Our Instructors
The Tacoma Tai Chi and Qigong Wellness Center was founded in 1993 by a student of Master Lin Mogen, who was widely known for his skill in push hands.
The Center offers the traditional Yang family Tai Chi pattern under the auspices of Master Lin Mogen, a fifth generation exponent of Yang family Tai Chi. Master Lin learned from Master Li Yaxuan who learned from Yang Chengfu, who learned from Yang Jian Hou, and who in turn, learned from Yang Lu Chan the founder of Yang style Tai Chi.
This lineage is known for its fluid and relaxed movement in Yang style Tai Chi, and for its grounding in healing arts.
Bryan Smith - Lead Instructor
Bryan Smith is trained in Standard Chinese Tai Chi Chuan and the Traditional Yang Family Style Tai Chi Chuan. He began studying under Sifu Lily Qin in 1996 and was named, by her, as Lead Instructor of the Tai Chi and Qigong Wellness Center in 2008.
Bryan, while at the Center, has also trained with Bill Mc Cabe a master of a hard-style art based on animal movements and a Martial Arts polymath.
When teaching, Bryan likes to focus on the details his teachers shared with him while incorporating descriptions of the feeling of flow that accompanies good Tai Chi. He is technically minded and enjoys teaching both beginners as well as those with more experience and skill.
Sid Olufs
Sid Olufs first studied Tai Chi with Lily Qin beginning in 2002 and has continued his studies with Master Xie Bingcan, noted for his skill at push hands, knowledge of the healing arts, and his self-defense teaching. Sid, while at the Center, has also had the opportunity to train with Bill Mc Cabe, a master of an eclectic martial arts tradition taking insight from the close observation and study of animal instincts and movements.
One other significant influence on Sid is the somatic meditation teachings of Reggie Ray and Callista Brown. Body awareness in meditation is a significant part of Tai Chi. This combination of soft and relatively hard approaches enlarges our possibilities with Tai Chi. Some of us may be interested in better balance and more resilient joints and tendons, and other health benefits. Some of us may wish to develop self-defense skills. There are many possible ways to make Tai Chi part of one’s life.
Kat Wood
Kat Wood (she/her) first learned Tai Chi while studying abroad in Ireland in 2001 and has been practicing at the Tacoma Tai Chi and Qigong Wellness Center since 2005. She learned the Yang Style Long Form from Master Lily Qin and apprenticed to teach the 24 forms under Carrie Washburn. Kat owes her skills as a teacher and her love of teaching tai chi to Carrie’s loving mentorship.
Kat has been teaching the 24 forms for many years at the center and loves this form for its brevity and its accessibility to beginners and returning students alike. Tai chi is the first form of meditation that Kat studied and still feels that this moving meditation has something to offer everyone such as relaxation, balance, and focus.
Bobbi Youtcheff
Bobbi has been honored to study Tai Chi with both Lily Qin and Bill Mc Cabe over many years. She has also trained in Okinawa, Japan for the Japanese sword.
Most recently, she has been teaching Senior Fitness and Tai Chi Movement for Better Balance. Her approach to teaching is broad and comes through a sense of light-heartedness and play.
Members of the Board
Sid Olufs
Shelley Skinner
Bryan Smith
Chee Tung
Kat Wood