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Free Workout, Leave Donations at the Door

Yoga customers instructed to pay what they can afford

By Ellen Goldberg

| Saturday, Apr 18, 2009 | Updated 8:30 AM CST

Free Workout, Leave Donations at the Door

Aurora/Getty Images

Strech your body and your dollar by only paying what you can afford at this yoga studio. (Photo by Justin Bailie/Aurora/Getty Images)

Students at Karmany Yoga in Dallas can breathe easier knowing yoga classes will never be out of their financial reach.

The new Dallas yoga studio is strictly donation-based. Students pay what they can afford, even if that’s nothing at all. “We wanted to do a donation studio so that yoga was available to everyone, regardless of financial situation,” owner Audrey Woods said.

At the studio on McKinney Avenue, there are no memberships or financial commitments, just a donation box by the door. “People throw some cash in, and that’s it,” Woods said.

The suggested donation price is $15, but some students donate more and others less. “Some people put in $40, you just never know.”

Woods runs the yoga studio similar to a hair salon. She rents out the space by the hour to instructors who pocket their profits. “It’s pretty private, the donation box,” yoga instructor Deanna Anderson said. “It’s not like we stand there and watch.”

Anderson has been encouraging students who have fallen on hard economic times to keep coming to class. “I’ve told them, even if you are out of work, please come anyway, even if you only have a couple dollars, we want to support you during that time.”

Karmany Yoga is located at 5014 McKinney Avenue between McCommas and Monticello. You can view a class scehdule on the studio's website: www.karmanyyoga.com.

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Workout for Free, Donations at the Door