Our Teachers




All of the teachers at Yoga Loka are Yoga Alliance registered, either at the 200 or the 500 hour level, many in the Saraswati River lineage of vinyasa yoga.  While they all come from their own unique places in life, they all share a common passion for yoga and have taken steps to "live yoga".  The instructors here are trained to help students modify poses to fit your body through the foundation of Structural Yoga Therapy.  


They all respect your current ability and want to help you  take your practice in the direction you desire.

Bonnie Pariser (Amarjyothi) 

 Bonnie Pariser (Amarjyothi) is the founder, director and senior instructor at Yoga Loka in Frenchtown. She began teaching Yoga in 1998 and has taught in the Frenchtown area since 1999. (Click here for CV)

Bonnie took her first yoga class as a gym requirement at the Fashion Institute of Technology in NYC where she studied Fashion Design in 1985. A field trip to The Sivananda Ashram on 24th street, where her gym teacher studied, sealed her interest in the practice. It was at this Ashram that Bonnie met her future karate teacher, known for his work as “The Kirtan Rabbi”, and delved into that martial art for the next 10 years. Though a regular yoga practice took a back seat as she worked to earn her second-degree black belt, it never left her heart. “I incorporated much of the breath work and conscious movement techniques that I learned in yoga into my karate practice and teaching.” Bonnie  had studied Tai Chi several years before; so the mixture of soft and hard and consciousness in motion were not new concepts.

Bonnie moved to the Delaware Valley region in 1996, and finally felt at home when she met Parvathi Nanda Nath Saraswati, founder of Saraswati River Yoga and Tantric adept. The whole concept of how the physical aspects of yoga were intertwined with the spiritual aspects became clear thru her continuing studies with Parvathi. She completed her initial Yoga Teacher Training and her first Therapeutic Yoga Teacher Training at Saraswati River Yoga with Parvathi (Kirin Mishra). She continues her Tantric studies with Parvathi, completing a Bhairavi Training in 2006, and participating in ongoing studies in the Shree Vidyaa lineage. 

In 2005 Bonnie  was certified as a Structural Yoga Therapist under the direction of Mukunda Stiles, a world-wide leader in the field of Therapeutic Yoga, and the author of the seminal book, "Structural Yoga Therapy" and “Ayurvedic Yoga Therapy”.  She remained a close student until his passing in February 2014 and is honored to be able to continue to share his teachings in the Yoga Sutras and SYT (Structural Yoga Therapy).

From a young age, Bonnie has been interested in understanding how the body moves, and what the implications of restricted movement is. Through her work with Parvathi and Mukunda her investigation of how the body stores emotions, trauma and joy has penetrated to a deeper level. To facilitate her own understanding and personal practice, She has also studied with Tom Myers, author of Anatomy Trains, and Bessel Von De Kolk, world leader in research on trauma and its effects on the brain and body,  Dr. David Bercelli, founder of TRE, and the study of ancient and modern texts. 

Bonnie is a Thai Yoga Therapist, Level two Reiki practitioner, and a certified TRE® provider, trained by TRE® founder Dr. David Bercelli. Using elements of TRE, SYT and her training with Dr. Gillespie, Bonnie has developed a fascial release system called AFR (Assisted Facial Release) that has helped many become free from pain and chronic conditions.

Bonnie has led more than 15 training and immersion programs at Yoga Loka and is a guest teacher in other training programs. She has taught classes at Kripalu, Integral Yoga (NYC and Virginia), the Hunterdon County Library Lecture Series, Mexico City and Playa Del Carmen, and the NYC Open Center. Bonnie was a member of the Integrative Medicine Team at Hunterdon Medical Center and Wegman’s Corporate Yoga Program and has offered programs at Steeple Chase Cancer Cancer at Robert Wood Johnson Hospital and the non-profit Yoga For Cancer Care program.
Her teaching combines precision, playfulness, and down to earth philosophy, all extracted from the ancient lineage of her teachers and her own insights as a mother, student, teacher, and practitioner.

Yoga Loka opened in Frenchtown in 2003 with the intention of providing a space for practices to be presented that can enhance the potential for self investigation and healing, on the physical, emotional and spiritual level.

AmarJyothi lives in Frenchtown New Jersey with her husband Warren and  her two children, Dominique, and Zachary.
Please visit Yoga-Therapy-Can-Help.Me for more information about private sessions at Yoga Loka

Carole Pepe 

Carole Pepe spent over 25 years as a Special Educator and outdoor enthusiast. Carole found Yoga in 1998, after an injury and the practice felt like a natural fit in exploring the physicality of asana as well as the connection of the self to the natural world. In 1999, she delved into a 200 hour teacher training certification training in therapeutics and the Bharaivi tradition with Parvathi Nanda Nath Saraswati (Kirin Mishra). She began teaching yoga to children and adults at that time. After a life-altering diagnosis of cancer in 2003, yoga became prominent in the heart of her healing process. Amar Jyothi (Bonnie Pariser) at Yoga Loka in Frenchtown, NJ, became one of the principle guides in her healing journey. Carole obtained certification from OM Yoga, NYC, to teach yoga to cancer survivors in June, 2009. In June 2010, she completed the 500 hour yoga teacher training program with an emphasis on therapeutics at Yoga Loka. She founded Yoga for Cancer Care offering cancer care classes, Restore and Renew classes, and outreach programs.  She is also an assistant instructor for the teacher trainees at Yoga Loka. Her intent is to share with others, especially those with cancer or chronic illness, the strengthening and healing benefits of a yoga practice that can add peace and ease to our daily lives.

 Cindy Buckley 

Cindy fell in love with yoga in 2001 when she experimented with Iyengar Yoga and Bikram Yoga. Both 
styles of yoga were extraordinarily beneficial. However, something was missing. Then 8 years ago, she 
found her home at Yoga Loka where she realized that structural yoga therapy was the perfect fit for her 
lifestyle and belief system. Cindy's affinity to structural yoga is strengthened and sustained through her 
practice of yoga, love of nature, hiking, and the meditative qualities that these activities have in 
common. She is also passionate about and supports community based self-sustaining local organic 
farming. You will often find her at the farmers markets, CSA’S and digging in the dirt in her own garden.

In the spring of 2016 Cindy will earn her degree in Exercise Science, which helps her to deepen her 
understanding of the body and the intricacy of movement as it relates to yoga. In the same year, she will 
complete her 500 hour yoga teacher certification at Yoga Loka. 
During a yoga class with Cindy, you will find a nurturing, safe environment where there is space to 
deepen your practice and explore the possibilities of what yoga can bring into your life.

Sarah Keown Gerhardt

Sarah has been immersed in the world of Yoga for over a decade and has had the privilege to study at the renowned Yoga Studies Program at Naropa University in Boulder, CO. For three intensive years she studied Hatha Yoga, Sanskrit, and Yoga Philosophy, acquiring her 500-hour certification from Nataraja Kallio. Following her training, she continued to study Sanskrit and Yoga philosophy with Sree Devi Bringi and has spent months in residency at various Zen monasteries. She brings a blend of joy, introspection, purposeful sequencing, and a focus on alignment and breath to her classes. She supports others in their own journey of embracing happiness in each moment and deepening their relationship with themselves. Her teaching is influenced by her deep immersion in the natural world along with her nearly ten years practicing Zen Buddhism. Along with yoga, you can find her farming along the Delaware River, making herbal concoctions, knitting, and strolling in nature.

Frank Vaccaro

I've been practicing yoga since 2007. I didn’t come to yoga with an athletic background, a sane mind or a calm heart. I found yoga when I had run out of freedom. I was 23 and scared and skinny and had a bad back. I had no answers for what seemed like a hopeless life. Yoga gave me space and wiggle room in a body I knew nothing about. Yoga gave me freedom in a mind previously filled with all the wrong answers, in a setting I could not escape. Yoga gave me a taste of freedom. I know there is more to come. I’m excited and honored to bring a practice that is casual, curious, creative and constantly changing. AmarJyothi is my teacher and Yoga-Loka is my home.

Laura Knott

Laura turned to Yoga Loka in 2010, looking to learn meditation techniques to quiet the mind and hoping that the “exercise part” of yoga wouldn’t be too awful. Surprise! She fell in love with both the physical movement and spiritual philosophy of yoga, diving into Amarjyothi’s many asana classes and Yoga Sutras workshops.

Years later, Laura made the commitment to begin Yoga Loka’s 200 Hour Teacher Training program, followed immediately by the 300 Hour program. After completing her final project by establishing a adaptive Chair Yoga program in conjunction with the Harvest Family Success Center, Laura received her 500 Hour RYT Designation from the Yoga Alliance. She has also received a Restorative Yoga teaching certification and is completing an additional 100 hour Chair Yoga certification.
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As a result of training with Amarjyothi, Laura believes that yoga is truly a practice for every body, and wishes to help others experience yoga as an inclusive physical exercise and spiritual way of life.

Sarah Carlon

Sarah started practicing yoga in 2014 and began working with Amarjyothi in 2019, to understand the structure of her body and how it expressed movement. Through several workshops, TRE and many hours of spiritual mentoring, Sarah knew her work had just begun. Sarah completed her first immersion training with Yoga Loka in May 2021 and is looking forward to continuing to deepen her practice with the next 300 hour immersion. 

With a background in education and a Bachelor’s in Developmental Psychology, Sarah has always been curious about how people learn, love and express their patterns. Sarah started her career in the classroom, working with children with special needs and eventually moving onto working in the the field of Behavior Therapy for children with autism. Sarah continues to work with children with special needs through the lens of yoga and enjoys learning from her students. 

Sarah loves finding ways to adapt asana poses to the individual, offering modifications and encouragement for your practice.  She has an understanding for the battles we face on and off the mat and how they can affect our practice. Through her dedicated practice, Sarah has experienced how yoga is incredibly beneficial to how we learn, love and work through our patterns. 

Deb Hart

Deb completed her RYT 200-hour training with Amarjyothi at Yoga Loka in May, 2021, and is currently working toward her 500-hour certification. 

Deb began taking yoga classes in 2007 to add some stretching to her fitness routine, but soon learned there was much more to yoga than that.  While she came for the stretching, she stayed for the strengthening and spiritual aspects of yoga. 

Deb is particularly interested in how yoga contributes to a healthy aging process for people of all ages. 

Deb recently retired from a long, rewarding career as a speech-language pathologist. 
She Iives in Hunterdon County, NJ, with her family. ​