Alexei Levine MPT, LMT

Widely considered to be among the very best massage therapists in Los Angeles during the '90's, Alexei is a physical therapist and massage therapist. Drawing on his extensive background as a competitive gymnast, and martial artist, and learning from many other talented massage therapists in L.A., he developed an eclectic range of massage techniques and attracted a high profile client list that included many artists, performers, actors, stuntmen, and musicians.
He moved east to start a massage school, and began the only massage school in the northeastern United States to teach a deeper west coast style of massage therapy. Recently he was appointed to the Massachusetts Department of Education's Proprietary School Advisory Council as co-chairman. He also was a member of the coalition that crafted the new Massachusetts state regulations for licensing massage therapy, representing all private stand alone massage schools in the state.

Valerie Hood, LMT

Valerie graduated from Brown University with a BA in Human Biology. While homeschooling her growing children, she opened a bakery, The Bread Lady, in Newport, Rhode Island. She is a licensed massage therapist, and specializes in deep tissue massage with an emphasis on issues of the lower back. Interested in alternative methods of healing, she has studied with shamans in the central plateau of Brazil and in the Amazon jungle of Peru.

Teeka, a native of the Pioneer Valley, teaches massage techniques. Suffering from a long-standing injury, she found that the relief from pills and other western techniques simply masked the injury. Seeking a more lasting treatment, she turned to massage therapy. Finally, Teeka had discovered a way to truly treat her symptoms; it was thus that she was awakened to the healing benefits of massage therapy.

Having realized first-hand the benefits of massage, Teeka decided she wanted to spread it's healing power to others whose injuries could be successfully treated as hers had been. As a teacher, she finds that she can reach out to a larger group of people. She enjoys passing her knowledge to her students, who are then able to benefit their own clientele. "The profession of being a massage therapist," Teeka says, "is beneficial because you can help people lead better lives both physically and mentally."

Elena Volpe, LMT

Elena Volpe has been a licensed massage therapist since 1989.

She has taught at The Massage School of Santa Monica in California and was Director of Training Burke Williams Day Spa, responsible for teaching over 500 massage therapists, in addition to her individual clientele.

In 1991, she founded “Pain in the Neck” a chair massage business whose clients included HealthNet Insurance, Men’s Health Magazine, and the California Gas Company. In 1996 she was recruited by Cedars-Sinai Medical Center to develop a post-operative massage protocol for heart surgery patients by observing surgery and interviewing patients.

She has taught massage workshops in Pregnancy massage, Neuromuscular Re-education, Advanced Circulatory, Shiatsu and Watsu in California, New Mexico, Brazil and Massachusetts.

In addition to massage therapy, Elena is a licensed psychotherapist specializing in Somapsychology, and teaches continuing education seminars.