Two lives shaped by devotion, study, and the quiet conviction that practice — done honestly — changes everything.
Living their lives in service to others, sharing the traditional wisdom they carry.
Yoga is not a profession — but a devotion to truth, beauty, and the freedom of remembering your essence.
To alleviate suffering on all levels of being human — in pursuit of flourishing and liberation.
Holly is a contemplative teacher and the visionary force behind Circle Yoga Shala. She is also a mother, a horsewoman, and an internationally certified yoga therapist whose commitment to this work spans more than three decades.
With a commitment rooted in self-observation and self-inquiry, Holly has pursued ancient teachings and methodologies for over thirty years — including more than three decades in the recovery tradition, where she developed her understanding of what it truly means to meet life without armor.
Holly has been privileged to study with Father Richard Rohr in his prestigious three-year Living School — a non-dual wisdom institution in partnership with the Center for Action and Contemplation in Albuquerque, New Mexico. This lineage of contemplative Christianity weaves deeply through her teaching and through the Shala's entire approach to inquiry.
For the past twenty-five years, she has worked with individuals and groups both domestically and internationally, evolving into a master teacher in her own right — embodying wisdom cultivated through diverse experience, rigorous study, and fearless personal practice.
"I lead a full and content life that is a result of fearless sensitive living and radical acceptance of what is. If a way of 'being' has culminated from my engagement with Yoga, it is that of surrender — surrender to the divine, and to what is happening in each moment, maintaining a felt connection to Self."
Holly leads the Spiritual Sobriety program, the Wisdom Enneagram, and the Practitioner's Circle — and her fingerprints are on everything the Shala does that has to do with community, contemplation, and the honest courage to be seen.
Matthew has been a practitioner of Yoga and Ayurveda for three decades and has had the privilege of developing teachers for over twenty years. He is responsible for designing Circle Yoga Shala's 200-hour and 300-hour Yoga Teacher Training programs and the IAYT-accredited Yoga Therapy Program.
As the owner of a yoga studio for ten years before co-founding the Shala, he developed an extensive private client base — adapting asana, pranayama, and meditation to individuals seeking yoga as a therapeutic modality for structural and biomechanical pathologies, digestive problems, depression, anxiety, and spiritual development.
Matt uses Viniyoga techniques as a template for organizing therapeutic strategies, combined with Western biological theories of development — drawing on models of pre- and post-natal development and the sequence of gait acquisition observed in bipedal organisms. His private work has grown to include elite athletes who compete on the world stage: tennis players, bullfighters, beach volleyball players, and rock climbers.
He also utilizes his professional training as a chef to design Ayurvedic meals as a component of therapeutic work. As a philosopher and religious scholar, his podcast The Lost Ways of Knowing extends his teaching beyond the classroom — exploring what ancient wisdom traditions carry that modernity has forgotten.
"My work has been a crucible of convergence between eastern and western models of the human system. My life's work is to help alleviate the suffering of individuals on all levels of being human — for the purposes of flourishing and liberation."
Matt leads the Yoga Wisdom Teachings, MoveWise Certification, and both YTT programs — bringing the same rare combination of philosophical depth and somatic precision to everything he teaches.
Listen to The Lost Ways of Knowing →
Stela has been living next door to the Shala since 2017 and has become an integral part of its diverse trainings and activities. Her contributions span teaching in the Yoga Therapy and Yoga Teacher Training programs to co-facilitating retreats on Ayurveda and the Enneagram — as well as curriculum development and the behind-the-scenes work that holds the school together.
Leveraging her corporate and academic background, Stela brings exceptional organizational depth that has enhanced the Shala's offerings. Her passion lies in delivering a holistic yoga education that honors both the practical and sacred dimensions of this ancient practice.
Born and raised in Romania, she is personally committed to building her homestead and continuing her transformative journey under the mentorship of Holly and Matt.
"My passion is to share the sacred teachings of Yoga and Ayurveda with students in the pursuit of self-knowledge and freedom from suffering."
Long before yoga became mainstream, Matthew and Holly had a vision — to create a place where these teachings could come alive in community and in nature.
In 2009, in their mid-forties, they left behind their home and a thriving yoga studio in Little Rock to buy a 25-acre homestead in the Arkansas Ozarks. With only $27,000, amazing friends, recycled material from the land, and a whole lot of sweat, prayers, tears, and trust — they began building, and the Shala was born.
After seventeen years of community, training, and transformation on that land, they are now releasing the homestead to new stewards. Their aim remains unchanged: living in service to others, sharing the traditional wisdom they carry, and supporting students in the pursuit of self-knowledge and freedom from suffering.
For them, Yoga is not a profession. It is a devotion to truth, beauty, and the freedom that comes from remembering your essence.
The Rose Angel Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit through which Holly rescues horses from slaughter and rehabilitates them — an extension of the same radical care she brings to her students.
Rescue horses typically arrive lacking regular care, and all too often carry the weight of severe infections and injuries from harsh conditions. Holly provides them with comprehensive medical attention, including dental care, chiropractic treatments, vaccinations, hoof trimming, and consistent daily nourishment — which can cost as much as $500 per month, per horse.
Your support covers the purchase price, transport, and the ongoing care each animal needs to heal and thrive.
Every donation goes directly to the horses in Holly's care.
Donate to Rose Angel →Whether you join the Practitioner's Circle, enroll in a Study course, or bring us to your studio — the work starts now.