Who we are
THE FOUNDERS
Brinn Rawles
Brinn is a longtime yoga teacher, retreat leader, and the founding visionary behind The Mill Yoga. Her teaching is grounded in both traditional yoga and modern movement science. An accomplished kiteboarder, Brinn knows firsthand what athletes ask of their bodies, and she brings yoga to them as a path to strength, mobility, and recovery. She is the creator and producer of an annual yoga retreat in La Ventana, Baja, which she designs and manages from start to finish. With The Mill Yoga, she brings that same care and vision home to Santa Cruz.
Valerie Moselle
Valerie is an advanced yoga and breathwork teacher, author, and entrepreneur. A 25-year veteran of teaching,Valerie has studied and taught in the San Francisco Bay Area, Southern California, the Pacific Northwest, Holland, the U.K. and India, and has worked in close collaboration with international Breathe to Heal teacher Max Strom coaching teachers around the world. She currently lives in Santa Cruz, CA where she authored Breathwork: A 3 Week Breathing Program for Clarity, Calm, and Better Health and co-founded Luma – an award-winning family focused holistic wellness center.
Where We Are
OLD ROOTS. NEW BEGINNINGS.
THE OLD SASH MILL
Built in 1906 beside the San Lorenzo River, the Old Sash Mill was once a working millwork shop, turning redwood from the Santa Cruz Mountains into window sashes and trim.
Today its old buildings are home to local businesses, artists, and makers. With its weathered wood and tucked-away courtyards, the Sash Mill feels like a little world of its own, right in the heart of Santa Cruz.
THE ART OF PRACTICE
The people who worked the mill attended to every detail, turning rough timber into finely crafted pieces.
In yoga, we bring that same close attention to the body and the breath. With patience and practice, what we learn slowly shapes us, much as the wood was shaped here.
In the spirit of the woodworkers before us, we see The Mill as a place to move, rest, and gather with care for ourselves and for one another.
Giving Back
CARING FOR THIS PLACE
The Mill Yoga is grateful to make its home in this corner of Santa Cruz. Long before the mill was built, this land was home to the Uypi, an Awaswas-speaking people whose descendants still live in this region today. The redwood forests that surround us deserve our continued care.
As we put down roots here, we want to give something back. Each year, The Mill Yoga will contribute a portion of every membership to organizations supporting the preservation of our natural environment.
It’s one small way we hope to care for the place we call home.
Where our giving goesAmah Mutsun Land Trust — Indigenous-led stewardship and restoration
Coastal Watershed Council — Restoring the San Lorenzo River
Sempervirens Fund — Protecting Santa Cruz Mountains redwoods
Yoga is skill in action.
Bhagavad Gita 2.50