Posts In: flashback Friday

Flashback from founders Amy and Michael Caldwell Office Manager Missy DiDonato on how she joined Yoga One to nurture a family-owned business and a thriving yoga community.

Yoga found me in Kentucky, of all places. It was 1997 and I was going through the trials and tribulations of being a young teen. I needed a way to channel the pain and angst I felt, so I tried many of the worst avenues – drugs, self-harm, etc.

Nobody could tell me what to do. Yet somehow I knew that the more harmful choices wouldn’t give me what I needed long term.

My mom had a yoga VHS tape. One day, I popped it in. I practiced on the carpet of our living room. I loved stretching and moving my body according to the rhythm of my breath.

We moved back to California two years later. I practiced yoga through high school and into college. Yoga offered me more than temporary relief. 

I started to think yoga might play a bigger role in my life. I began a two-year yoga certification through UCSD in San Diego and became an official yoga teacher in 2010.

At the time, I was working at Pier One. I had great colleagues and I loved that it helped put me through college and allowed me to rent in San Diego. But after six years, I was ready to step back from the retail world. I took a huge pay cut and stepped down from store manager to assistant manager so I could focus on teaching yoga. 

My first group yoga class was at the PAC in La Mesa. It was a medical marijuana distributary focused on wellness. When you’re just starting out, you have to say yes to every opportunity, so I did. 

Students came to yoga looking to relieve their pain and feel more comfortable in their bodies. Many of them had chronic issues or physical limitations and I learned so much from teaching and caring for them. The only thing I couldn’t figure out was why they often had a three second delayed response to my cues. Eventually I realized they were stoned! It’s hilarious looking back on it now, but then I wasn’t prepared.

I started to find work as a yoga teacher at a Buddhist retail store and through UCSD Recreation at Rimac. I was feeling more confident and saw that I could make teaching my career, if I found a place that would support my growth and aligned with my long-term goals. 

Then I went to Yoga One. I knew they had been in the yoga business since 2002 and that Amy and Michael were well-respected, but I worried they might be “too cool for school.” 

It was nothing like that! The studio was warm and inviting and the people were even better. I met Michael and yoga teacher Hillary first, falling in love with their friendliness, positive attitudes, and humor. Then I met Amy and yoga teacher Laura and loved their dedication and expertise in yoga. 

It felt like home. I signed up for classes right away. 

I decided to take Yoga One’s Teacher Training to solidify my teaching skills and began a work-trade agreement for part of the tuition. I worked in the Yoga One office, called the Nook (shout out to anyone who remembers why!). 

When my trade hours were finished, we all still wanted to work together. Amy and Michael asked if I would be interested in the position of Office Manager, or OM for short. That was 10 years ago this May. 

I can’t imagine my life without Yoga One. Amy and Michael have been there for me through some pivotal life moments, through the loss of my step-mom and my dog, and the birth of my daughter. As a team, we’ve weathered a pandemic and the opening of a beautiful new studio. 

Yoga helped me find my calling for helping people. Yoga One supported me as I grew into a confident and capable teacher and healer. I can’t wait for our next chapter. 

Flashbacks from Yoga One founders Amy and Michael Caldwell on how they nurtured a family-owned business and a thriving yoga community.

Amy was pregnant with who would turn out to be our daughter Raya (aka da Rula). Realizing that travel in the near future would be challenging, Amy booked a flight to attend a Yoga Journal conference in San Francisco. The thought of participating in classes with inspirational teachers while also being liberated from daily responsibilities for the weekend sounded too sublime to skip! 

After a pleasant practice with some hundred other yoga aficionados, Amy was approached by a man with a ponytail who had been practicing behind her during class. He introduced himself as Todd Jones, the senior editor for Yoga Journal magazine*. 

Jones thought Amy had a nice asana practice and wanted to know if she would be interested in doing a photoshoot at some point. They exchanged information and Amy returned to San Diego where she resumed nurturing Yoga One and planning for the arrival of our first child. (Second, if you count the studio).

Amy’s first overnight away from baby took place when Raya was 10 months old. Amy was back in San Francisco holding deep yoga poses for extended periods of time and having to take breaks during the shoot to pump milk.

On this first shoot, taken by David Martinez, Amy posed for a seven page “home practice section” on how to work up to Pincha Mayurasana (Feathered Peacock Pose). 

She would return to San Francisco just a year later for two cover shots taken by acclaimed dance photographer Lois Greenfield. One of the shots was eventually used for the Yoga Journal’s 30th anniversary edition. 

Some time after the publications, Amy received an email from an individual who had seen her on the cover and wanted to know, not what her favorite yoga pose or book was, but about her shoe size. She does have very nice feet!

* A magazine is a collection of words and photographs that the reader can hold in their hand and typically comes with pages that can be turned.