Marchell Giorgi Scarano, Her Story of Wellness, Incredible Resilience and Inspiration

By Denise Louise Gregorka

Anyone who has lived in Little Falls for a short while has most likely crossed paths with or has heard of Marchell Scarano, owner of ‘Yoga and Wellness.’ She has been a fixture in the community as a wellness instructor for decades and has committed her life to keeping people healthy.

Little did she know that in one life-changing moment, everything she had ever taught would become necessary tools in a huge personal hurdle.

Marchell was born and raised in Little Falls. For the most part of her childhood, she lived on the south side, and she went to Jefferson St. School. She grew up with dancing lessons, including ballet, jazz, and tap dancing.

She went to college for ‘Probation Parole for Juveniles’ to follow the family tradition of law enforcement. Unfortunately, in the 1970s, women were not as accepted into those

Dolgeville Farmer’s Market in Full Swing

Story and photos by Carol

Saturdays from 9 am to 1 pm, the Village of

Dolgeville holds its weekly Farmer’s Market sponsored by Dolgeville Forward at Plowe Park. It was a rainy morning when

I visited the market, but the vendors and visitors were not discouraged.

Amanda from K&A Coral kinds of positions, and she was not able to find work in that field.

The Early Exercise Years

said they have been coming to this market for about five years. “It’s very steady and busy. We’ve gotten to know the other vendors and the customers who come each week. It’s a nice family atmosphere.”

Local vendors offer organic produce, farmraised meats and eggs, homemade wares, flowers, plants, and unique gifts. The market is a chance to support local farmers and businesses

She remembers, “My first training in exercise came from Jack LaLanne. During my college years, I was able to train with him during a summer

Please See WELLNESS Page 2 while stocking up on fresh and healthy locallygrown products for the week.

There are also lots of great snacks and food available each week. While I was at the market, there were great options such as sausage, egg, and cheese breakfast sandwiches, fruit and yogurt parfaits, pulled pork sandwiches with coleslaw, and cold drinks.

Please See MARKET Page 7 program.”

After college, because she could not pursue her chosen profession, she took a part-time job managing a women’s gym in Herkimer, which was the only one in the area. She stayed in that position for one year and was eventually recruited by the owners of a new gym in Little Falls.

Around 1975, after running that gym, Marchell states, “I decided I wanted to do an exercise class for women because there was no such thing. Women were coming to the gym, but they needed more than the rollers, the belts, and the old- fashioned machines.” She approached Mr. Truman, the YMCA director in Little Falls, and he agreed to give her a small room in the Y’s basement. It was a modest start.

The following year, Tony Deluca became the new YMCA director and helped to make her room more accommodating. After a couple of years, the class had outgrown its space, and they moved to the Y’s gym for one hour each week.

Marchell remembers, “By the time we got into the 80s, we were in the gym two nights, and those classes were up to almost eighty to ninety

Joe Macri Home Improvement

315-336-4176 josepheasyout@aol.com people. The gym was packed because it was popular. Jane Fonda had come in, and it was more acceptable. We had it all...the leg warmers, the headbands...everything.”

She was teaching separate classes, including high impact, low impact, flexilence, & weights.

As time went on, Marchell sought to find gyms in different, large cities as she traveled with her husband for his work. She wanted to see what they were doing.

“During those years, there was no training to go learn how to teach Pound. There wasn’t that kind of thing, especially for women. So you had to look. I brought back step aerobics classes. My dad made the steps. At the peak of my time there, I had two classes on four nights and one on Saturday morning.”

The women appreciated having a place to go and learning how to be healthy. Marchell states, “I always wanted it to be something I enjoyed, and I wanted them to enjoy. I wanted them to feel good about what they were doing and be healthy and strong in a safe atmosphere. I have never stopped learning. There is always something else to learn.”

She taught weight training at Herkimer College as well.

Yoga

When Marchell approached her fortieth birthday, she started feeling that the excessive hours of teaching were taking a toll on her body.

“I was teaching a lot and doing a lot. That was more than the average person should actually do, so I started to feel some of the side effects. It was too much.”

She started looking at yoga practices. Since there were no yoga classes in the area, she went searching in Albany and Syracuse to see what was out there and what she could learn. “There was no online learning, no YouTube.”

She started to learn yoga and eventually would slowly introduce the stretches and poses to her classes. In 1996 she became certified and started yoga classes.

“I’ve learned the different styles, but I still come back to Hatha Yoga which is the yin & yang, the balance, and was the beginning of all of the other styles of yoga. I am a Hatha Yoga teacher with flavorings of many other teachings.”

She went from teaching on Furnace St. to the basement of the Co-Op and also brought classes to Herkimer College. She has taught yoga all over the area, including YMCAs in various surrounding cities. During all of those years of teaching, she held a full-time job.

Marchell decided that she wanted to own her own business, which she could run her way on her schedule. She set her sights on her present location at 27 West Main St. in Little Falls, where she has most of her classes but takes opportunities to teach

Please See WELLNESS Page 5