Ona Hawk
Faculty
Ona is an artist, a student of yoga, a raw food lover and a traveler. A seeker of new and old ways to self-heal and live vibrantly, she finds her purpose and her power through learning and sharing yoga. She is inspired by the people and cultures that color this world, and driven by the needs of her community in Atlanta, to bring her passions together to help others see a path to wellness, freedom and inner peace.
Since 2007 Ona has studied ways of natural prevention and healing, and worked to make them accessible to all. In 2008 she was certified as a holistic health practitioner and opened Roots Raw Kitchen, a raw food cafe and education center, where she helped people transition to plant-based diets. In 2013 Ona earned her 200 hour yoga teacher certification in Kemetic Yoga and opened Firehawk Yoga, a studio dedicated to this ancient African system of self-knowledge. Her highlight is teaching children’s yoga as part of an afterschool and summer program by Grow Where You Are. She has brought Kemetic Yoga to the 1st annual Black Yoga Teachers Conference, the Back2Live Food Women’s Wellness Retreatin Belize, and she will be teaching at this year’s Black Women’s Yoga Retreatin Costa Rica and at the Dirty South Yoga Festin Atlanta. In 2017 Ona was awarded two scholarships which re-ignited her love for teaching yoga: the Yoga Alliance Foundation Scholarship for advanced training helped send her to Mysore, India where she earned her 300 hour certification to teach Hatha Yoga; the Cultivate Union Program Scholarship introduced her to Restorative Yoga for Race Based Traumatic Stress Injury with Dr. Gail Parker, forever changing the way she looks at the role yoga plays in the repair and rising of our communities.
A class with Ona is a timeless space to connect with yourself through the breath as she guides gently through movements to create a balanced flow of energy, body awareness and sacred alignment. Ona’s goals are to continue to use her experience to help people connect and reconnect with their natural skills to heal and empower. Off the mat she enjoys hiking, creating, writing, laughing and planning her next visit home to the ocean.
