Our Yoga Instructors
Shannon Smith
Shannon has been a yoga student for more than 20 years. As a licensed Physical Therapy Assistant, she took a continuing education class about yoga in 2010 and this started it all! She believes that yoga is for EVERYBODY and EVERY BODY! In 2016 Shannon decided to share her love of yoga and became an instructor. She received her 200 hour Yoga Teacher Certification at the Rasika Yoga School and began teaching almost immediately at Synergy Yoga in Rock Hill. When the Pandemic caused Synergy to close its doors in the summer of 2020, Shannon decided to open Southern Yoga Studio in September of 2020. She is currently working on her 500 hour Yoga Teacher Certification.
Sharon Fox-Thornton
Sharon began studying yoga while in college. Since that time, her practice has deepened through the decades as she raised a family, completed a MBA program, and worked in a fast-paced environment within the financial services industry. She will tell you she is grateful for all aspects of her life, and also grateful for the impact yoga has had to offer her through many challenges in each area of her life, particularly for managing stress.
As a teacher, Sharon’s passion is to serve others through yoga styles that lift the spirit , quiet the mind and benefit the body.
Sharon left her corporate job in 2020 to pursue sharing yoga as a teacher. She earned a 200 hour Yoga Teacher Certification in 2018 and is currently completing a 500 hour Yoga Teacher Certification program at Chakra Flow University, studying with Victoria Martinez.
Julie Hance
Julie began practicing yoga 20 years ago to manage stress and recover from an injury. She is a Yoga Alliance Registered Yoga Teacher, RYT 500, completing 500 hours of training with Grace Morales with additional training to teach Yoga for Athletes.
Julie’s classes include an awesome playlist and a wide range of poses, with options to get more or less out of each pose. She offers something for everyone in her classes regardless of experience levels. She has taught at Synergy Yoga in Rock Hill, Vital Yoga in Charlotte, and the Woman's Club of Rock Hill.
Brittany Winans
Brittany Winans is a yoga instructor and musician who was lucky to find yoga at the age of 17. From her first week of consistent practice, she found that yoga was a perfect combination of movement and focus that complimented her life as a performer in music, dance, and theatre. Because of this, Brittany decided to dive deeper and get her yoga certification. In the summer of 2017, she received her 200-hour RYT from Holy Cow Yoga located in Charleston, SC.
Brittany currently teaches yoga at Southern Yoga Studio, online at YogaVibes.com, and at Winthrop University as a Professor of Yoga. She enjoys guiding her yoga students to decompress by using the tools of yoga to become more aware, focused, connected, and open to new experiences. Brittany loves to incorporate music, chanting, deep breathing, and emotional healing in her yoga classes.
In addition to her yoga certification, Brittany has a BM in Vocal Performance with a minor in theatre from Winthrop University. When she is not on the mat, you can find Brittany in the Rock Hill band CYAN, singing/dancing on stage, teaching music lessons, gardening, cooking, and traveling.
Christine Monte
Christine began her yoga journey in 2017 for better health and less stress. Her practice of yoga brings calmness to her mind, lubricates her joints, and alleviates her body pain. She is a firm believer that yoga is for everybody and every body, so anyone/everyone can do some form of yoga. She received her 200 hour Yoga Teacher Certification in 2024 from Life Inspired Yoga Teacher Training School along with the class certificate in “mindfulness”.
Christine has a love for the chakras, energy centers of the body, and has created a slow flow class that will help balance your mind, body, and soul. These classes can aid in physical energy, mental clarity, overall improvement in mood and balance in everyday life.
