Yogi Squad's Vision
No matter where we circle our mats, Yogi Squad is a safe community where kids and their yogis can join together to focus on self-awareness, mutual support, physical health and resiliency. Yogi Squad aims to support all Fort Worth children through the mindful practice of yoga and love of children’s literature.
We want all of our city’s children to learn how to focus their own breath and understand how to feel safe in their own bodies. We want to teach them through the facilitation of internal tools that develop self-control, so they can grow up to be the best version of themselves.
Brooke Blankenship
Executive Director
Brooke is a Texas certified educator and school librarian, with more than 15 years of experience. In 2017, she became a 200-hour certified yoga teacher, and has since completed extensive training on bringing mindfulness and yoga to children, including becoming an RCYT (Registered Children’s Yoga Teacher) through Yoga Alliance. By incorporating the principles and movements of yoga into storytime, she saw the connections students made into daily life. This inspired Brooke to share the experience with more children and she created Yogi Squad in 2018. Since then, Yogi Squad has been invited into homes, schools, and daycares to inspire children’s physical, social, and emotional growth.
YOGI BOARD
Lindsay Daniels
Lindsay Daniels has been working with children for 13 years. She is currently working with Pre Kindergarten through 5th grade students as an elementary art teacher. Lindsay enjoys every aspect of teaching art. She has realized in her years and experience as an educator that children can teach us just as much as we teach them. This is one of her favorite things about education. She is dedicated to giving children the opportunity to explore literacy, mindfulness, movement, and the arts.
Sarah Angle
For nearly 15 years, Sarah Angle has worked as a Texas-based writer. She began her career as a daily newspaper reporter and photographer, and then split her time and creativity between journalism and advertising copywriting. After getting her master’s degree from TCU, Sarah worked as a copywriter at Balcom Agency, Launch Agency, and later as an in-house creative writer at Mannatech, Inc. She’s done advertising copywriting and consulting work for brands such as: Frito-Lay, RadioShack, Dairy Queen, Honda, Sid Richardson Art Museum, Samsung, and Pizza Inn. Today, she's a professor at Texas Christian University and Director of Roxo, TCU's student ad + pr agency. As an educator and mother, she knows the value of emotional learning and support throughout a child's life. A holistic approach to wellness is the best way to create resilience.
Dena Silva
Dena Silva, MS is a lifelong learner and educator. She works in healthcare education and specializes in learning technologies. She is a certified yoga teacher and a practitioner for years. Yoga is just one of the many ways Dena keeps a healthy body and mind and passionately believes in the motto "Solvitur ambulando" or "it is solved by walking." She has two young boys that are members of the Squad.
Adrienne Johnson
Adrienne Johnson is a paralegal for a Fort Worth law firm. She is passionate about literacy and has volunteered as a literacy tutor at The Women's Center. She believes in instilling a love for reading in children as early as possible, and in the powerful way reading can soothe, empower, and transform a child. If you are a kid in her life, you most definitely receive lots of books for your birthday! She is thrilled to support YogiSquad in its mission to combine the healing practices of yoga, reading, and mindfulness to benefit kids in our community.
Kerry Tobar
Kerry Tobar taught in Fort Worth public schools for 15 years before joining the education team at Gladney Center for Adoption. She believes yoga can help balance the pressure kids feel in this hurry-up world by improving self-regulation and coping skills. Kerry is a long time Fort Worth resident and enjoys reading, running, practicing yoga, and being outside with her husband and two young sons. She is excited to help bring the uniqueness of Yogi Squad to the children in Fort Worth.
Andrea Ash
Andrea is currently the President & CEO of the Fort Worth Public Library Foundation and has a 20 year career in nonprofits and fundraising including DePaul University, American Red Cross, University of Michigan and YMCA. She has a Bachelor of Arts from University of Michigan and Masters in Public Administration from DePaul University. Andrea is a Yoga Alliance 200-Hr teacher and believes deeply in holistic healing through Yoga and spending time in nature.
Endless, Lifelong Benefits
Kids learn to focus their minds while strengthening their muscles, joints and flexibility. Through the creative incorporation of curated children’s literature, books come to life with the movement and mindfulness of yoga. We use music, rhythm, motion and games to enrich lessons and fully engage each class with multisensory activities.