The Full Story
About Us
We are two longtime teachers, friends, guides, and students who have spent decades navigating life, work, and everything in between. Now, in this next season, we return to the practice not as a performance or profession, but as a path. A way of remembering what’s real. After many years of practicing and doing the deep inner work, we are more interested in truth than trend, more drawn to stillness than noise. Wild Stillness Yoga is our shared offering ~ a space for breath, movement, reflection, and connection. It’s not about becoming something new. It’s about returning to what’s always been within. We hope you join us on this beautiful journey!
With Love and Joy, Kathy and Damian
Kathy Shirley
Hi There~I'm Kathy. I am a 500 E-RYT with over 8000 hours teaching yoga and two decades of practice. I have a B.A. in Psychology and a M.A. in Early Childhood Education. Wild Stillness Yoga was born from nearly two decades of holding space for students to fully become. After owning a yoga studio for over 13 years and leading teacher trainings, workshops, and retreats, I began to feel a deeper pull ~ not toward doing more, but toward offering less… with more meaning. I created Wild Stillness to reflect what I’ve come to trust most: the power of nature, the wisdom of silence, and the profound shifts that occur when we slow down long enough to listen.
After decades of teaching kindergarten, growing a business, raising children, and pouring energy into everyone else, I chose to take a different kind of journey. I stepped away ~ I made a bold unexpected move and sold my beloved yoga studio, signed off social media, and gave myself two full years to just be. To rest. To Heal. To listen. To Journal. To Pray. To walk in the woods, return to India and rediscover my practice without pressure or performance. Wild Stillness was born from that space. A soft landing. A sacred pause. A space for those of us who’ve done the work of becoming ~ and are now ready to simply be.
This isn’t about trendy wellness or performance-based yoga practice. It’s about remembering. Reconnecting. Coming home to the body, the breath, the earth, the heart and what matters most.
Damien Groark
I was born and raised in the suburbs of Philadelphia. I grew up playing organized sports from 5 years old all the way through college. I attended Widener University and graduated with a BS in Hospitality Management. After college I worked my way up the ranks running the premium service departments at the arena that hosted Philadelphia's professional basketball and hockey teams. In October of 2003 I was given an opportunity to work and live in the keys and enjoy the "island" lifestyle, saying good bye to the cold, grey, rainy Philly winters, and have not looked back since. I was first introduced to yoga around 2011 when I attended several Ashtanga classes at the Pattabhi Jois studio in Islamorada. I officially got the yoga bug in May of 2013 when Kathy opened Key Largo Yoga. I initially enjoyed the physical practice of yoga, building strength and flexibility and losing weight, however this quickly evolved into seeking out the mental and spiritual aspects of yoga. After four years of consistent daily practice and several workshops I finally decided to take the next step in my journey and signed up for 200 hour yoga teacher training in October of 2016 and graduated in April of 2017.
