The Yoga Foundation ran our very first yoga retreat for at-risk teenage girls. The Yoga Foundation also facilitated an online national forum for Yoga Australia in April. The forum was a 360 degree look at how and why we bring yoga to at-risk youth and how accessing yoga supports young people who have experienced abuse, homelessness and mental health challenges.
Read MoreWe received wonderful feedback from the first of two programs we are running for women affected by domestic violence.
In March we also celebrated International Women’s Day with a special yoga event with the Sage Foundation and NSW Aboriginal Woman of The Year, the poet Kirli Saunders, graciously gave us a special recording to share with our supporters. Plus The Yoga Foundation started new yoga programs with Flourish Australia and Mission Australia in March 2021.
Read MoreWe have hit the ground running and are excited about all the yoga programs planned for 2021. We are delivering 10 new programs in the first quarter of 2021, supporting new groups of vulnerable people in Sydney.
Read our latest blog to learn about our ten new programs and how you can get involved.
Read MoreIt may be near the end of 2020, but we are not slowing down, rather, we started a brand-new program for men this month.
Our new program is our first men’s-only program, created with and for men with serious mental health challenges.
Matthew was a regular yoga participant at our long-running program at Flourish Australia’s Buckingham House that ran from 2014 through until June 2019. He contacted us in October 2020 to request a yoga program again. When Jessica Hobson, The Yoga Foundation’s General Manager, spoke to Matthew’s support worker who said that he told her, “yoga had literally saved his life” she knew we had to get a men’s-only yoga program up and running.
Matthew has PTSD, depression, and anxiety. He wrote to The Yoga Foundation saying:
“...being without regular yoga classes for more than a year now, has made it very clear to me that yoga is so beneficial to my mental and physical health that ideally, I need to make a lifetime commitment to the practice of yoga. For [The Yoga Foundation is] really "changing lives one breath at a time”."
Matthew has been supporting the development of the new men’s mental health yoga program and we were excited to kick off the program in early December with Louise Eddy teaching. Lou taught the original yoga class at Flourish Australia’s Buckingham House, making a significant difference to the people who attended.
Our new men’s-only mental health yoga program is funded by two TYF supporters. The yoga program will run for at least 16 weeks, with the intention to continue if more funding support is received. If you are interested in funding this program please contact Jessica or donate through our website.
We are also seeking to partner with a researcher to explore the benefits of the new program more deeply.
In December 2020, we enjoyed a magical photoshoot by Mark Bond at one of our yoga sessions with teens at Youth Off The Streets. We have supported the Youth Off The Streets organisation with yoga classes since 2017. A huge thanks to photographer Mark Bond for donating his time and talent!
We have released our 2019-20 Annual Report. Read more about our work and impact in the report.
Wishing all our teachers, clients and funding supports a very happy and healthy festive season. Thank you for your support and encouragement in 2020.
As a non-profit society, The Yoga Foundation relies on donations. Every donation to The Yoga Foundation makes a difference in the lives of women fleeing domestic violence, at risk youth and men struggling with mental health, not to mention Aboriginal women and children.
If you are interested in supporting The Yoga Foundation read about the various yoga programs you can support or submit a one-off donation through our website. Every dollar helps!
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Most photos by Mark Bond Photography
We acknowledge the Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples of this nation and the Traditional Custodians of the lands on which we conduct our business. We pay our respects to ancestors and Elders, past and present.
