By Maddy Vitale
From the education world, to the financial field, to finding her Zen as a well-loved yoga instructor, Suzanne Chew jokes that she has done it all.
Her business, Yoga Ginger, opened five years ago in April, marking a milestone for the instructor with a welcoming down-to-earth smile who began teaching yoga in people’s homes in 2010.
Suzanne built up a loyal following and in 2014, when a storefront became available at 717 Asbury Ave., she jumped at the chance.
Just five years later, she has more than 500 students and she can fit up to 45 students in a class at a time.
She has successfully done what she set out to do – inspire others to love yoga and appreciate its many benefits.
“A lot of people think they have to be flexible and they are intimidated to try yoga. Yoga is a practice. It is about posture, the mind and spirit,” she said.
Suzanne teaches her yogis the “3 P’s,” patience, perseverance and persistence.
And there are no excuses.
“People have to find time to better their mind and body. It is an investment,” Suzanne noted.
She then looked out at a potted flower.
“Look at the flower. You wouldn’t look at it and say it needs water and do nothing about it. You would water that flower,” Suzanne explained. “That is what you have to do for your body.”
Above all, Suzanne’s top priority is family. She and her husband, Jason Chew, a family doctor in town, live in Ocean City with their two girls, Kaia Ginger, 10, and 7-year-old Cove Sienna.
Suzanne’s students are dedicated and said she has a special quality that keeps them coming back for more yoga instruction.
“They understand I am a mom. A lot of them are moms,” Suzanne said of the camaraderie between her and her students. “They have become like family to me over the years.”
Linda Brooks, of North Wales, Pa., and her husband, who have a second home in Ocean City, said Suzanne has a true gift.
“My husband and I literally schedule our visits throughout the year around Yoga Ginger classes,” Brooks said. “I’ve studied yoga for 12 years. I started going to Suzanne before she had Yoga Ginger.”
She is studying to be a yoga instructor because of Suzanne’s support, philosophy and “teacher ways.”
“She has me doing handstands and back bends someone my age would call it in. I love this woman,” Brooks said. “She really has a gift.”
Like Linda Brooks and her husband, Peggy Defelice, of Ocean City, and her spouse have attended Suzanne’s classes for many years – long before Yoga Ginger opened.
“Suzanne always attends to everyone in the class, focusing on individual needs and accommodations. She is there for you when tragedy strikes and celebrates your joyful moments in life,” Defelice pointed out.
She noted that before every class Suzanne greets her students with joyful energy.
“She continually invites us to challenge ourselves and reaches out to community businesses to bring yoga onto the beach, paddle board or combined with an art class,” Defelice explained. “There’s always something new and interesting at Yoga Ginger.”
To reward her faithful students, Suzanne is offering five classes to them for $50, which includes attending a free session to mark the anniversary of Yoga Ginger on April 4 and a class over Girls Weekend, which kicks off Friday.
In addition to her regular students, anyone wishing to attend her classes over the holiday weekend may do so for one free session.
“If I didn’t have to pay the rent, I would offer my sessions for free all the time,” Suzanne said with a laugh.
Suzanne, who majored in English and minored in education, worked for several different companies in Philadelphia before discovering her love of yoga and instruction.
She took a position in an education institution enrolling students in college. Then she worked in the financial field specializing in 401(k) investments, before taking a job registering clients for weddings and other special occasions.
Suzanne made opening her studio a true family affair.
“Jason put down the flooring and we painted and decorated,” she said of her husband.
The walls are white but for a brightly hued tapestry. Upon entering Yoga Ginger, a student will see a blackboard with the 10 Zen things yogis should follow.
An adorned elephant statue and other ornaments decorate the window seat, inviting patrons in with ambience, calmness and warmth.
Suzanne explained that her grandmother, Ginger, loved elephants. The two were very close and that is how Yoga Ginger was born.
Although yoga was not Ginger’s specialty, she was athletic and an avid golfer and always impressed Suzanne with her abilities.
Yoga, she said, is often a form of exercise to help strengthen and complement another physical activity.
“I’m a runner,” Suzanne noted.
Yoga is something of a journey, she said. And Yoga Ginger is all about health and creating a better you.
“Our studio focuses on proper alignment, suppleness and challenges you to become comfortable with the uncomfortable. Yoga Ginger welcomes all levels, beginner through advanced,” Suzanne explains on her website.
“So, before you enter, leave your worries out the door. As you enter, keep an open mind,” the website notes. “While practicing, believe you can do anything even if it’s the scariest or most impossible thing you ever dreamed of.”
For more information, call Suzanne Chew at (609) 231-7915, visit www.yogaginger.com or email info@yogaginger.com.
