Meet the Makers
Paula Fraschetti - CEO/Founder of Oak City Yoga
Paula Fraschetti is the founder of Oak City Yoga. Oak City Yoga has been operating on a pop-up basis since 2017. She is excited to bring her concept to Downtown Raleigh and watch it grow. Paula plans to innovate and expand on what it truly means to stay well while making wellness more accessible.
Israel Bilbao - Lead Instructor and Co-owner
Born in Venezuela and raised in Florida, Israel has always been passionate about sports. He is an avid swimmer, cyclist, runner and has competed in several long distance triathlons as well marathons. After one of his training coaches encouraged him to get involved in yoga to promote stretching as cross training, he thought it was a great way to keep from getting injured. Israel truly fell in love with the practice and decided to get his 200-hour yoga teaching training certification. Israel’s goal is to teach and promote the benefits of yoga to as many people as possible, no matter where they are in their yoga journey.
Stephanie Disbrow - Instructor
Stephanie has been passionately working on her mat since 2008 and plans to be an eternal yoga student. She earned her 200 hour yoga teacher certification from two brilliant yogis who taught with an emphasis on alignment, yoga history, energy, functional anatomy, neurobiology and the mind, body, spirit connection. Stephanie is also a competitive tennis athlete and a local high school tennis coach who deeply believes that athletics and yoga form the perfect union. You’ll find her as your peer in the classroom setting, learning together, practicing together and growing together while she infuses uplifting and thoughtful messages related to humanity and living joyfully imperfect. Stephanie welcomes all levels and all ages!
Max Baker - Max Baker Yoga - Special Event Instructor
Max first started practicing yoga in 2012 as a way to exercise without aggravating a torn labrum in his hip. The doctors told him that he was not allowed to run or ice skate again, which was devastating since he grew up playing ice hockey, rugby, and cross country running. So, he decided to give yoga a try and it was much harder than he thought it would be! Over time, Max’s practice began to shift from a mode of exercise to a holistic and spiritual journey. Max has also been meditating for nearly 20 years, and adding yoga to his life has enhanced his meditation. In early 2021, he started a year-long Yoga Teacher Training with Janet Stone, a highly respected teacher with over 30 years of experience. The training was transformational - his biggest shift was to understand the philosophy behind the practice, which is really the WHY behind everything that we do. The WHY is to connect and align - with his deepest self, with his community, and with the Universe. Max now steps onto his mat with a new mindset behind the movements. In early 2022, he became a 200-hour Registered Yoga Teacher.
