Trainers
Laura Barbee
Laura Barbee spent most of her early years jumping and sweating in her home town of Tyler, Texas. At the age of four, she began taking ballet and putting that experience to good use. Laura went on to pursue dance both academically and professionally. In 2006, Laura earned her BFA in Ballet & Modern Dance at TCU as a Nordan Fine Arts Scholar. She has had the privilege of performing with professional companies and as a freelance artist with memorable experiences in regional, national, and international festivals including the Edinburgh Fringe. Laura is a certified GYROTONIC® & GYROKINESIS® instructor as well as an Authorized GYROTONIC® Pre-Trainer with additional certification on specialized equipment. Practicing this amazing system has helped make her daily life possible, especially after experiencing injuries. Some of her mentors include Juergen Bamberger, Nora Heiber, Debra Rose, Sebastian Plettenberg, Erika Hassan, and Michele Gifford. She is honored to teach locally as an adjunct faculty member in TCU’s School for Classical & Contemporary Dance, teach company class for the beautiful artists of Bruce Wood Dance Dallas, and co-own The Tree, Somatics & Kinetics in Fort Worth working with clients all while learning to live and move with joy through every season.
Jacque Crossin
Jacqueline (Jacque) Crossin has over 40 years experience in the fitness industry teaching many different formats. She discovered the Gyrotonic method while rehabbing a shoulder injury and discovered a new love of movement therapy. Believing movement is medicine for the body and soul, Jacque strives to create a supportive and encouraging environment for all levels and ages.
Certified: Gyrotonic Level 1 and 2 (A and B), Jumping Stretching Board, Archway, and Gyrotoner
License: Massage Therapist
Certified: Thai Bodywork
Yoga instructor RYT500
Pilates instructor (equipment and mat)
Aqua Instructor
Lagree Fitness Instructor
TRX Instructor
Jacque also has a love for family, dogs and of course, the beach!
Domingo Estrada Jr.
Domingo Estrada Jr., originally from Victoria, TX, grew up practicing martial arts, playing sports and dancing Ballet Folklorico with Our Lady of Sorrows. He earned his BFA in Ballet and Modern Dance from Texas Christian University. Estrada has worked with many wonderful choreographers including Susan Douglas Roberts (wild goose chase), Christian von Howard (VON HOWARD PROJECT), Bruce Wood (Bruce Wood Dance Dallas) and had an enduring career with Mark Morris (Mark Morris Dance Group). For the past two decades, he has also taught movement and dance to communities of all ages and abilities throughout the world and is grateful to continue sharing this passion. Domingo is a NASM certified personal trainer, with a specialization in corrective exercise, as well as a certified Dance for PD® educator.
Ted Hill
At the age of 19, Ted was run over by a car, breaking both femurs and requiring months in the hospital and multiple corrective surgeries. He remained active but experienced chronic pain throughout his working life. After retiring from a career in computer sales and management, Ted found it painful to play golf or participate in other physical activities. In 2010, Gyrotonic was recommended by a friend and Ted & Laura signed up for a month of twice-weekly sessions. The changes he saw in that time convinced Ted that he wanted to begin teacher training to learn more. In 2023, the opportunity arose to join in opening The Tree and continue to provide a nurturing space for teachers and students.
Laura Hunter
Laura Hunter trained as a Physical Therapist and worked in Inpatient Adult Rehabilitation for 30 years. She specialized in neuro patients during the first part of her career, especially people who had suffered strokes and traumatic brain injuries. She had the opportunity to receive training, both in PT school and after that focused on movement patterns that directly relate to the Gyrotonic method.
She began her personal gyrotonic experience training in Fort Worth with Michele Gifford. She and her husband, Ted, decided to pursue accreditation. She was able to work with several different master Trainers during the pre-training, training and test out process. Every trainer brought their own personalities and background into the training.
After completing the initial training, Laura has been able to take additional courses and refreshers, coming away from each with a better and deeper understanding on the Gyrotonic method and human movement in general.
Laura has been actively involved in fitness for a number of years and finds Gyrotonic to be an excellent way to stay fit and flexible as she ages.
On a personal level, Laura and Ted live in Fort Worth and have 2 daughters in the area as well as a son-in-law and twin grandbabies.