Joanna Brooks, Owner of Embody Yoga, Uses Jrue Holiday Grant to Expand Mission | Breaking News Updates

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) – CBS 58 introduced you to Joanna Brooks, owner of Embody Yoga, last summer. She had just received a $ 25,000 grant from the Jrue and Lauren Holiday Social Impact Fund.

The Milwaukee Bucks star and his gold medalist wife donated $ 1 million to black-owned businesses and nonprofits. We checked in with Brooks to see how she is using the money to grow her business and her mission.

“Embody Yoga is here,” said Joanna Brooks, pointing out the yoga studio space on a map of her new wellness center, simply called Embody.

The plans are all set for Embody, who has found a new home at 4650 N. Port Washington Rd. In Glendale.

“Embody has been a dream of mine that has been close to my heart for a few years now,” said Brooks.

This dream is quickly becoming a reality. Brooks already teaches yoga classes at the new location, with more to come.

“We’ll have massage services, therapy, we’ll even have mental health services,” said Brooks, who has a background in counseling.

Artist renderings show his take on what the two yoga studios will look like. One will be jungle themed and filled with plants.

“Our jungle studio will literally be a jungle – overgrown with plants. Plants on the ceiling, plants on the windows,” she said enthusiastically.

The other studio will have a desert theme for hot yoga.

“We’ll be playing R&B, hip hop, neo-soul,” Brooks said of the ambiance, which will also include color-changing lighting.

CBS 58 first met Brooks in her studio at the Sherman Phoenix in Milwaukee, shortly after being named the recipient of the JLH Fund.

“This fund has been so instrumental and so helpful to me in so many ways,” she said.

Brooks got business coaching and raised over $ 75,000 through a crowdfunding effort.

“In 25 hours, we hit our first milestone, $ 25,000,” she said, noting how surprised she was at how quickly the money started to flow.

She was touched by the number of clients and supporters who helped her raise funds in just one month.

“I knew my city would support me because they always have,” she said. “This is how we managed six years in business and survived a pandemic. But $ 75,000 seemed like a really big goal.”

Her mission has always been to share yoga with people of color. Brooks said his customers were impressed with the new space.

“Already some of our students are like, oh, the space looks so beautiful and we’re so excited,” Brooks said. “They’re part of it. You know, it’s for them.”

She is also committed to training new teachers.

“There are so many new yoga teachers serving underrepresented communities just like Embody Yoga, right? And they need a nice space to practice,” she said.

Embody will also provide new business opportunities for other wellness practitioners, who can do business there.

“We will also support wellness practitioners, small business owners focused on wellness, by offering them really competitive and really discounted commercial rental rates,” Brooks explained.

Her passion for yoga started when she was a child. She would wake up and train with Priscilla Patrick on PBS. Years of hard work have led to this 5,000 square foot space.

“So the walls will go up, the floors will go down,” she said, indicating where construction will begin this month.

She hopes to open Embody early next year.

“What this has done for me has left me in awe of the way life works and how it guides us on a path,” she said.

To learn more about Embody, visit https://www.embodyyogamke.com/.

And to donate to the crowdfunding effort, visit https://www.fundblackfounders.com/embodyyogamke.

To name an everyday hero, message Natalie at NShepherd@cbs58.com.