Patricia Ruffin

OWY-TT

For the past 26+ years, I have worked with our Sandusky City Schools District as a Certified Paraprofessional, Administrative Assistant. I have a passion for my Sandusky community, but most of all the youth in our city who need a “toy box “of resources to pull from to get through their challenges in life.

I was formerly a Licensed Managing Cosmetologist and Master Colorist at JCPenney Styling Salon for 15 years. Looking back, I realize how servitude, positive energy, connecting with different cultures and diversity are my calling.

In my childhood, I had many challenges and traumas, which led me to meditation and fitness in my 30s as healthier coping mechanisms. I started practicing weekly meditation and yoga stretches with Jan and Lou Young of Converging Paths Meditation Center for 10 years, and later in 2015, practiced Restorative Yoga with Meditation in Motion with Sharon Lichtcsien.

As I continued my meditation practice, it deepened my prayer life. I became mindful, focused, and calmer while managing ADHD and furthering my spiritual journey.

I dedicate my entire practice to God, my beloved brother, Tyrone Ruffin, and my nephew, Marco Lately, both gone too soon, but impacted my life forever. I have been a student of Open Way Yoga since 2018; however, my recent trauma-informed yoga training through OWY-YTT has opened many doors for me to meet others on the mat and bring self-awareness and self-healing into a common space. Grief yoga helped me to integrate losses, so I teach Grief Yoga with the hopes of assisting others in how to move and grow through their heartache, little by little.

I have participated in the Minority Health Task Force wellness fairs in our wonderful city of Sandusky, as well as attended a Somatic Abolitionism Retreat in Rhinebeck, NY in the fall of 2024 with Dr. Resmaa Menakem, author of "My Grandmother's Hands". This professional development training brings awareness to antiracism and mending our hearts and minds. I became keenly aware of how trauma lives in our bodies, and releasing it takes time to reframe he mind and body.

My goals are to utilize all the somatic 'toys' I have learned along the way to introduce another pathway to the world by teaching and practicing hatha yoga, Greif yoga, meditation, and sound immersion. In the future, I hope to bring my experience and practices to our juvenile court system, funeral homes, domestic violence support groups, and work with our schools to share mindful tools to improve each child's academic success.

My theme for my yoga practice is Mindful Movements and Meditation on the Mat. My weekly practice at Mills is called the ‘MMMM Factor' with a sound bath at the end of each practice to bring a sense of rest at the end of the day. I incorporate the philosophies of author Tricia Hersey and her book "Nap is Resistance". With each yoga practice, we can remind ourselves to walk away from dehumanizing ourselves inside the grind culture; instead, let's celebrate a life of being rested and renewed, embracing self-love and self-care, and taking one breath and one pose at a time.

I finally can face my fears and worries with a newfound hope, which leads me to rediscover joy and embrace this life with a sense of gratitude and love.