When we started Carolina Peds back in 2002, it started out as a little seed. As a business owner, and someone who starts something from nothing, literally, not two pennies to rub together, as my grandmother would say. To see what it is today, is really … it’s a blessing. I think, for us, it’s a mission. It’s a calling. So to see that come to fruition is really remarkable. I’m a speech language pathologist and I’m serving children birth to three. I was a solo practitioner, so I had about 20 to 25 children. It was just me, in the back of my car, with my toys, and going into homes. Really, just working with kids with what they had in their environment. I realized that, those children had a lot of complex needs, more so, really, than me, as a speech pathologist, I couldn’t address all of those on my own.
I don’t operate in silos very well. I don’t think any of us do. We just got this vision and we, I mean, me and my husband, Eric. He is the one that helped me start the business and gave me the encouragement to do it. That’s really where the idea came from, was just, “Maybe we could put together a team.” We started looking in the area. Thinking that, of course, there must be something else like this around, and we couldn’t find anything. So we decided to start it.
We do really good work, and it’s work that we believe in. It’s work that we want to get up in the morning over. Working with children, and investing in our future, is something worth getting excited about. What makes us really different is, first of all, that heart behind everything that we do. It’s on purpose, and it’s intensional, but the other thing is, is that it’s really comprehensive, and it’s unique. The way that we approach children, and families, is by looking at them as a whole person. We have all the disciplines under one roof, and we have a big vision for it, as far as bringing other specialists on board. But, right now, we have the specialized therapy, so we have speech, occupational and physical therapy. Then we also have the behavioral health, so we have psychology, social work, counseling, and most recently we’ve added a pediatric registered dietician.
When parents come in with their child, they’ve been given a lot of information from their doctors. They’ve been told about a diagnosis that they may have never even heard of. When they walk in the doors they’re a little scared, sometimes they’re a little overwhelmed, a lot overwhelmed. We want them to come in and have the experience of knowing that they’re not alone. That we’re coming alongside of them, together. Whatever their journey is, whatever their struggle is, whatever their obstacles are to overcome, we’re not there to put our expertise on top of them, but we are there to come alongside of them, and show them that they can do it. We’re there to offer resources, and help, and education, and to answer to questions for them. Just to really be there with them, along the journey.
We love the work we do. It’s so fun to love your work. I mean, that’s just not something everyone can say. Yeah, it means a lot. I really can’t describe it. If you’d like to reach out to us, if you’d like some help, and you have more questions, or would like more information, then you can call us at, 828.634.7669, or you can reach us on our website at, carolinapeds.com.
