Roanoke Yoga Studio Marks 25 Years With Community Open House

Powers of One is using its 25th anniversary as a chance to bring more people into the studio, not just look back. The Roanoke yoga and fitness business will host a free open house on Saturday, May 16, from 2 to 5 p.m., with tours, instructor introductions and a closer look at the classes that have kept it part of downtown life.

Founder and owner Valerie Powers has built the studio around accessible movement. After working in fitness centers in California as a personal trainer and fitness instructor, she moved to Indiana in 2000 and says she has spent the years since building a yoga and fitness business in Roanoke. Powers of One says she holds a master’s degree in kinesiology from CSU Sacramento, is certified as a Health Fitness Instructor with the American College of Sports Medicine and is a 200 RYT through YogaFit.

That background shows up in the way the studio presents itself. Powers of One offers yoga classes, fitness classes, one-on-one personal training and small-group training, and its class descriptions emphasize modifications so people can participate comfortably. The studio is also promoting the MELT Method and says it has the first certified MELT instructors in the Fort Wayne area, tying the anniversary celebration to its focus on mobility, pain relief and functional movement.

The open house is built to feel welcoming to newcomers as well as long-time clients. Guests will be able to visit instructor stations through a Movement Passport activity, which will enter them in a raffle. The event will also include light refreshments, prizes from local businesses and anniversary specials on introductory class packages and personal training or mobility work.

Roanoke is a fitting place for that approach. The town was founded in 1850 in connection with the Wabash and Erie Canal and had a population of 1,762 in the 2020 census. Powers of One is located on Main Street in downtown Roanoke, about 10 miles west of Fort Wayne and four miles off I-69 exit 96B, at 151 1/2 Main Street upstairs, according to the Huntington County Visitors Bureau.

The studio’s push for easy entry points also matches wider yoga trends. CDC data show adults ages 45 to 64 were especially likely in 2022 to practice yoga to restore overall health, while the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health says yoga may help ease low-back pain, neck pain, headache, arthritis and fibromyalgia. NCCIH also reports that yoga participation among U.S. adults rose from 5.0% in 2002 to 15.8% in 2022. For Powers of One, the open house turns that broader shift into a local invitation.