In this Tri-Cities yoga class, there is room for everyone at ‘heart center’

Jeff Morris walked into the studio buzzing with energy and excitement. It was palpable.

“Yes! Yeah!” he exclaimed when asked if he was ready to start yoga.

He picked out a mat, one of several lined up in front of a wall painted with a large, colorful mandala.

For about an hour, he and his fellow yogis worked through a series of poses with help from instructor Cecelia Owczarski.

When the session ended, Morris was still buzzing — this time with happiness, with joy.

“I had fun today!” Morris said.

He and other members of The Arc of Tri-Cities’ VIP Club take special yoga classes from Owczarski at her Kennewick studio.

Owczarski is known in the local yoga community for her engaging teaching style and her impressive yoga skills.

And for about three years, she’s been sharing her talents with The Arc’s VIP crew — adults with developmental and/or intellectual disabilities. They build social skills by participating in educational and recreational activities through the program.

The yoga sessions are a favorite.

“They absolutely adore it,” said BreAnna Vaughn, who coordinates the program.

That’s due in no small part to Owczarski, who is “so patient and so open to everyone and everything,” Vaughn said.

“She is amazing. (She is able to) guide them and understand them in a really special way,” Vaughn said.

Owczarski is holding a fundraiser Saturday for The Arc.

She’ll lead yoga, suitable for all abilities, with admission by donation.

It starts at 1 p.m. at The Arc’s facility at 1455 Fowler St., Richland.

Owczarski has been practicing and teaching yoga in the Tri-Cities for several years.

In January, her studio — called The Lotus Pad — opened on West Clearwater Avenue.

She and her cadre of teachers offer a variety of classes, from heart-pumping Vinyasa to Restorative Yin.

They aim to make yoga accessible, Owczarski said.

“A lot of times people have a stigma on yoga — ‘I can’t touch my toes or I’m not flexible enough.’ But that’s not what it’s about. It’s about building flexibility,” she said. “Yoga provides what we are open to receive. It can be anything from physical (gains) to a spiritual benefit. It can pull you out of a negative thought process and simplify things.

“Yoga helps us flow with things more.”

The Lotus Pad classes are for people of all shapes, sizes and skill levels, Owczarski said. And she keeps prices low and regularly offers “donation-based” classes in which people pay only what they can.

Owczarski loves teaching, she said. She sees her role as giving her students the tools to improve their lives.

Her work with The Arc crew is particularly fun.

“It lights me up,” she said.

On that recent day, she led Morris and the rest of The Arc yogis through everything from chair pose to “wild thing.”

She encouraged. She guided.

As the session came to a close, she had the yogis lie flat on their backs in “savasana.”

It was quiet in the studio, except for some gentle music and the sound of breathing.

Eventually, Owczarski had Morris and the rest sit up and bring their hands in front of their hearts, palms pressed together in “heart center.”

“What do we say?” she asked.

“There is a light inside of me,” The Arc yogis responded in unison.

“Now look at one of your neighbors. What do we say to our neighbors?” Owczarski asked.

“There is a light inside of you,” they said.

And then they added: “Together we are one.”

Owczarski smiled. “Namaste, guys,” she said.

To learn more about The Lotus Pad, go to thelotuspadyoga.com.

For more about the yoga fundraiser for The Arc of Tri-Cities, go to www.facebook.com/lotuspadtricities.

This story was originally published October 19, 2018 at 4:54 PM.