After over twenty five years of service, Chris Davis retired as an assistant chief of police at the Fayetteville, NC Police Department with service duties consisting of patrol, investigations, internal affairs, and training, and as the Investigative Bureau Commander where he supervised over 150 employees. Prior to law enforcement, he served over three years serving in Operation Desert Storm and Desert Shield and ultimately leaving the US Army with the rank of first lieutenant. He is a certified yoga instructor (CYT-500 hours) and created Yoga911 in 2019 to help serve others through the incorporation of yoga and meditation practices in combination with his passion and expertise in resilience and operational performance.

Retired Major Mark Voelker (USMC) shares yoga path and how developing a practice has helped him develop the mind-body connection, learn to make better choices off the mat, and be a teacher and leader for others in need. He’s a certified yoga and meditation teacher, Warriors at Ease graduate and Level 1 instructor.

Mark is also a team lead at Semper Fi Odyssey (SFO) where he works with injured and combat-wounded U.S. Marines and other service members through their transition back to a life out of uniform but continued service to the country. SFO is a six-day, holistic, transition-assistance program that provides injured and critically ill active-duty military service members and veterans an opportunity to not only gain valuable employment resources, but also life-planning skills to assist with their re-entry into the civilian sector. Primarily focused on their career advancement, SFO also reinforces the significance of mental, physical, spiritual, emotional, and social well-being, to ensure long-term success for these individuals.

Former litigator and corporate banker Larry Drexler entered his first yoga class curious but apprehensive. He soon realized the impact and perspective that yoga provided within his work and relationships, specifically the place of power and autonomy residing between his breath and thoughts. “When you’re a litigator, when you’re a lawyer, you’re trained to be an attack dog. You’re trained to be aggressive all the time. And what I learned was by taking a breath and stepping back, that space gives you so much more – I stopped being competitive and started being collaborative. I became a better lawyer, colleague, and person.”

Growing on the ponds of Canada, Riley Cote dreamed of playing in the NHL and eventually made it. However, after five years in the intense role as an enforcer for Philadelphia Flyers, he realized he wasn’t living his true path. Shortly before retirement, he found yoga as a means to physical, mental and spiritual health and well-being. In this conversation, Riley shares his story of shifting his mindset from living in the competitive mode of fight-or-flight to exploring spiritual freedom through yoga.