Let us introduce ourselves…
Meet Katie.
Creator and owner of CAYA. She’s an occupational therapist on mission to serve others with empathy, creativity, education, and her never-ending passion for learning.
After practicing for nearly a decade in outpatient pediatric settings, Katie returned to school, earning a post-professional Doctorate of Occupational Therapy. CAYA Therapies is the culmination of her studies, clinical expertise, and deep passion for providing holistic support for vulnerable, disadvantaged populations. Katie aspires to build environments and communities for people to “Come As You Are” (the basis for the CAYA acronym). She does this at CAYA, but also through her teachings and trainings, where she imparts knowledge and perspectives that propel foundational, systemic changes outside of her clinic’s walls.
Katie’s professional continuing education has revolved around trauma-responsive care, sensory integration, auditory interventions, polyvagal theory, and neurodevelopment.
Katie has experience working with immigrant and refugee youth, juvenile justice involved youth, youth living in foster care, and other neurodivergent individuals (including diagnoses of Autism and ADHD).
Her favorite moments include storytelling, nature, creativity, good food, coffee, friends and family.
Meet Lette.
An occupational therapist motivated to build skills and relationships through connection, creativity, and fun.
Lette finds delight in the simple connected moments of therapy, and is most often found blowing bubbles, throwing balls, pushing swings, playing games, making crafts, and finding fun in all that she can. She is quick to get kids, teens, and grown-ups moving in creative ways in order to build dynamic relationships while strengthening brains and bodies. Lette welcomes parents and caregivers into sessions - she enjoys collaborating with them and empowering them to support their children at home. Lette has a younger sister with Down syndrome, so her heart for people with various abilities is both personal and professional.
Lette has experience with clients ages 2-26 with a wide variety of needs, including ASD, ADHD, anxiety, sensory differences, trauma and attachment challenges, and motor concerns. Her continuing education has centered around sensory integration, trauma-informed care, auditory and vestibular interventions, and relationship-based developmental models.
Lette enjoys being outdoors in Michigan year round; going to the beach, hiking, running, and XC skiing are just a few of her favorite activities.
Meet Irma.
An occupational therapist focused on helping people reach their full potential.
Irma’s favorite treatment sessions are filled with smiles, play, and caregiver collaboration. She has focused her career on assisting pediatric clients and their caregivers to reach meaningful goals through client-centered and play-based therapeutic interventions.
Her experience includes working at a children’s hospital with youth of all ages - from infancy to young adulthood. Irma has worked with a variety of medical diagnoses, including premature birth complications, spinal fusions, Nuss procedures, burns, brain injury, Autism Spectrum Disorder, and anxiety. She’s no stranger to collaborating with parents who are scared, exhausted, and ‘in the thick of it’. Currently, Irma is focusing her studies on building advanced skills in sensory integration intervention, critical reasoning, and trauma-responsive care. Irma is bilingual, speaking English and Bosnian.
Irma enjoys traveling, walking her playful Goldendoodle, reading, and exploring the many nature trails Michigan has to offer.
Meet Lauren.
An expert with a special interest in using practical intervention strategies to build life skills at home, school, and in the community.
Lauren is an occupational therapist with over 15 years of experience working with the pediatric population in both private practice and school-based settings. She builds strategic treatment plans to address functional skills, from the inside out.
Lauren’s expertise in building sensory integration, attention/executive functioning, and interoceptive awareness make her a great match for tweens, teens, and young adults. She has a special passion for addressing the pre-driving needs of neurodivergent adolescents and young adults, to increase their potential to safely drive in the community.
Lauren was raised in West Michigan, and loves everything the area has to offer – from spending time outdoors to exploring beach towns. Lauren is married with three school-aged children. Outside of work, she enjoys watching her children play sports and spending time with her yellow Labrador retriever, Whisper.
Meet Emily.
An office manager with a unique perspective.
Emily uses her occupational therapy background to help make sure all the bases of services are covered.
She is a graduate of Grand Valley State University’s occupational therapy program. With time, Emily found her niche in organizing office systems, chatting with insurance companies, and coordinating the care of clients (and fellow staff members). If you have any questions about insurance coverage, costs, scheduling, or anything really, she would love to chat with you.
Emily enjoys spending time with her family, reading, and spending time outside - especially in the summer.
Meet Dom.
An occupational therapist ready to move, learn, connect, and empower.
Domonique (or ‘Dom’ as we all call her) is able to take what she learns and apply it across multiple settings, in ways that are fun, meaningful, and incredibly therapeutic.
Prior to her arrival at CAYA, Dom worked with a variety of populations, including infants in the NICU, young adults with recent spinal cord injuries, youth living in residential facilities, and children with various abilities in alternative outpatient settings. These experiences built a foundation of skills to approach people holistically and creatively. Dom received extensive mentorship from Katie & Lette while she completed her doctoral fellowship here at CAYA. Her continuing education has centered around trauma-responsive approaches, sensory integration, upper extremity treatment, TheraPlay, and DIR/Floortime.
Prior to her career as an occupational therapist, Dom learned the power of movement through dance. She was an instructor and participant in multiple professional dance organizations across the state of Michigan.
Dom has a special way of playfully engaging with people of all ages, interests, and abilities.
Meet Regan.
An occupational therapist with a passion for providing holistic care to help individuals thrive and feel seen.
Regan loves building meaningful relationships through play, connection, and collaboration with clients of all ages and abilities as well as caregivers. She strives to bring a calm, steady energy balanced with playfulness to each session to create a safe environment for each individual she works with.
She has primarily gained experience through working with children and families in outpatient pediatric settings specializing in sensory integration. Regan has worked with a variety of populations, including children and adolescents with sensory processing differences, ADHD, ASD, anxiety, and motor coordination challenges. Prior to becoming an occupational therapist, she gained years of experience facilitating healthy living programs for youth in her community and local school district with her background in exercise science. Regan loves learning and has pursued continuing education on polyvagal theory utilizing the Safe and Sound Protocol. She is most passionate about continuing her studies on ways to support an individual’s nervous system with a trauma-responsive approach and implementation of therapeutic techniques including sensory integration, auditory interventions, mindfulness, and yoga.
Regan enjoys nature-based activities, traveling, reading, trying new coffee shops, exercise, and connecting with family and friends in her free time.
Meet Megan.
An occupational therapist with a passion for promoting connection and understanding through meaningful activities.
Megan’s favorite treatment sessions are filled with smiles, creativity, connection, and caregiver collaboration. Megan believes true progress is made when you understand the whole client including their passions, interests, and what makes them tick. Megan loves learning and has continued her education in trauma-responsive approaches, sensory integration, DIR/Floortime, vision rehabilitation, reflex integration, and polyvagal theory.
Prior to her arrival at CAYA, Megan worked with a variety of populations and ages, including those with sensory processing differences, anxiety, PTSD, ADHD, motor coordination difficulties, rare diseases, spinal cord injuries, brain injuries, and orthopedic conditions. Along with her clinical experience, Megan has a strong passion for promoting health equity and bringing awareness to rare diseases, including advocating and raising funds for continued research of rare diseases.
In Megan’s free time she enjoys spending time with her horse, exploring new hiking paths with her dog, practicing yoga, and connecting with family and friends.
Interested in joining our team?
We accept resumes and cover letters on a rolling basis…and we hope to make our team interdisciplinary soon!
If you’re interested in an internship, volunteer role, or job shadow, please connect with our office for scheduling and availability.
Looking for Speech Therapy?
Meet our neighbors.
At CAYA, we believe in the power of interdisciplinary work. We are thankful to work closely with our neighbors and trusted partners, Building Blocks Therapy Services, as they provide speech and language therapy services to many of our clientele.