Our Teachers

With a natural propensity for teaching, Melissa approaches her craft with both instinct and intention. She shares her knowledge and gifts through a unique lens and offerings. 

Along with a deep passion for energy work, Melissa works to embody a greater understanding of the many energetic nuances that influence our health and wellness.  

As a former dancer, Melissa has developed a deep understanding of the body's language, observing how emotions are reflected in posture and movement. This profound mind-body connection became central to her philosophy, enabling her to recognize how unresolved feelings contribute to tension and pain. Her awareness of these physical manifestations of emotional experiences guides her empathetic approach to holistic well-being.  While dance offers a channel for outward expression, Melissa’s yoga training deepened her understanding of directing energy inward.  Yoga emphasizes self-awareness and introspection as pathways to connect with and manage internal energies.  

Melissa brings heart and purpose to her energy work, seeking to live in alignment with deeper truths and a continually unfolding perspective.  Melissa’s journey interweaves movement, mindfulness, and energy awareness into a holistic path of healing and teaching.  With roots in dance, depth in yoga, and a passion for energy work, she brings a unique blend of insight and empathy to her offerings.  Guided by intuition and a deep understanding of the mind-body connection, Melissa helps others explore the subtle ways emotions shape our physical and energetic well-being. Melissa’s work is grounded in presence, shaped by experiences, and devoted to supporting others in aligning with their true, authentic self and vitality.

Through my own process of healing and personal growth, I came to understand the challenges of effecting lasting change. Despite our best intentions, we often find ourselves stuck in patterns that no longer serve us, grappling with the frustration of knowing what needs to change yet struggling to make it happen. It's a universal struggle, recognizing the need for transformation but feeling powerless to enact it.

This realization ignited my passion for hypnotherapy. I saw in it a powerful tool to facilitate profound and lasting change by tapping into the subconscious mind, where entrenched patterns and beliefs reside. By harnessing the transformative potential of hypnotherapy, I found a way to help others break free from self-imposed limitations and unlock their true potential. 

Mel established the Luminous Learning Community as a nonprofit learning community with the wonderful support of Melissa Deerfield and her Sisters of the LLC.

Mel has taught students in a variety of settings - from elementary classrooms through graduate classes and in community colleges and career & tech education. Her teaching subjects were primarily in mathematics and mathematics teaching and learning. Her graduate studies were centered on learning and teaching and curriculum development. 

She now focuses her studies, learning and specializations – combined with her lived experiences – into helping others learn and be learners. She teaches several classes at the LLC – You and Sister Moon, Shadow Work, Astrology, Tarot, Energy and Energy Work and, not surprising, Numbers and Sacred Geometry. Her new seminar series “Compassionate Teaching” is also starting to form. 

Dana is a 200-hour certified yoga teacher and a registered member of Yoga Alliance. She brings a gentle, heart-led approach to her classes, creating space for students to breathe, move, and reconnect with themselves. Her teaching weaves together breathwork, meditation, mindful movement, and occasional journaling to support self-awareness and healing.

Dana’s classes are warm and welcoming, with an emphasis on tuning inward rather than striving for perfection. Her goal is to help others feel more grounded, present, and at ease—both on and off the mat.