Meet the Office Team

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Rebecca graduated from Western Michigan University in 2013 with her Master's Degree in Occupational Therapy. She is board certified by NBCOT, is a member of AOTA, and is licensed by the state of Michigan. Since graduating, she has worked in the Kalamazoo area and beyond. She has extensive experience with both pediatric and adult populations, having worked in hospitals, outpatient clinics, and internationally with a non-profit in the Dominican Republic. She has also worked with children's wellness programs in the community, starting an adaptive fitness program and running a youth fitness program at a local gym. She collaborates immensely with WMU through research, supervision of clinical students, and support from other pediatric therapists to ensure best practices in OT. Rebecca has a passion for providing evidenced-based, whole-body focused interventions to kids in order to support development over the life span. She specializes in working with complex trauma, feeding disorders, and social skills. She is a trained TBRI Practitioner and is also an SOS-trained Feeding Therapist, as well as additional training in infant development. Further, she has merged her training as an OT with her passion for wellness programs, being certified in Infant Massage, Kids Yoga, and is also a Level I CrossFit Trainer and CrossFit Kids Trainer. Rebecca leads our Play & Grow, Infant Massage, Adaptive Fitness, and Social Skills Groups. In her free time, Rebecca loves to be outdoors, stay active with yoga and CrossFit, travel, or simply relax with her husband Luis and her young son. She is a huge foodie and loves finding delicious vegan foods at local restaurants! 

Kristen graduated from Western Michigan University in 2014 with her Master’s Degree in Occupational Therapy. She is board certified by NBCOT, is a member of AOTA, and is licensed by the state of Michigan. Kristen has extensive clinical experience working with the pediatric population in multiple settings, including outpatient, in-home, and as part of the clinical intervention team at the Southwest Michigan Children’s Trauma Assessment Center. She is active with WMU in her role as clinical supervisor, where she educates and collaborates with OT students in pediatric clinical practice. Kristen has worked with a wide range of ages and diagnoses including Autism Spectrum Disorders, fine & gross motor concerns, food selectivity, ADHD, and sensory processing disorders; she specializes in working with Complex Trauma and is most passionate about providing advocacy and education with this population. Kristen has extensive training in the treatment of complex trauma and has benefitted greatly from her work on the interdisciplinary team at CTAC to further her learning. She is also trained in Stanley Greenspan’s DIR/Floortime Model, Theraplay, Social Thinking, Positive Discipline, Reflex Integration, Sensory Based Modalities, Trust-Based Relational Intervention, and is an SOS-trained feeding therapist. She plans to continue her education by becoming a certified TBRI practitioner. Kristen has always been passionate about the pediatric population and was drawn to OT because it includes and involves the whole child and family. Kristen focuses on providing playful, creative, body-focused and relationship based interventions to support development and participation and celebrate the joys and successes of childhood with every client and family. Kristen loves to be outdoors with her dog and fiancé, hiking and finding quiet and fun new places to explore. She loves music and sports, cooking & baking, crafting and travel, but has always called Kalamazoo home. 

Liz graduated from Western Michigan University in 2011 with a Master’s Degree in Speech Language Pathology. She is Certified Clinically Competent (CCC) and licensed by the state of Michigan. Her experience began with 12 years of preschool teaching and administration, followed by graduate school in Speech, four years with Kalamazoo Public Schools and two with Rehabilitation Works, an outpatient rehabilitation clinic, serving primarily pediatric clients. Liz believes that the best results in therapy come from a partnership with caregivers/family and other service providers. Not only do families aid in setting goals, they are involved in the therapeutic process as much as is appropriate for the child. Therapy is individualized, focusing on a child’s immediate communication needs in all environments. Functional and academic communication, increasing literacy skills, and overall social language ability are at the heart of her practice. Liz has experience in treating stuttering, speech sound/articulation disorders, language disorders, apraxia of speech, autism spectrum disorders, and voice and resonance disorders. She has lived in Kalamazoo for ten years, and in her free time she loves to spend time with her husband, teenage daughters and dog, Cooper, outdoors when possible.  She is passionate about the idea  “let food be they medicine, and medicine be thy food” (Hippocrates) and loves making delicious things grown by friendly farmers at the Bank Street Farmer’s Market.  

Palin graduated from Western Michigan University in 2017 with her Master’s Degree in Occupational Therapy. She is board certified by the NBCOT and is licensed by the State of Michigan. Her clinical experience includes inpatient mental health and outpatient pediatrics. Palin has experience working with a wide range of ages and diagnoses such as ASD, ADHD, Sensory Processing Disorder, Neurodevelopmental conditions, cognitive delays, feeding difficulties, and several mental illnesses. Palin is also an SOS-trained feeding therapist, has experience using the Beckman Oral Motor feeding protocol, and plans to further expand her training in the field of feeding. She has been passionate about pediatrics since before starting OT school and is excited to continue to work with children and their families. Palin enjoys using meaningful and creative play, particularly imaginative!  She also has experience with neurodevelopment treatment and Applied Behavior Analysis. She hopes to continue her education through becoming a TBRI practitioner, receiving further training on neuromuscular disorders and work with infants, and would eventually like to go back to school for her PhD. Palin lives in Grand Rapids with her partner and in her free time, loves to hike, play board games, listen to music, and play with her dog, Winston.

Lai Yiu is a graduate music therapy student from Western Michigan University. She is board certified by the Certification Board for Music Therapists. Born and raised in Hong Kong, she received her Bachelor's Degree in Music from Hong Kong Baptist University, with a minor in psychology. Her thesis focused on music education for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder in Hong Kong. Lai Yiu is passionate about using a holistic and evidence-based approach for the pediatric population. She began working as a private piano tutor, teaching assistant, and piano accompanist to multiple children's choirs during her undergraduate years. During practicum rotations and internship at Children's Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, Lai Yiu has worked with a wide range of clientele ranging from pediatrics in the medical setting and with children with autism spectrum disorders, adolescents in special education settings, adults with developmental disabilities, and older adults with dementia. In her clinical work, she has worked with other healthcare professionals including child life specialists as well as physical, occupational, speech, and respiratory therapists. She is currently working on her thesis about the use of music in meditative movement, and is looking forward to exploring this topic with the children and families at Santosha Wellness. In her free time, Lai Yiu enjoys playing and listening to music, cooking, traveling, yoga, and photography.