Sarah Stevens, left, owner and founder of Sanctuary Studios, welcomes a crowd of people to the business during grand opening ceremonies on Tuesday, March 19. CREDIT DAVE THOMPSON
A new kind of yoga studio is open for business. The grand opening ceremony was held Tuesday, March 19, for the new Sanctuary Studios, located on the second floor of the Spotlight Theatre building, 1800 Seventh Ave., Moline. “I waited two years to say this – ‘Welcome, welcome, welcome,’” said Sarah Stevens, owner and founder […]
A new kind of yoga studio is open for business.The grand opening ceremony was held Tuesday, March 19, for the new Sanctuary Studios, located on the second floor of the Spotlight Theatre building, 1800 Seventh Ave., Moline.
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The crowd listens to a presentation on Tuesday, March 19, during grand opening ceremonies for Sanctuary Studios in Moline. CREDIT DAVE THOMPSON
Erica Carranza, from left, along with Rosa Ramirez and Sandra Carranza, are shown inside the Restaurante Sabor Catracho at 2006 16th St., Moline.
Sarah Stevens, right, owner and founder of Sanctuary Studios, holds flowers she was presented on Tuesday, March 19, during grand opening ceremonies for Sanctuary Studios in Moline. CREDIT DAVE THOMPSON
Visitors listen to a presentation on Tuesday, March 19, during grand opening ceremonies for Sanctuary Studios in Moline. CREDIT DAVE THOMPSON
Sanctuary Studios is located on the second floor of the Spotlight Theatre building, 1800 Seventh Ave., Moline.
This is some of the art on the walls.
People attend the grand opening on Tuesday.
This is scene from Tuesday's grand opening.
“I waited two years to say this – ‘Welcome, welcome, welcome,’” said Sarah Stevens, owner and founder of Sanctuary Studios, told a crowd of more than 100 people.Sanctuary Studios features about 1,500 square feet of space for classes and two rooms for massage therapy. But what sets the business apart from other yoga studios is its pay-what-you-can model for its customers.All classes are pay-as-you-can for all people. (The first of those classes start at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, March 23. Register for classes here.)“As the Quad Cities' only pay-as-you-can studio for movement and meditation, Sanctuary has made it possible for you (to) practice with us when there isn’t money to spare. This is made possible by the members of the Outer Circle, our monthly membership that keeps the studio sustainable,” according to information on the business presented on Tuesday.
Unique payment plan
Ms. Stevens said Sanctuary Studios is already off to a fast start. And people signing up to support the business model by becoming members of its monthly Outer Circle membership group. Many members are paying above market rate for classes to help others who cannot pay for classes.Customers are asked to become members of the Outer Circle – for $99 a month – to “provide consistent income to cover the overhead of the studio, which includes paying a living wage to our teachers,” according to the Sanctuary Studios website. (Go here to join the Outer Circle.)She added that she believes the pay-as-you-can model will work because it is not framed as a charity. Rather it is a way for the community to become involved in the business and help others take classes. Classes include:
Somatic sessions, which start Saturday. These classes “combine traditional yoga postures with familiar repetitive movements to explicitly create a sense of safety in the body. This class builds some heat in the body, teaches us how to stay with that heat, and then eases into the release we need to cultivate a sense of safety,” according to the Sanctuary website.
Just Yoga classes, which start at 9 a.m. Monday, March 25. These classes are for “every body built from basic yoga sequences intended to bring union to breath and body. Not a gentle class, but not advanced either because at Sanctuary, we don't have leveled classes. Instead, every class will offer an accessible challenge for everybody, from brand new beginners to the most seasoned student,” according to Sanctuary Studios.
Space designed to welcome
In addition to learning about the upcoming classes, those attending Tuesday’s grand opening listened to a sound bath presentation. It’s a meditative practice involving the use of resonant music. They also toured the new Sanctuary space.“I don’t want people to just tour the place. I want them to feel welcome. … I want them to be part of the place,” said Ms. Stevens.The interior of Sanctuary Studios features lots of cushions, candles, and green walls with elephant-based logo art that centers around a story of wild elephants. That story, painted on several of the walls inside the studio, goes like this: “In the wild, female elephants are known as fierce protectors. When one of their own is suffering, they circle up, close in tight, keep guard, and kick up dust to mask the vulnerable scent from predators. And yet we are the same. This is who we are and who we are meant to be for each other. Sometimes we’re the ones in the middle. Sometimes we’re the ones kicking up dust with fierce, fierce love. And so the circle remains.”That story illustrates a top goal of Sanctuary Studios. As the company website puts it: “This a way for us to care for each other inside of our community; it is our way of ‘kicking up dust’ when we have the resources to do so. And when we don’t… then we take our place in the center of the circle and let ourselves be surrounded.”
Visitors like what they saw
The art and stories continue into the dressing room area of the studio. It has this wording on the walls: “Kind Words Wall. No mirrors. Just real reflections.”Visitors looking over the many features of the studio said they liked what they saw. One of them was Sarah Lohse of Geneseo, Illinois. She is a friend of Ms. Stevens who has seen the studio go from a good idea a couple of years ago to reality in recent days.“To see this come to fruition is just incredible,” she added during Tuesday’s grand opening.While planning for the business has been in the works for a couple of years, much of the real work started just a few weeks ago. Ms. Stevens started leasing the second floor space on Feb. 1. At that point, she started the many big and small jobs of converting the space into her new business.During Tuesday’s ceremony, she thanked those who helped her paint the space, clean windows, remodel and do many other jobs.“We turned this thing around in six weeks, which is an absolute miracle,” she added.Ms. Stevens also thanked guests at the grand opening for their support, and asked them to get involved with Sanctuary Studios.“This will be sacred because everybody is welcome here. … We are just getting started,” she added.
