About Us
Trinity Yoga Centre: A tranquil, harmonious environment conducive to your health and sense of well being. We are an environmentally friendly studio using only natural yoga mat disinfectants and plant based and biodegradable cleaning products.
Trinity Yoga Centre's directors, Jeff and Sonya bring a wealth of experience to every session. Trinity Yoga Centre offers a wide selection of instructional series and drop-in yoga classes to fit your schedule. Choose from a variety of exceptional health services to meet your personal needs.
Sonya Thomlinson, E-RYT 500
As co-director of Trinity Yoga Centre in Kelowna, BC, Sonya has taken her passion for yoga and wellness to create classes and health programs which promote lasting change. Sonya is known for her compassionate, strong, yet graceful style of teaching which includes a deep appreciation for both the physical and spiritual aspects of yoga.
A former resident and director of program operations at Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health in Stockbridge, MA, Sonya is a professional-level Kripalu Yoga Teacher and Kripalu DansKinetics® Teacher. She has studied with many of the master teachers within the field of yoga including; Erich Schiffman, Donna Farhi, Rodney Yee, Angela Farmer, also earning a Vinyasa Yoga Teacher Training Certification with Shiva Rea. Sonya is currently studying with Richard Miller and is in the process of obtaining certification in Integrative Restoration (iRest), also known as the meditative practice of Yoga Nidra.
Sonya is a graduate of the Institute for Integrative Nutrition in New York City, certified as a Holistic Health Counselor. She is trained in Eastern and Western dietary theory. Sonya supports her clients in restoring their inner and outer balance, increasing energy levels and overall well-being.
Through Sonya's completion of Landmark Education's Curriculum for Living, she was inspired to create Berkshire County's (Massachussetts) first ever 'Compassion in Action', a fundraising Yogathon to benefit the Berkshire Humane Society. Sonya brought ‘Compassion in Action‘ to Kelowna in 2006 with the Okanagan's first fundraising Yogathon to support the new Neonatal Unit at KGH. Visit www.kelownayogathon.com for 2007 event information.
Sonya lives in Kelowna, British Columbia with her husband Harshad Jeff Thomlinson, daughter Ananda Grace and her cat Ella.
Jeff Thomlinson, E-RYT 500
Jeff Thomlinson (Harshad) first explored yoga in 1980, and began teaching at the YMCA in Bellingham, WA, in 1991. During the early 90's he studied with Yogi Amrit Desai at the Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health in Stockbridge, MA, and later opened his own yoga studio in Aberdeen, Washington.
Jeff graduated from Alexandar School of Natural Therapeutics for massage, in 1996, and has been a Nationally Certified Massage Board member, and a senior staff member of the acclaimed Healing Arts Department of Kripalu Center. When Jeff returned to Kripalu Center in 1998 for a 1 year resident program he began focusing on advanced yoga practices and philosophy. Consequently, in 2001, he received his Kripalu Yoga Advanced Certification and went on to become a Kripalu Center staff guest yoga teacher, serving over 23,000 students annually.
In the spring of 2003, Jeff graduated from the Institute for Integrative Nutrition in New York City, a vanguard in the field of holistic nutrition and health. With the commitment to continue the study of yoga, in all its forms, Jeff assists and/or trains with many international yoga teachers and scholars, including; Erich Schiffman, Donna Farhi, Richard Miller, Richard Freeman, Stephen Cope, Angela Farmer, and many others. Jeff is currently studying with Richard Miller and is in the process of obtaining certification in Integrative Restoration (iRest), also known as the meditative practice of Yoga Nidra. Jeff, originally from Washington State, now resides in Kelowna, BC.
Rachael Emerson
Yoga found Rachael in 1998 while she was looking for answers and a direction after she made the choice to leave a competitive volleyball life. What an amazing gift to discover the spiritual side of herself through the physical body that she was so used to using and identifying with. Finding the balance between the physical body and the spiritual body and accepting both is still her challenge and her journey's purpose 8 years later. Rachael loves to integrate both aspects in her yoga practice: a physical challenge or restoration when needed coupled with a journey of the soul.
Rachael completed a Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology from Simon Fraser University and has recently decided to return to university to study Physics. She hopes to share her love of asking the 'big questions' by teaching Physics in high school.
Leanne Ruechel
Leanne discovered yoga in 2000 and was captivated. She biked or walked daily to yoga classes, continually drawn and curious to the unfolding of yoga in her body, mind and spirit. Leanne is so grateful for the precious and diverse yoga teachers whom so willingly shared their yogic learning to add to her journey. In June 2006, Leanne completed her 250-hour Yoga Teacher Training at Moksana Yoga Centre. Leanne has taught in high schools, homes, and studios in Vernon and Victoria. Leanne's classes are flowing and meditative and her teaching is gentle and intuitive. She creates a space for each student to express their individuality. Through her experiences instructing outdoor adventure programs, guiding nature hikes, and organic farming, her classes are also infused with her love and connection to nature.
Elaine Stamcoff
After many years of practicing yoga to support my body, my muscles and joints,
I found Trinity Yoga Centre and knew right from the first class I attended that I had found myself in a special place...a place where I have been able to discover ways to nourish and nurture my whole being...body, mind and spirit.
I enrolled in the yoga teacher training program for personal reasons --to deepen my yoga practice. I completed the 300 hour Integrative Yoga and Health Teacher Training Program in May of 2007 and was so inspired by this new journey of life, that I visited the Kripalu Center in Massachusetts that summer for a retreat program and further teacher training in Yoga Nidra with Richard Miller. I returned home with the desire to share my passion for yoga and began teaching at Trinity in January 2008. I am currently teaching prenatal yoga classes and I continue to deepen my personal yoga practice on the mat and also in advanced teacher training programs towards my 500 hour certification.
This has been a life changing experience for me... I am truly blessed with this practice of yoga and the friendship of many amazing yogis and yoginis.
Joanne Van Ee
I had been practicing yoga on and off for nearly 20 years. I knew that I needed to deepen my own practice and make it more on than off, so I joined the 2007-08 teacher training group. I was immediately drawn to Jeff and Sonya's dedication to the true nature and essence of yoga. For me, the teacher training program was a life altering experience that I highly recommend. I went there for my own growth and now I am teaching at the Trinity Yoga studio in Vernon to help others grow as well.
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