A La Jolla man is launching a national effort to help homeless people by practicing yoga.
“This is not a new idea,” said Andrew Beinbrink, CEO of SportsForce, a local college recruiting company. “This is already being done in different communities on a small scale, and the evidence of its successful so far is mind-blowing.”
Yoga, Beinbrink said, has been proven to reduce traumatic stress, depression, insomnia and addictions. It also has been used to help veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder.
The La Jolla resident has launched Yoga 4 Homeless, a nonprofit that he plans to expand nationally throughout partnerships with yoga studios and homeless programs.
“If it does anything to help their mental wellness, their spiritual well-being, and their physical wellness, I’m all for it,” said Michael Johnson, vice president of development for the Rescue Mission.
“But the sooner we treat them with dignity, respect and give them opportunities, the better they will be,” he said. “And I think the program that Andrew is doing, treating people around wellness and wholeness and focusing inwardly among their own selves, I don’t see how anything bad can come from it.”
Beinbrink said his project is the first national attempt at coordinating yoga programs for homeless people, but there are similar programs across the country.
In the Bay Area, Marty Fleetwood led yoga classes for homeless people as executive director of Homebase, Inc.
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