ROSIE WEBBER The Tahoe Sanctuary

By John Crockett

Step into The Tahoe Sanctuary, a community wellness center on Stateline Road in Kings Beach, and you can feel your pulse lower. The two-story wood frame building has been a yoga and massage studio for many years but the energy and vision of new owner Roseanna “Rosie” Webber is what transforms the space into something unique. “You immediately feel this warmth of positive energy…as you embark on a journey inward,” says Yoga Manager Brooke Haley.

The Sanctuary provides a full range of services and experiences including yoga, massage, esthetics, and acupuncture. But Rosie’s integrative approach to wellness combines her health and nutrition expertise with mindset counseling, homeopathy, and leadership training. What starts as a yoga class or massage is the first step on a personal journey to wellness.

“What I really want is people feeling what I feel in the Sanctuary and have been for twenty years. The greatest compliment is when someone says, ‘The minute I walk in here, I can feel it.’”

Rosie first came to The Sanctuary as a massage customer before offering health and wellness coaching part-time. Following her retirement after 20 years as a surgical nurse and a desire to see The Sanctuary re-emerge following the pandemic, Rosie took the leap to acquire the business.

“This is what I really love and my vision is to bring more wellness to the community.”

With deep experience in the medical field, it wasn’t until a breast cancer diagnosis in 2014 that Rosie fully embraced integrative medicine. “I’m 8 years cancer free but this journey led to becoming certified in health and nutrition coaching. We can live such a better life through diet and exercise. I had many reasons to take my health into a broader space.”

A New York City transplant that arrived in Lake Tahoe in 1990, Rosie and the Webber family, proprietors of The Village Pub, are well-known in the community. She even teases a possible mayoral run if the opportunity presents itself. You may also see Rosie at Azzara’s Restaurant where she has been waiting tables for 29 years. “I keep trying to leave but it’s family.”

“She is a pillar in the Lake Tahoe community,” says Haley. “She is one of the hardest working women I’ve ever known and truly leads by example. She is always available to support each and every one of her staff, students and clients,” including hosting the staff for a monthly “sangha” or gathering.

The Sanctuary offers yoga classes across all levels seven days a week. Try the signature Vinyasa Flow or a Slow Flow and Stretch après ski. Other new offerings include yomassage, a full body massage and yoga class all in one, as well as sound healing workshops. This summer Rosie will once again expand classes beyond the Sanctuary with yoga on the beach at the Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe. An introductory special for locals features unlimited classes over 30 days for $75.

The Sanctuary will also soon offer yoga for those undergoing or in remission from cancer treatment. During her treatment, she remembers being desperate to stay in yoga classes. “I came out of class upset rather than rejuvenated, I was crying because I couldn’t do it.” Rosie recently became the first certified instructor in the area and the program uses modifications and props to accommodate students.

With the support of family and friends and her network of wellness professionals, Rosie has learned much from her journey. “If you can take something positive and give that to other people, then you should. One person can change things and that’s what I’m trying to do here in this community.“

Get the latest updates on the schedule and offers by signing up for the Sanctuary’s newsletter www.thesanctuarytahoe.com.

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