By Robbie Vorhaus

Up in the northeast corner of Indiana, about 25 miles south of Fort Wayne, Sag Harbor’s Colleen Saidman Yee grew up wanting to work with Mother Theresa.

“I remember being in the fifth grade and reading a Life magazine article on Mother Theresa and thinking, ‘I want to work with her,’” Colleen said, sitting quietly on the wooden floor of her one-room yoga studio, Yoga Shanti, here in Sag Harbor. “I grew up a devout Catholic, wanting to be a nun. I felt if I couldn’t be Mother Theresa, I wanted to work by her side.”

Colleen began writing letters to Mother Theresa.  “I always wanted to serve.  I wanted something more than just going to confession and complaining about how my brother picked on me” she said. “I wanted to make a difference, not whine.”

In both junior and senior high school, Colleen pursued her love of service and worked as an activities director in local geriatric wards, organizing exercise classes, bingo and crafts for the patients. Moving to Muncie, Indiana, Colleen attended Ball State University, leaving after a year to pursue a career in modeling.

In 1979, Colleen moved to New York City, and in 1983, after signing with renowned modeling agency, Zoli, became a super model, splitting her time between Paris and New York.

In 1986, living in New York’s SoHo, Colleen’s next door neighbor suggested she try yoga, and she soon became a regular attendee.

“Yoga touched me deeply,” Colleen explained. “Although I was very active in sports, practicing yoga was an opening, an experience I had never felt before.”

As a model traveling around the world, Colleen continued writing letters to Mother Theresa, and at the height of her career, in 1988, she received a note from Sister Pricilla, an aid to Mother Theresa, who wrote, “You are now ready to serve the poorest of the poor.” Within one week, Colleen was flying off to Calcutta, India.

“Getting on that plane was the highlight of my life,” Colleen said. “I worked with Mother Teresa at her Missionaries of Charity and was reminded daily that true peace only comes through service. I’m certain that getting up at 4:30 a.m. every morning, working with the poor and destitute, and serving the sick, homeless and hungry, I received more in blessings than I ever gave in time.”

A year later, in 1989, Colleen returned again to her successful modeling career. And in 1994, pushing her way through a heavy aerobic workout, Colleen injured her back, resulting in surgery and three months of bed rest. “I’ve been a yoga girl ever since,” Colleen said. “And I’m in the best shape of my life.”

In 1998, after graduating from Jivamukti’s Yoga Training Program, Colleen began teaching yoga. And in 1999, opened Yoga Shanti in a small walk-up space near Murph’s Back Street Tavern.  The room could only hold approximately 15-18 people, and in 2001 Yoga Shanti moved to a larger space, now occupied by a hair salon in the Harbor Shops.  Then, in 2004, Yoga Shanti moved to its current location, at 23 Washington Street.

 

On a recent cool May day, students begin to meditate in preparation for their next yoga class as soft light fills Yoga Shanti, bouncing against the freshly painted walls designed to the colors of the ancient chakra system.

Colleen explains, “Mother Theresa said, ‘The fruit of silence is prayer; the fruit of prayer is faith; the fruit of faith is love; the fruit of love is service; and the fruit of service is peace.’  My work in yoga is the fulfillment of my childhood desire to serve.”

Colleen and husband, Rodney Yee, a world renowned yoga instructor, recently became co-directors of the Integrative Therapist Yoga Program for fashion designer, Donna Karan’s Urban Zen Foundation. Together, Colleen and Rodney are teaching over 100 yoga teachers to work alongside classically trained health-care professionals, providing in-bed yoga movements, restorative poses, breathing awareness and meditation to the sick and infirm.

“Many people thought that our efforts to bring yoga into the hospital setting would be met with resistance,” said Colleen. “In fact, the doctors and nurses have completely embraced our work.”

Together, Colleen and Rodney are raising four teenagers.

Following in her mother’s footsteps, 13-year-old daughter, Rachel, a Pierson eighth-grader, will soon be traveling to small villages in the Republic of Senegal, on Africa’s west coast, helping to modernize peanut crushing, donating both her time and equipment.

“Rachel’s got the service bug,” said mother, Colleen. “We are so grateful living here in Sag Harbor where the Pierson administration supports her work. I feel for the first time in my life that we’re part of a community. Sag Harbor is such a wonderful place to bring up children. A place where we can walk to school, allow our kids to hangout in town because we know it’s safe, and still explore their freedom.”

Colleen continued, describing Sag Harbor from a yoga point of view.

“It’s so easy to be quiet in Sag Harbor,” she said. “Yoga is all about breathing, and here in Sag Harbor we can luxuriate in the quality of our clean, fragrant, light and magical air.  Sag Harbor is so esthetically pleasing, and we feel so lucky being here.”

From Calcutta to Sag Harbor.  Yoga, in our town, Sag Harbor.

 

 

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