Dayna Brockman
Kodiak, AK USA
“My first class with Father Joe was in 1997. Now, over 20 years later, I continue to be inspired by his work. I am so grateful for this training which happened synchronistically with my graduate work in Spiritual and Depth Psychology. Though challenging at times, I enjoyed the rigorousness of the course.
As teachers in training of a very specific field we did in depth studies of yoga philosophy, asanas, addictions, the 12 steps, and how they interrelate to each other. I felt a sense of camaraderie with my classmates and am grateful for each and every one of them as well as Leigh, who did a wonderful job as instructor.
We had exceptional guest speakers and experiential assignments. The uniqueness of this training is evident through Father Joe’s long-standing committed work, his distinct yoga protocols, and the integration of his book, The Spiritual Paradox of Addiction.
I am honored to be certified as a KFIY instructor. By God’s grace this endeavor will dovetail well with my future work as a Psychotherapist.”
Angela Doroff
Juneau, AK USA
“The Kripa Foundation yoga teacher training challenged me to experience healing in yoga. Fr. Joe seamlessly blends yoga asana, philosophy, and the 12 Step program to support healing for all and especially people in addiction programs.
From this foundation, Leigh Milne and her team guided and exposed us to resources as we found our own, authentic, way forward. This program helped me hone my teaching skills, provided me with the courage to share more philosophy and spirit in my classes, and provided practical experience in learning to work with others to support healing. Sharing our class case studies showcased the many ways healing manifests.
This training provided me with a community of teachers and friends to support this work after graduation.”
Ron Mcdougall
Courtenay, BC Canada
“Having served as an alcohol/drug program facilitator and yoga teacher at a First Nation’s Healing Centre, I understand how invaluable Yoga as a wellness practice is for the newly recovering addict.
When the KFIY Teacher Training course was offered I never hesitated to sign on and will remain ever grateful to Father Joe Pereira, Leigh Anne Milne and our student group. What was so remarkable was the way Fr. Joe has interwoven the 12 steps of AA alongside the Yamas and Niyamas into the asana practice.
Not only does KFIY protocol address the effect on the brain and central nervous system, it helps the addict to embody the 12 steps in a powerful new way.”
“For any yoga teacher working with addiction, trauma and related disorders I highly recommend this special Teacher training.”
Tricia Miller
Regina, SK Canada
Tricia has been doing yoga since the late 90s and started Iyengar yoga in 2004 after meeting Fr Joe. She has continued to study with him all these years and also completed her Iyengar teacher certification in 2015.
Growing up with alcoholism and addiction all around her, she feels blessed to have found Fr Joe and Kripa Foundation Iyengar Yoga as a guiding and steady path to avoid the same fate in addiction many in her family have chosen.
Through Kripa Foundation and Al-Anon, she has learned to understand addiction and the behaviours that go with it. As well as being a yoga teacher, she has been practicing as a Doctor of Acupuncture, licensed in Alberta, since 2011. She is a mom to one son and keeps busy with all his sporting events.
Staying with her farm roots, she lives in the countryside and works out of Regina, Saskatchewan.
Bethany Perry
Rochester Hills, MI USA
“I will be forever grateful to Leigh and Father Joe for this training. When I knew of this training, there was never a question in my mind ‘if’ I would participate. Having studied with Father Joe and Leigh being my teacher, I knew that it would be a training of a lifetime, and it did not disappoint.
The blend of the masculine and feminine in the practice, addressing the asanas, Yamas and Niyamas through the lens of the 12 steps, along with the speakers the program is profound and life changing.
The community that was created through the guidance of Leigh will forever be held dear by all of us. The benefits that each teacher can carry to those suffering with addiction or trauma will be life giving!”
Shawn Selk
Menomonee Falls, WI USA
“Personally graced to have been exclusively practicing in the traditions of Kripa Foundation Iyengar Yoga directly with Fr. Joe and his senior teachers for nearly 20 years, I was further blessed to be admitted into the inaugural KFIY teacher training program. Despite entering the training with a foundational understanding of the practice, the philosophy and having visited Fr. Joe’s Kripa Centers abroad, the KFIY curriculum, as disseminated by Leigh, vastly deepened my understanding. Leigh’s deep dives into the 12-step program, the yamas and niyamas, and the yoga sutras guided me toward the very essence of why it is we do what we do.
Attending the AA meetings as well as participating in the reflective listening workshop were pivotal steps in furthering my understanding and preparing me to do the work.
I am eternally grateful to Fr. Joe, Leigh, and the graduates of the inaugural KFIY training program, whose grace, wisdom and perspectives have forever changed me for the better.”
Richard M Weinapple
Menlo Park, CA USA
“I’ve been studying in the lineage of BKS Iyengar for 35 years and have experienced the gifts Guruji handed down to us through his life of dedicated practice and service.
Recently the path of practice has led me in new directions. As if by divine guidance, I encountered the KFIY Teacher Training program (facilitated by Leigh Milne). Through this program I’ve been fortunate to study with Fr Joe Pereira (direct disciple of BKS Iyengar and Mother Theresa).
This has sparked new clarity and inspiration regarding the indwelling spirit that we contact through our practice. This spirit resides at the core of human experience, and is our birthright. It is the source of the healing power (Fr Joe refers to it as “remembered wellness”) that is the essential nature of each cell of our bodies.
On this path, we are granted access to powerful tools to help us heal otherwise intractable addictive behaviors in ourselves, our communities, and in the world.”
