20th Anniversary Party Speeches & Photos
The 8 Limbs 20th Anniversary Party took place on Saturday, October 15, the night of Big Storm 2016! We were grateful that the storm spared us, and a lovely group of revelers came up to 8 Limbs Capitol Hill for a night of community and celebration. Big thanks to Sam Fisher for being party planner extraordinaire. To Natasha Lady Krishna for creating Lady Krishna’s Peppermint Lounge in the Chandra studio and Darek Mazzone for the spinning tunes. Thanks to Farestart and Cupcake Royale for food and cupcakes, to Chateau St. Michelle for wine, Digiphotobooth for, well, the photobooth, Roniq Bartanen for photography, and Graeme Aegerter for video documenting.
Please visit Facebook for shots taken by our staff, Roniq Bartanen’s website for some lovely professional photos, and the Digiphotobooth website for our event shots (enter your email to view the shots).
Our MC for the evening Alice Pedersen has been a student at 8 Limbs for more than ten years. She also worked behind the desk and was a nanny for Anne Phyfe’s daughter for several summers. Here are Alice’s words of introduction of Douglas Ridings, longtime 8 Limbs teacher and Odissi dancer.
“I’m here to share my thoughts with you about why I believe 8 Limbs is successful. I believe 8 Limbs is so successful because of our teachers.
At this time I would like to invite everyone who has taught on the 8 Limbs schedule up here beside me. Let’s also take a moment to bring into the room all the teachers that aren’t here tonight.
It is my personal honor to thank you all for the ways you support the 8 Limbs and the Yamas and Niyamas
- Ahimsa – in the ways you create safe environments for students to blossom
- Satya – for your authentic voice and truthful understanding of what you teach
- Asteya – in the ways you demonstrate being a student of yoga and so generously share your resources and inspiration
- Brahmacharya – healthy boundaries you create in and out of the classroom
- Aparigraha – in the ways you’ve shared the work load and helped each other over the years subbing and being subbed for
- Sauca – Thank you for the ways you care for the space, for the hundred times you’ve sweep or made the space tidy for your students. Thank you for the inner cleaning you do in the privacy of your own home. —-made the space looking nice for the next group coming in.
- Santosha – Content – when things went well for you and also for the times when things didn’t go as planned
- Tapas – for the discipline you have to practice and all the ways you stay passionate about yoga and teaching year after – often without taking sabbaticals or breaks like a more traditional school teacher.
- Svadhyaya – I salute you for all the personal work you do on yourself with your teachers, therapist, psychics, coaches, astrologers to see and understand yourself more clearly.
- Isvarapranidha – We appreciate the humility you demonstrate in offering the fruits of your practice and teaching to the divine, nature, whatever.
I thank you for being part of 8 Limbs – the one in me acknowledges the light in you.
Next…is Community ~ Community, without you and without your continued support we would not be here. Thank you for returning to us and for each friend that you’ve brought to 8 Limbs over the years. Many of you are like family to use now and we hope to continue to grow together in the years to come.
I also believe that at the root of 8 Limbs success is a courageous, intuitive, creative, powerful woman and dear friend Anne Phyfe Palmer. How many of you have been inspired by Anne Phyfe over the years? I know I have. Anne Phyfe founded, funded and filled 8 Limbs with her creative energy over the last 20 years to help promote and spread the positive effects of yoga with this great city. I see 8 Limbs as an extension of who she is as a person and know how hard she has worked and continues to work to honor the many paths of yoga.”
For Anne Phyfe’s speech, click here!
Posted by: 8 Limbs