-Let's go check out one of South LA's hidden gems for mindfulness and wellness.

The Tree Yoga Co-op is a worker-owned cooperative that offers yoga and meditation classes for the community.

Namaste.

[music] I arrived just in time for The Tree Yoga's Soul Flow class.

Our teacher, Ja, who's one of the founding members of the cooperative starts the class.

I find my spot on the floor, ready to flow.

[music] -Relaxing our shoulders.

Turn our senses inward.

Set your intention for class.

Let's do it again.

Inhale, come all the way up, shoulders over the wrist, arms stay straight, engage that core, open the chest.

-After a little warmup, I quickly realized where the soul of Soul Flow comes from.

Ja turns it up a notch with some great R&B classics.

This isn't like any yoga class I've ever been to.

[music] -Already feel the sweat start.

All right.

-Ja is kind, compassionate, thoughtful, and keeps everyone's spirits up, which is especially important since this hour-and-a-half-long intensive practice is no joke.

I'm sweating, y'all.

-Breathe in.

[music] -We're going to start with a grounding moment of meditation.

-These folks next to me in meditation are Jana, Jenni, Rita, and our teacher, Ja They're the four founders of The Tree Yoga Co-op.

They incorporate their practices into every aspect of their lives, even before their interview.

-If your eyes are closed, you can start to move them back open.

Orient yourself in the space, take a look around at each other, yes, and coming into this new moment.

All right, thank you.

-Thank you.

Tell me about the importance of opening a space, making something available for the people here of South LA.

-As yogis, we get to see what the practice has done for us individually.

We've come from different backgrounds of different traumas that have happened to us, then as we've got the benefit of the practice, it became important to make sure that our own community had something like that because they would have to go way out or try and go to a studio where it was unaffordable.

It was damn sure our mission to make sure that our studio was here in South LA.

We didn't want to have it on the west side, even though, again, we could have made more money.

[laughter] -I have my bachelor's in Public Health Policy, and I have my master's of Public Health and Urban Health Disparities.

That's a lot of where I bring in how to create programming that not only is trauma-informed but is addressing the different health needs that we have in our community.

We have high rates of amputations because of high rates of blood pressure and diabetes.

When I look at things that are going on, all of these are preventable chronic health conditions.

It's heartbreaking to see these high trends in our community.

It's how are we using yoga to prevent these things from happening, how are we promoting wellness from the inside out because a lot of us can't even use our own health insurance or healthcare, so it's looking at these alternative modalities to help our community.

-That's beautiful.

-I just wanted to add to that, too, because I think when we talk about wellness, we talk about where you get to go to heal and to learn about wellness.

I feel our space not only provides this yogic philosophy about how to be good to yourself, to others, and to Mother Earth but combining our cultural backgrounds from African descent and being Mexican, this philosophy of just being well, connecting to ancestors, to your roots, and all of these wellness practices that might look different in different continents are always about the same thing.

Community healing, mindfulness, social justice, and sustainability.

[laughter] -I love that.

What are you guys excited about for the future of South LA with small steps like opening this studio here?

-I think a big step for us was to get this space.

Now, we're looking into the future into owning our own space.

When we talk about equality, equity, and community pride, what we are in for is for this vision of us owning property, not just for ourselves also, but as a participant in community equity.

Seeing other businesses that maybe don't have a place to be at because their landlords are kicking them out and selling their property to make a profit from someone else making this space available.

What we're thinking of is really big.

-Being in a cooperative was like a new journey for all four of us getting into this.

I just want to acknowledge the word cooperative has really been something that's guided me, like what does it really look like to cooperate with the people that you work closely with and allow ourselves to show up as we are, and also, what does it look like to learn each other and all the things that we're able to contribute, all the ways that we're able to work together for that shared vision.

-After class, I wanted to learn more about how The Tree Yoga's practices have impacted my fellow yogis.

-I live in Inglewood, but South LA adjacent.

That's exactly how I found them.

I wanted to find something that was close to home.

It wasn't even until I rolled up, and I was like, "Oh, my gosh, they look like me.

They have teachers of all shapes, sizes, colors, and modalities."

That's what really got me hooked.

-I always enjoy Ja class.

It's such empowerment with a lovely flow.

The music is so fun.

-The feeling after class is always one of restoration, one of renewal, one of excitement.

To know what the body can do, what my body can do.

-You were looking for one thing, what has it become for you now?

-The concepts of taking yoga off the mat in terms of being centered and accepting of oneself and accepting of others and compassionate, it's like I have the inner peace and self-love to make better decisions.

It's the center of my recovery, being sober and emotionally sober as well.

It's priceless.

-Now, it's like I'm able to be a witness of so many other people who are doing the very similar thing that I've experienced and still experience as far as being on this journey.

It's so full circle of seeing how people transform, just like I've been transformed and continuing to transform.

That's my story.

[laughter] -Talking to everyone made it clear that Ja, Jana, Jenni, and Rita provide not just a service, but a way to find peace and wellness.

No matter who you are, the doors are always open.

I had so much fun grooving to Janet Jackson in the Soul Flow class led by Ja.

It's clear that the Tree Yoga Co-op has had an incredible impact on the community of South LA.

-SoCal Wanderer is made possible by the Wurwand Foundation's key initiative to support local entrepreneurs, FOUND/LA.