Metairie, La. — Ochsner and the Saints teamed-up to raise money for their Multiple Sclerosis Yoga Fund, by hosting a yoga class at the Ochsner Sports Performance Center in Metairie Saturday morning. The event took place at the Saints’ indoor practice facility, where around 100 people signed-up for the hour-long yoga class with Higher Power NOLA owner, Mark Berger.
“I learned my best friend’s wife has a mild case of MS,” said Berger, also of Berger Fitness and Yoga. “Yoga’s one of those things that you can do for everything in your life. Whether you’re an incredible athlete like (Saints running back) Daniel Lasco, who’s here already, or if you have some ailments or some illnesses, it’s just moving and breathing. It’s something that’s so therapeutic for the body, the mind, and for the spirit.”
The $20 participants paid to take the class, along with other donations and a raffle, benefit Ochsner’s Multiple Sclerosis Yoga Fund. The fund allows Ochsner’s MS patients and their caregivers to take yoga classes at their MS Center for free, as part of the treatment and support they provide.
“In our experience,” said Director of the Ochsner MS Center, Bridger Bagert. “We’ve had our MS program since 2013. We’ve seen and observed tremendous benefits in our patients who regularly do the program. It’s inspired us to expand the program. We want to expand it further and we offer it free of charge to our patients into the community.”
Saints running back, Daniel Lasco, along with some of the Saintsations were there for the event and took the class alongside the rest of the participants– including several patients living with MS that are in the Ochsner program.
“Yoga is to unite people,” said Berger, also of Berger Fitness and Yoga. “When you unite people, you can do it for a cause. You can do it for a good reason– not only for yourself but for others. When you treat yourself really good by doing yoga, then you can share it to the world.”
