meet our instructors
Jennifer Kelleher
Jennifer Kelleher is the owner of Ocean Bliss Yoga and founder of the Ocean Bliss Yoga School.
With over 20 years of personal practice and more than a decade of teaching experience, Jennifer is known for her technical, alignment-focused approach to movement and energy work. Her background spans yoga, Pilates, meditation, breathwork, sound healing, and holistic health— allowing her to teach with both precision and depth.
She is also a Certified Pilates Instructor, Level 3 Sound Healing Practitioner, and Certified Nutritional Health Coach, with advanced studies in bio-energetics, meditation, and astrology.
Jennifer’s classes are intelligently sequenced and grounded in structural integrity. She emphasizes proper alignment and clear technique so students can build strength, progress safely, and deepen their practice over time. Her cueing is direct, accessible, and supportive— meeting students where they are while helping them advance.
Through the Ocean Bliss Yoga School, Jennifer trains teachers who value both tradition and precision.
Her work is rooted in one core principle: move well, build awareness, and trust yourself.
Helen Kilgallen
Helen began practicing yoga 30 years ago and became a teacher in 2009, graduating from the Joschi Institute in NYC with a focus on vinyasa yoga. She began teaching yoga on the beach in Rockaway, NY soon renting space in September, 2009 in a dance studio and then in March, 2017 relocated Ocean Bliss Yoga at the Belle Harbor Yacht Club, a beautiful open space that overlooks the bay.
Helen teaches a fun, creative flow in all her classes with attention to alignment and breathing. She teaches all levels, restorative, yin, gentle and open level classes. Her intention is to teach students to be aware of their bodies and become one with breath, body and mind. Originally from Park Slope, Helen has called Rockaway her home for many years along with her husband Patrick and three grown children.
Sarah Arikian
Sarah has been practicing yoga for over 20 years. She is inspired by the strength, serenity and general feelings of wellbeing that are cultivated by yoga asana, breath work and meditation, and tries to evoke the same in her classes. She was first certified in 2010 with the Long Island School of Yoga, New York, and has since deepened her training with yin certification at Integral Institute of New York, and workshops in Kundalini and Restorative yoga. She is registered with Yoga Alliance (E-RYT), and teaches safe and fun classes locally, always with careful attention to the breath and alignment. She is grateful for all her generous and knowledgeable teachers, and the joy that comes with both practicing and teaching is a great blessing in her life. Although born in London, she has lived over 30 years in Rockaway and considers herself a native. She has raised three children and countless dogs and cats here by the beach and now she and her husband Steve split their time between Rockaway and Hoboken.
Maegen Reed
Maegen is a Rockaway native and a lifelong lover of movement, wellness, and mindful living. She believes deeply that what we give our attention to grows, and brings this philosophy into both her teaching and her personal practice.
She completed her 200-hour Yoga Teacher Training at Ocean Bliss Yoga, where her journey as a student naturally evolved into a passion for teaching. After years of dedicated practice, she is honored to share the profound physical and mental benefits of yoga with her community.
Her classes are rooted in inward connection, blending thoughtful, intelligently sequenced movement with moments of stillness and reflection. Students can expect a grounding yet challenging experience that encourages expansion in both body and mind.
Maegen is especially passionate about making yoga accessible and supportive for people from all walks of life. In addition to teaching, she works as a psychiatric nurse practitioner, where she integrates mindfulness, compassion, and a holistic understanding of well-being into the care she provides. Through her classes, she hopes to create a space where students feel safe, empowered, and deeply connected to themselves.
Kathy Pastina
Kathy Pastina was born and raised in Rockaway and rediscovered her love of yoga right here at Ocean Bliss Yoga, inspired by the deep healing power of asana, breath, meditation and the Yoga Sutras. She trained and became certified at Integral Yoga and continued on to train in Intermediate Hatha, Restorative, Adaptive/Gentle, Neuro-meditation, and Energy Medicine Yoga. She has joyfully attended many workshops, the journey never ends! Kathy studied Reiki healing and is attuned to level 2. Her classes are centered on intention, breath, asana and guided meditation to quiet the energy body, mind, and soul. Her mission is to help support people feel better in their bodies especially as we age and during times of stress. Yoga can be for everyone no matter their limitations.
Kathy live in Rockaway with her husband and is grateful every day for her family and the Ocean Bliss Community who keeps inspiring her every day. Om Shanti Om Peace!
Alex Venier
Alex (Alexandra Venier Ledesma) teaches open level, prenatal, postnatal, Aerial yoga, and children's and family yoga classes. Her classes are core strong and based on individual anatomy. You will flow safely and mindfully through skillfully sequenced yoga asanas. Her teaching will invigorate your nervous system, detox mind and body, and leave you feeling empowered and ready to face the day! She welcomes all levels—beginner and up! Nourish yourself to nourish others. Fierce Self-Care is her motto.
Alex, a mom of two, lives in Rockaway Beach and has taught yoga for over 15 years. She maintained a consistent practice during both pregnancies and can attest first hand to the many benefits of pre and postnatal yoga classes. She loves to teach yoga to all ages, infants to adults. Her classes nurture and empower the self! Her mommy & me style classes are magical, her prenatal classes will get you ready for birth. Alex’s aerial classes will make you feel like a child playful and carefree although the feed back from your core and other parts of your body will be strong!
Certifications: 200 hr (Iyengar, Ashtanga, Viniyoga)+ 300 hr Core Strength Vinyasa, Prenatal and Postnatal certification YogaWorks, Children’s Yoga certificate RCY, Aerialmukti certified.
Bridget Scala
Bridget has been a certified Yoga and Pilates instructor since 2008. She first discovered Yoga in 1998 while searching for a way to heal her body. What began as a physical practice soon became much more— Yoga not only transformed her physical health but also provided profound emotional, psychological, and spiritual benefits.
In 2007, Bridget began practicing Pilates and quickly realized it was a powerful complement to her Yoga practice. Pilates helped her build strength, improve posture, and increase overall vitality.
Today, Bridget teaches Pilates with a focus on the foundational principles of the method: breathing, centering, concentration, and precision. Her classes are designed to help students develop strength, awareness, and balance from the inside out.
Kayla Kilgallen
Kayla was surrounded by yoga at a young age with her mom being an instructor and studio owner. However, it took her own time, path, and struggles to connect with the practice of yoga. During her undergraduate college years, Kayla ventured into a yoga studio at her mom’s recommendation and will never quite forget the immense peace she felt upon being there in the delicate stillness. The practice made sense internally and she kept up a disciplined practice. Kayla went on to receive her 200hr YTT through ILA yoga in 2021 in Costa Rica, a place very special to Kayla. Since then, Kayla has continued her work as an oncology nurse. She travel nursed out west to explore the world through new lenses, and seek out new connections. Kayla has returned back to NYC and recently completed her 300hr advanced teacher training under the guidance of Tara Glazier. Kayla’s classes are alignment based with an intention to feel deeply embodied in oneself. Expect to find a balance of effort and ease with purposeful sequencing and intelligent hands on adjustments.
Sabrina Boyle
Sabrina is an Ocean Bliss Yoga School certified 200-hr Yoga Teacher who shares mindful movement, breath, and space to soften.
Born in Brooklyn and now based in Rockaway since 2018, Sabrina has over 25 years as an elementary school teacher, holding space for children to learn, grow, and feel safe. As a teacher and a mom, she knows that true growth comes from patience, presence, and steady support.
Yoga became her way to restore balance during busy days and full seasons. After completing her 200-hour Yoga Teacher Training, she felt called to share these practices with her community.
Her teaching blends grounded, nervous-system supportive flows, intentional vinyasa, breathwork, meditation, and mindfulness, helping students regulate, reconnect, and return to center. Classes are rooted in accessibility, gentle strength, and the belief that slowing down is not weakness— it’s wisdom.
Sabrina also hosts monthly self-care workshops, creating welcoming circles where participants can reconnect with their bodies, calm the nervous system, and honor their inner rhythm, sharing space with like-minded souls.
Her intention is simple: to create a space where you feel supported, seen, and steady. Yoga, to Sabrina, is not about perfection or performance— it’s about presence.
She is honored to hold space for growth, community, and connection.
Certifications:
RYT 200 Registered with Yoga Alliance, Ocean Bliss Yoga School
20 Hr. Mindfulness Certified
95 Hr. School-Based Yoga & Mindfulness Training