Meet The Staff

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Founder/Gymnastics/Fitness 

Hey there! I am Joshua Roberts or as most know me, JRob! I am super excited  the expansion of GymFit! It has been my dream for years to have a gym where everything is under one roof and it's finally happening! I have been a gymnastics coach for 7 years with a speciality in bodyweight strength & conditioning. Over the last 4 years I have started teaching and training AcroYoga/Acrobatics and other Circus Arts, and I'm obsessed! One thing that I have learned over the past 7 years is that anyone and everyone is capable of learning something new, no matter your age or experience level! So come on out and step out of your box and try something different. You WON'T regret it!

-Keep Moving-

Photo By Jordan Hefler

Ninja Warrior Director/Owner

Welcome to the challenge.  I am David Gabel. I was a high school gymnast, and I have a passion for challenges. Seven years ago I caught the American Ninja Warrior bug.  Since then I have competed in 3 seasons of American Ninja Warrior. I have done Warrior Dashs, Tough Mudders, and a few other challenges. Now we are ready to help you achieve your physical peak performance. 

Photo By Jordan Hefler

Parkour Director/Owner

Hi there! If we haven't already met, my name is Erik Otts. I'm a passionate student and teacher of many flavors of physical movement. Though I am Baton Rouge born and raised, I would venture to say that I and my fellow colleagues aren't your typical Red Stick fitness coaches. We hope that you will join us here at GymfitBR, and that you will find your own passion in movement as we have found ours!

Cirque Director/Owner

Hello! My name is Stephanie Lee, and movement is my PASSION! I began breakdancing at the age of 17, training, traveling, and competing at events with friends. I taught break dancing/hiphop classes at a local studio for two years and have incorporated this movement in many performances. Four years ago I was introduced to acroyoga and partner acrobatics. Throughout my years of training, teaching workshops, and working with different acroyoga communities, I can tell you it not only improves balance and strength, but strengthens relationships between friends, family, and communities. This is achieved by working together through developing trust and therapeutic communication skills. So, if you are tired of running on that treadmill and want to step out of your box and try something new, I am beyond thrilled and look forward to sharing new and fun movements so YOU can be the BEST version of yourself!

Flow Arts Director

Hello, I'm John Scott. I am a professional fire bender associated with the Baton Rouge Fire Guild, with a background in acrobatics, skateboarding, parkour, and extreme climbing. Spreading the understanding and art of "flow arts" is my passion. From physical health to mental health, these circus arts can improve quality of life through meditation, and physical ability. I can teach most props and most ages as well ^_^ Looking forward to seeing you in class! 

Music Director/Secretary 

Kathy Rumfellow works as Gymfit’s Secretary Administrator and as our Music Director.  She was introduced to Gymfit through her son David's involvement in gymnastics with Coach Josh. (David now teaches in our homeschool PE program and evening classes.) Kathy is excited to bring her profession as a musician and her love of all things music to our camp, homeschool, and Gymfit evening programs.  She plays piano and violin and teaches private lessons on both instruments along with beginning voice lessons as well.  Her experience includes:  working as a music therapist with different client populations; traveling all over the world with orchestras and music ministries; leading children's choirs and youth praise and worship bands; and teaching music theory, piano class, violin class and chapel band at the Berean Homeschool Co-Op for several years.  Kathy has also been involved with musical theater most of her life as well and is currently on staff as pianist for CYT (Christian Youth Theater). She is excited to incorporate music into the performing arts component of Gymfit!

Tricking/Trampoline/Fitness

  David has been active in theater for many years. Most recently he had a principal role in Newsies at Theatre Baton Rouge, and has performed in nine CYT musicals, most notably as LeFou in Beauty and the Beast. David is interested in parkour, free running, acrobatics and barbershop quartets. He has also performed in several other local productions, most notably Justin Rayna's staged reading of Legend City, A New Musical, and Intensify! Currently, in addition to instructing our trampoline and tricking class, David is one of our camp staff and a coach for GymFit's Homeschool PE program. He also occasionally performs with Bayou Cirque. David would like his future to continue to include some kind of musical theater or acrobatic performance opportunities.

AcroYoga

Hey everyone! My name is LeeEllen Hutchinson, and I caught the acroyoga bug in January of 2015. I have to warn you that it is contagious! I started dancing with Center Stage Performing Arts academy at a very young age, and after many years of dance, I came across acroyoga and found a new passion. I didn't just fall in love with acro, but I fell in love with Gymfit and the community it brings. Being involved with such a fun-loving group of people has allowed me to make many friends and to set goals for myself that I never knew I had. Now, fitness is an important part of my life. As for my life outside of Gymfit, I like to stay busy. I am a nanny, a dental assistant, and I do photography. I am a member of Fellowship Church where you can find me snuggling with the babies on Sunday mornings. I hope to see you in class soon, and you will find out you don't need super powers to fly!

Camp Director/Homeschool PE Tutor

Michelle Griswold is a Baton Rouge native. She earned an Associates degree at Oregon Bible College before attending LSU where she studied both business and fine arts. Her three children grew up attending the Berean Homeschool Co-op which she founded in 2004 and still directs. Her oldest son is at LSU, her daughter competes on the gymnastics team at Lindenwood University in Missouri, and her youngest son studies classical piano at the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts. Michelle also taught at an athletic academy and was a Classical Conversations tutor and tutor trainer. She and her children have been active in Christian Youth Theater where she taught acting and theater tech classes and picked up the skill of stage managing. She now stage manages for other area theaters as well.

Trapeze

“Hi, I’m Nicole and I’m excited to be a part of the circus arts team at GymFit! I have over 10 years of circus experience that I can’t wait to share with all of you. I was a member of the Flying High Circus at Florida State University for 5 years, where I performed in over 300 shows and taught ground and aerial circus skills during summer camps. I specialized in aerial cradle, flying trapeze, Spanish web, partner balancing, and acrobatic jump rope. For a brief period during graduate school, I toured professionally with the High Flying Pages circus family. In my day job, I am a research scientist at Pennington Biomedical Research Center here in Baton Rouge. I currently study children’s health and physical activity, and am a strong advocate for bringing fun fitness opportunities to people of all ages!”

Aerial Silks

Hey y'all! My name is Allyson, a little Cajun from Cecilia, LA! I began my aerialist career by taking aerial yoga classes at my home yoga studio. A year later, I received my aerial yoga teacher certification from Aircat Aerial Arts and joined the aerial program at LSU. I have served as the vice president and president of the LSU Physical Theatre Club, an extension of the aerial program.  My favorite thing about the aerial is teaching, whether at LSU or GymFit, because my students make me proud every day! Along with Aerial Yoga, I am also a Registered Yoga Teacher, Registered Children's Yoga Teacher, and the founder of Bethel Yogi, a Catholic Yoga blog. I am currently a student at LSU pursuing a dual degree is Public Relations and Religious Studies.

Parkour/Free Running

Aerial Arts

Hey guys, my name is Carlee and I’ve been practicing aerial arts for 2 years. Silks has become one of my greatest passions in life, and I am excited to be able to share it with all of you! My favorite part of teaching is being able to help others express themselves through their movements on an apparatus. I encourage everyone, especially beginners, to take my classes or any classes at Gymfit because they truly are a release from the stress of everyday life and will motivate you to lead an altogether healthier lifestyle! 

Circus Arts Kids

 My name is Nicholas Stevens and I am the Kids' Circus Teacher and Manager.  I was invited by a friend who worked at GymFit to check it out to see if I wanted to get a membership. I was told it was kids' night just to "warn me" that there will be a lot of kids. From the second I walked in, I knew I had to work here. I love helping other people smile, especially kids, so I knew a job where I can do that everyday would be perfect for me. Now that I have learned multiple disciplines and have a passion to help the kids grow, I teach the kids' circus class. They will often be discouraged and say "I can't do it!" When they say this, I tell them "it's not that you can't do it, you just haven't done it yet!" Watching them transition from, "I can't..." to, "Look, I did it!" is the best feeling in the world. Through working and attending GymFit I have learned that failure is natural and not be so hard on myself. That is what I try to pass on. Learning skills is amazing, but being able to go from a place to where I was  falling, or not reaching a goal, to being able to succeed, is a great feeling. The only feeling greater is when I get to help someone else reach their goal.