Vahini Abbruzzese
Vahini, is a minister at Ananda Washington, yoga and meditation teacher E-RYT 500, YACEP. She was born and raised in Italy. Since 2004, she has been immersed in the practice of yoga and meditation within the Kriya Yoga Tradition of Paramhansa Yogananda, under the guidance of Swami Kriyananda. In 2008, she moved to Ananda (Assisi) and has since lived in several of its communities. Vahini is a mother and a wife and her mission is to merge being a household and find spiritual fulfillment through meditation and service. Over the past 15 years, she has dedicated herself to teaching yoga and meditation through classes, workshops, and yoga teacher training, with a special focus on healing techniques accumulating over 3,000 hours of teaching experience. Currently, she facilitates the first three months of discipleship and Kriya Yoga preparation, teaching foundational techniques that prepare students for Kriya Yoga.
Ethan Barker
Ethan, a dedicated web developer at Ananda, exudes patience and warmth in all his endeavors. Beyond his coding skills, he’s a passionate violinist, contributing to numerous musical events within the Ananda community. Currently serving as a musician during the Festival of Light at Sunday Service, and a valued member of the kriya preparation teaching team, Ethan has been an integral part of Ananda for many years.
Nancy Callan
Nancy Callan is a Meditation and Yoga Teacher, E-RYT 200, YACEP. She discovered hatha yoga through pre-natal yoga classes in 2002. Later, after experiencing the joy and benefits of Ananda Yoga, she went on to complete her teacher training through the Ananda Institute of Living Yoga, and has been teaching at Ananda Bothell since 2014. She is inspired to help others use the practice of asana (yoga poses) to support not only physical health and wellness, but also an awareness of the connection between the body and the breath to inner qualities such as peace, calmness and joy.
Nancy also supports the Yoga Teacher Training Program, where she shares the joy of learning about the science of movement.
In addition, she serves as part of the Blue Lotus Temple office staff doing the bookkeeping and assisting with Ananda Bothell’s giving programs.
Tannis Chow
Tannys is one of our radiant Ananda accountant.
Debra Clark
Debra, E-RYT 200 and RYT 500, has been practicing yoga for 30+ years. She’s taught Ananda yoga and meditation for more than 10 years. She’s a lead teacher in the Ananda Yoga Teacher Training program. Debra is a certified health & wellness coach who uses holistic tools including aromatherapy, yoga, meditation, and ayurveda to help clients set, achieve, and exceed their personal and career goals. Debra earned E-RYT 200 and RYT-500 certifications from Yoga Alliance with over 1,000 hours of teaching.
Michelle David
Michelle, E-RYT 200 C-IAYT, is an Ananda-certified yoga and meditation teacher. She began teaching yoga in 2008 and served as Assistant Director of the Ananda Yoga Teacher Training for several years. She is also a certified yoga therapist. Read more
Patricia De Anguera
I found Ananda about 1991 but didn’t get very involved until both my kids graduated from high school in 1995 and 1998. I was transitioning out of my Medical Tech job and considering something in finance, for some strange reason, when Hriman and Padma asked me to do some bookkeeping for them. It seemed to be perfect for me to work part time in a spiritual setting. I was the bookkeeper from 2005 until I “retired” in 2019. In 2009 I discovered photography and Wow that is fun. I am always looking for Divine Mother’s Light wherever I am, taking photos of all kinds of things. I was also the Satsangha Group’s liasan for a few years in that period. Spending that time around so many strong devotees was wonderful. I immediately missed it. So now I volunteer at East West and also at the Ananda Temple in various ways. You will mostly see me at the reception desk on Sundays these days or out and about taking photos.
Lorie Gail
Lorie had been practicing yoga for many years on her own until she found her true “Yoga Home” at the Ananda Lynnwood Community in the late 90s. She became a graduate of the 200 level Ananda Yoga Teacher training in 2011. She has since continued on with her studies becoming certified as a specialist in each of the following fields – restorative, yoga nidra, meditation, adaptive yoga teacher, yoga for cancer and a yoga therapy. One her greatest joys is helping others find the peace and joy she feels by creating a welcoming environment where everyone feels acknowledged, supported, with a sense of well-being and awareness of the inner radiance that exists within all of us.
Rick Johnston
Rick is a Lightbearer at Ananda Washington. He is the office manager, and coordinates temple activities.
Heidi MacBeth
Heidi has been with Ananda for almost 20 years. She helps in the office mostly with class registrations, graphics, and foreign print rights. Heidi is a certified Ananda yoga and meditation teacher.
Nayaswami Hriman McGilloway
Hriman and his wife Padma are the Spiritual Directors of Ananda Washington, Kriyacharia, Lightbearer and teacher of Ananda.
Nayaswami Padma McGilloway
Nayaswami Padma, is the co-spiritual director of Ananda Washington. She is also a Kriyacharya, Lightbearer and teacher of Ananda.
Christina Riegel
Christina E-RYT 200, RYT 500, YACEP discovered yoga a couple of years after moving to Seattle in 1998. After almost 16 years of trying different yoga styles, and always feeling like something was missing, she finally found her yogic home at Ananda. The yoga community at Ananda a living example of what yoga is all about. Christina finds inspiration through Ananda Yoga’s firm roots in the ancient art and science of yoga. Now a certified Ananda Yoga teacher, Christina is honored to guide students to experience for themselves the amazing benefits of yoga for the body, mind, and spirit.
In addition to teaching yoga, Christina is a member of the temple staff, taking charge of many departments.
Nayaswami Jamuna Snitkin
Nayaswami Jamuna has been part of Ananda since 1972. She has been an art student, a social worker, a librarian, a manager of the first East West Bookshop, a part of the Ananda Seattle church staff, a teacher and most importantly, a devotee of Paramhansa Yogananda and student of Swami Kriyananda.
Lynne Steele
E-RYT 500, YACEP, Co-Director of Ananda Yoga Teacher Training. Lynne’s energetic, enthusiastic and caring approach helps beginning and experienced yoga students find their own personal expressions of joy, harmony and balance in body, mind and spirit. She has taught Ananda Yoga for more than 10 years, is co-director of the Ananda Yoga Teacher Training program, and is a certified Ananda meditation teacher.
Nivritti Steenstra
Ananda Lightbearer Nivritti Steenstra co-founded the Ananda Community and East West Bookshop.
Sita Tocco
E-RYT 200, RYT-500, YACEP. Sita is a core member of the temple staff, and is an Ananda Yoga and Meditation teacher.
Murali Venkatrao Ph.D.
PhD, E-RYT 500, YACEP. Murali has been teaching yoga since 2002, and is an active researcher studying Yoga’s impact on diabetes, metabolic syndrome, obesity, and other metabolic disorders. He is currently the Director of yoga teacher programs at the Ananda Institute of Living Yoga in Bothell, WA, and a Professor of Yogic Physiology at Vivekananda Yoga University in Norwalk, CA.
Murali also serves as a Minister at Ananda Washington where he teaches various courses on Vedanta, Hatha Yoga, Yoga philosophy, yoga therapy, beginner and advanced teacher trainings, and more.
Murali earned his PhD in Yoga from S-VYASA Swami Vivekananda Yoga Anusandhana Samsthana University in Bangalore, India where his research focused on diabetes risk reduction and glycemic control through yoga techniques.
Bhaktan Labor
I am a new meditation teacher. It has been a year since I took meditation teacher training. I started teaching in January and it has been such a Joy. Being able to share the Joy of my own practice that I started in 2009 at Ananda. I practiced Buddhism for almost 40 year before that . After coming to Ananda I found such a joyful devotion that I didn’t even know that I was missing. I really enjoy sharing the discovery of meditation and how to make it Joyful and transformative. Involving all of the senses to connect with my highest , brightest expression is something i work on for myself and I incorporate it into my classes.
Robyn Mattis
Amy Hinchcliffe
Amy is a certified meditation teacher and a long time meditator and member of Ananda. She serves the Sangha through music as part of the Kirtans and Sunday service musician team. She leads meditations regularly and co- leads meditation retreats several times a year.
Outside of the Sangha, Amy is an Acupuncturist, mother, and artist. She found Ananda in 2007 and was thrilled to find a strong meditation community as well as the spiritual teachings of Paramhansa Yogananda that included the understanding that everything is energy and our approach to health and happiness must include this knowledge. She found the techniques of Kriya yoga to be particularly powerful and never turned back.
Tom Kunza
Tom is a new meditation teacher and has been a member of Ananda since 1998. He has been meditating for many years and found meditation to be a life transforming experience which can lift one’s mind to a state of peace and joy within. He would like to share some techniques as taught at Ananda to help others establish their own meditation practice.