Wild Zen Yoga Fest
At Wild Zen , we believe yoga is more than a practice — it’s a way of living with presence, balance, and authenticity. Founded by Carrie Labarge (RYT 500, E-RYT), Wild Zen Fests offers a way into a life of mindful living, self-empowerment, and vibrant community.
Wild Zen Yoga Fest:
Wild Zen Yoga Festival is a radiant 3-day celebration of yoga, music, movement, and connection under the open skies. Together, we celebrate and honor the magic of Michigan summers — long golden evenings, lush green landscapes, and the freedom of gathering outdoors in community.
With transformative classes, live music, healing arts, and joyful connection, this gathering is all about unleashing your potential.
Find freedom, play, and empower yourself in a supportive and heart-centered space.
Why Join Us?
Our festivals offer more than classes — they are immersive experiences designed to support your journey of self-discovery, healing, and growth. Each gathering is a chance to reconnect with yourself, others, and the natural rhythms of the Earth.
Come as you are. Leave more grounded, radiant, and whole.
Instructors, Experience Leaders & Healers
Carrie Labarge, creator of Wild Zen Yoga Fest. Carrie’s most important work in life is being a Mother to her two sweet babes; Louie and Betty
. She is co-facilitator of Mindful School of Yoga™ guiding future Yoga & Mindfulness leaders into the world. Carrie facilitates yoga teacher trainings and workshops, as well as, public and private yoga classes. Her goal in teaching and training is to guide others into an empowered and truly self-determined way of thinking, moving, and living. You can find Carrie teaching at a variety of venues and festivals, where she leads acoustic music & yoga classes.
Whitney Dawn Pyles is a Somatic (Body-Oriented) Coach and Facilitator. She is dedicated to guiding individuals and groups towards self-forgiveness, nervous system regulation, passion, purpose, and play. She believes the magic happens when we allow ourselves to show up authentically in all of our beautiful complexity, that dance is our BIRTHRIGHT, movement is medicine, and that our job, during our short time on this planet, is grounded in enJOYment and empathy. This will be her fourth year facilitating Mindful Movement and Ecstatic Dance at Wild Zen Yoga Festival. Connect with Whitney on Instagram or Facebook @whitneydawnpyles or at whitneydawn.com.
Rev. Trevor Chaitanya Eller is a dedicated leader and practitioner who has spent decades immersed in the transformative traditions of yoga and sound. He is the leader of Full Moon Kirtan Michigan and a passionate Kirtan wallah, having played guitar for renowned chant leaders such as Ajeet, Simrit, Gurunam, and Snatam Kaur.
As a practitioner, he integrates the healing arts by combining Massage and Yoga Therapy with a focus on both Western anatomical assessment and the ancient wisdom of Ayurveda.
Trevor's unique approach seamlessly blends the physical discipline of yoga, meditation, breath work, mantra, and sacred sound of Kirtan, and, as an ordained Interfaith Minister, a rich spiritual perspective. His work is dedicated to helping individuals find harmony, inner peace, and a profound sense of spiritual belonging.
Peri Jill CNHP RYT is a Mother, Holistic Coach, Artist and Songstress, & joy Strategist based in the woods of northern michigan. Through Somatics, nervous system education, voice activation, emotional freedom and creative exploration Peri offers an integrative approach to wholeness reclamation.
Hilary Appleby is a certified Yoga Therapist specializing in bringing all 8 limbs of yoga into the lives of others in group yoga therapy workshops and one on one settings. The passion for sharing yoga stems from her own struggles of finding purpose and meaning in this human existence. Through contemplative movement she began to navigate her truth and create the deep connection of mind-body-spirit. What she loves about sharing yoga therapy is watching fellow humans find their own voice, stand in their truth, and create a life they love to live.
Follow Hilary @themindfullifellc
Katie Venechuk. Katie is the founder and primary nature guide at In Your Element in Grand Rapids, a wellness company that provides programs focused on reconnecting to the benefits of time in nature. Katie is a certified forest therapy guide with the Association of Nature & Forest Therapy, a Michigan Master Naturalist with Michigan State University Extension, a seasoned yoga teacher (ryt-200, 2017), and an experienced foraging instructor, teaching about the wild foods that surround us on every walk outside. At the heart of all of Katie's programs is an opportunity to explore the world around you in new
ways, reduce stress, embrace tech-free connection, and feel a sense of belonging as you are, among community and in our wild world. Learn more about Katie and her work atiyewellness.com.
Kristin Swann is dedicated to helping you find your joy. Her Qigong classes are full of light and laughter. She brings years of self-healing and transformation into the present moment to create classes that help us know, love, and heal ourselves. She has been practicing Qigong since 2006 and was trained by Master Liu He of the Ling Gui International Qigong School in Portland Or. Currently she is a licensed acupuncturist and owner of Grand Rapids Wellness. Where her and her husband dedicate their lives to keeping GR well.
Terry Prem Lancaster. Prem has been a student of Yoga for over 20 years and helped to direct a small Yoga Ashram in Ganges, Michigan for 5 years. Prem has put the band Vahana back together to lead your practice for this event. The Kirtana and Mantra Japa that the group Vahana offers today is firmly rooted in the practices of Vedanta and Yoga.
Ryan DeLuca is a somatic therapist, SOMA Breath instructor, cacao crafter, and consciousness explorer.
He’s passionate about how our thoughts and emotions impact our physical health, healing generational trauma, the science of spirituality, and the heart-brain connection. He believes we all have the capacity to heal ourselves, and that starts by regulating our nervous system, developing awareness and tools for how our body responds to stress, and learning the language of our intuition.
Several years ago he discovered cacao used intentionally during a breathwork ceremony, and experienced one of the deepest sessions after consuming cacao beforehand. Since then, he’s been enjoying cacao in meditation several days per week, in addition to learning more about the history, culture, and medicinal background of this amazing fruit!
Ryan is honored to be purchasing cacao beans from Atucún Chocolatería, a chocolate company based out of Comayagua, Honduras.
Morgan Gardner is a fitness and mindful dance instructor out of Detroit, MI. After going through a weight loss journey & personal transformation - she started her own mind/body dance fitness format - The Alt Fit Experience - that uses alternative music to help participants reconnect their minds and bodies through movement. She is a certified personal trainer and group fitness instructor with specialization in strength, stretch, dance and pilates.
She is also a podcast host/event manager and when she's not working - you can find her on the mat for yoga, weightlifting or out listening to live music.
Tina is a Breathwork Facilitator, Meditative Storyteller, and Wellness Writer with a nomad's heart. You'll find her at the crossroads of mindfulness, neuroscience, spirituality, and creative flow.
She’s the founder of Luna Zen, a holistic and energetic breathwork practice.
Tina is a proud West Michigan native who adores her husband, two dogs, and two cats.
Embodiment & energy healing certifications: YogaBody Breath and Flexibility Coach, Restorative Yoga Instructor, Reiki Healer, and Pranayama Breath work Facilitator.
Join @breathe.luna.zen and so many others at this years Yoga Fest!
Angie is a gifted intuitive sound healer and songwriter. She has been singing her whole life but stepped into her gifts as a healer after her Kundalini awakening 8 years ago. Through her extensive vocal history, she's found a way to enhance the instruments with the sound of her voice. In doing so, she creates a rich and layered experience that sets her apart from traditional sound healing. She uses Quartz crystal singing bowls, chimes, steel drums, ocean drum and other instruments she has collected along the way. She also loves to share healing songs she has channeled from nature. You will leave her space feeling seen, heard, and renewed.
Sponsors WZYF