. This new location provides more visibility and convenient access which enables the Yoga Loft to offer more classes during daytime hours. The kitchen has been fully equipped for cooking classes. Participants appreciate the air-conditioning in the summer months.

Our basic on-going vision is to become a place not only where community residents can take classes, but also to become a resource center where anyone can learn more about the various alternative healing options available in the North Country. Specifically, we envision the Yoga Loft as a place where there is:

• space for a variety of classes
• an office for the practitioners to use for themselves, and where they can meet people and help them choose which healing method would work best for them
• a library of resources, including books and tapes, and a print and web-based directory of all the local alternative healing practitioners with a description of their disciplines as well as their contact information
• an opportunity, facilitated by an interactive organizational structure, for the various alternative healers to meet one another, find support and exchange information.

The North Country Center for Yoga and Health continues to explore any ideas that help us better serve the well-being and health needs of our community.