Charity Holland
Resonating in Harmony
March 2024 Issue
by Mary Hope Roseneau
Photography by Cassidy Dunn Photography
On her Facebook page, Charity describes herself as “indigenous woman, body worker, yogi, artist, belly dancer, tree hugger, mom to Eli, and wife of Ashley. She knows who she is and defines herself for all to see. Though she encompasses all of these titles, she is so much more.
We met up in the coffee shop at Beaufort Waterfront Park, where she arrived wearing a beautiful, colorful cape that looked like it was made from a menagerie of fabrics, pieced and sewn together to make something so striking. I learned Charity made it herself. She explained how she uses old clothes to bring new life to creations she crafts and sews together. This has become a passion she has turned into a fun, small business. She calls it “GrateFULL Threads Upcycled Clothing.
Charity is a Native American Indian woman, originally from the Panhandle of Texas, so I had to ask the obvious question, “How did you get to the South Carolina Lowcountry?” She met her husband, Ashley, in Colorado. However, he is from Beaufort, so they ended up here.
Immediately drawn to this area, Charity learned all about the rivers, tides, and pluff mud. She now utilizes the natural environment and all she has learned to teach standup paddleboarding and paddleboard yoga. She is also a certified massage therapist.
One of five children, Charity grew up in the Palo Duro Canyon near San Antonio and learned from her family to farm, raise animals, and respect the earth. Her mother and grandmother used native plants and herbs to keep them all healthy and shared their wisdom with her. Charity honors her body as a vegetarian, eating gluten-free and never consuming alcohol. The health and connection of body, mind, and spirit is important to her and lead her to become certified in Reiki, a Japanese form of energy healing.
Wanting to share her love of all things natural, she teaches yoga classes at USC-Beaufort, which are open to both students and the general public.
“No matter where you are at in your life, yoga can be beneficial. I have taught 5-year-old children fun animal poses and shared with them how to relax their minds. I’ve also taught yoga to a 90-year-old man who practiced in a chair, while healing from a shoulder injury. Yoga is not just about flexibility but also focuses on the mind body connection and wellness. You are only as young as your spine is flexible!” Charity said.
She also offers sound healing sessions, where she mallet taps Tibetan sound bowls filled with water. The vibrations and sounds of the water resonate with the high percentage of water in our bodies and can heal stress, pain, and “out of harmony” parts of the body.
Family is important to Charity. Ashley and their son, Elijah, are involved in all of her activities. Ashley is a Math Interventionist at Lady’s Island Elementary School and a bluegrass /rock musician. It’s very fitting for math and music to go hand-in-hand, as does Charity and Ashley.
They collaborate on projects all the time. Charity has online videos of her yoga classes that are accompanied by music she and her husband create. He supports her in all she does and understands what’s important to her. She has two life goals which fit her heart perfectly. First, she wants to be a guide for people. She works from her inner wisdom and has a gift to teach. Her soul operates from a place of true caring, and her empathy is apparent in all she does.
Another goal Charity works towards every chance she gets is sharing the beauty of life. “It is all around us,” she exclaimed. She pays close attention to the patterns and themes seen in nature and emulates them in her clothing creations and Mala bead necklaces, which are used as meditation tools.
Beautiful inside and out, Charity is full of spirit, in touch with mother earth, and wise beyond her years. She walks gently upon this earth, which is the foundation of her power and peace, allowing harmony and nature to lead the way.
Up Close:
Favorite Quote: “Let’s meet in nature and be the bedrock of shared peace.” —Angie Weiland Crosby
Spirit Animal: A turtle--it walks slow and intentionally on earth but can move fast and at ease in water.
Best OMG nature moment: Taking a group of kayakers and Paddleboarders to a secluded sandbar for a yoga session. During our yoga practice, a group of dolphins decided to strand feed right on the sandbar. We all stopped and watched in amazement as they fed literally a few feet from us.
One more OMG moment: I was hiking down into the Grand Canyon and couldn’t believe how God made all that majestic, powerful beauty and remembered to make lil’ ol’ me too. What a blessing.
Want to try on some Charity originals? Don’t miss her and all the fun at Springfest 2024 in Port Royal, SC, on April 7 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Want to connect with Charity? Email her at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Find her on Facebook at Sacred Space Yoga and Pilates.