Team Members
Julie Melton, PT, PCS
(Pictured with husband Charlie and Border Collie extraordinaire, Tag)
Cheif Stewardship Officer
&
Director of Physical Therapy
Julie has been a pediatric physical therapist for 20 years and a Board Certified Specialist in Pediatric Physical Therapy for 10 years. Her passions for working with children include, complex gait training, pediatric balance and vestibular rehabilitation, birth to 3 populations, cerebral palsy and other neurological conditions, hippotherapy and aquatic therapy. She is a huge supporter of adapted tricycles and adapted sports. She created Ballerina Dreams, an all-abilities dance class that has been enjoyed for more than 10 years in Central Texas in partnership with Joy's School of Dance.
Julie and Charlie have 5 kids and enjoy God's blessing of living on a farm with many pets including dogs, cats, cows, ducks, geese and lots of wild animals as well!
Two of Julie's favorite Bible verses are:
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. - Romans 15:13
All things are possible for one who believes. - Mark 9:23
Jim Horn, OTR/L, CKTP
Director of Occupational Therapy
Bio Coming Soon
Christina Rivera Ortiz, M.S., CCC - SLP
Director of Speech Therapy
Christina has been a pediatric bilingual speech language pathologist for 10 years. She can speak both English and Spanish. Christina worked in school districts for the first 2 years of her career and for the last 8 years she has worked in pediatric outpatient clinics. She is working on completing her online clinical doctorate with Nova Southeastern University. Some of her main passions include working and advocating for bilingual children and their families, children diagnosed with developmental disorders such as autism and cerebral palsy. She strongly believes that everyone deserves a voice and that communication is the essence of human life.
Christina currently lives in Temple, TX with her husband Doug and Bombay cat, Olivia. They love to travel and going to the movies.
Physical Therapy
Kimberly Janecka, PT, DPT
Physical Therapist
Bio Coming Soon
Halia Mahan, PTA
Physical Therapist Assistant
Bio Coming Soon
Leah Harris, PT
Physical Therapist
Bio Coming Soon
Rosemary Herrera, PTA
Physical Therapy Assistant
Rosemary is a Physical Therapy Assistant at our Waco location. Her special interest includes aquatic therapy. In her free time, Rosemary enjoys: gardening, yard art, watching Netflix, as well as ministry studies.
Paru Shah, PT, DPT
Physical Therapist
Paru is a Physical Therapist. Paru has special interests in using ASL and orthopedic sports. Paru enjoys going hiking, visiting the lake, playing with puppies and playing ultimate frisbee.
Misty Losak, PTA
Physical Therapist Assistant
Bio Coming Soon
Lisa Shelton, PTA
Physical Therapist Assistant
Bio Coming Soon
Rachael McReynolds, PTA
Physical Therapist Assistant
Bio Coming Soon
Bret Gardner, PT, DPT
Physical Therapist
Bret is a Physical Therapist at our Belton location. His special interest includes sports and orthopedics. In his free time, Bret's hobbies consist of: hiking, exercising, playing sports/water activities and hanging out with his dog.
Tayla Nicholas, PT, PCS
Physical Therapist
Board Certified Specialist in Pediatric Physical Therapy
Bio Coming Soon
Tracee Cahak, PT
Physical Therapist
Bio Coming Soon
Occupational Therapy
Dealing with health issues can be a difficult situation. You shouldn’t have to go it alone. The Hope & Believe Pediatric Therapy team of certified, highly skilled, and experienced care providers always has our patients’ best interests and wellbeing at heart. Meet the faces that are running our Physical Therapy Clinic, and schedule an appointment today.
Hailee Haney OTR/L, MOT
Occupational Therapist
Hailee is an Occupational Therapist at our Waco location. In her free time, Hailee enjoys playing soccer, running, cooking and baking. Her special interests include: sensory regulation, kinesiotaping and telehealth.
Annie Shiller, COTA
Certified Occupational Therapy Assistant
Annie is an Occupational Therapy Assistant at our Waco location. Some of her interests are early intervention, sensory regulation and gross motor skills. In her free time, she enjoys fishing, crafts, thrift shopping, exploring and encouraging people.
Lety Guerrero, COTA
Certified Occupational Therapist Assistant
Bio Coming Soon
Barbara Plemons, OT
Occupational Therapist
Bio Coming Soon
Lauren Shiller, OTR/L
Occupational Therapist
Lauren is an Occupational Therapist. Some of her special interests include Hippotherapy and NDT. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with horses and running.
Rada Walker, OTR/L
Occupational Therapist
Bio Coming Soon
Winny Soenaryo, OTR/L
Occupational Therapist
Bio Coming Soon
Lisa Le, OTR/L
Occupational Therapist
Bio Coming Soon
Roger Rice, OTR/L
Occupational Therapist
Roger is an Occupational Therapist at our Waco location. Roger's special interests include sensory integration, kinesiotaping and hippotherapy. In his free time, Roger enjoys hiking, kayaking, reading, sports and playing card games.
Karen Hoglund, OTR/L
Occupational Therapist
Karen is an Occupational Therapist. Her special interests at work are sensory integration and pediatrics. Karen's hobbies include spending time with her family, Bible studies and fellowship, art, playing with her pets and thrifting.
Michael Kelsey, COTA
Certified Occupational Therapist Assistant
Michael is an Occupational Therapist Assistant. His special interest at work is handwriting. Michael's hobbies include: hunting, fishing, gardening and playing video games.
Speech Therapy
Pam Hanna, M.S., CCC - SLP
Speech Language Pathologist
BS in Communication Sciences & Disorders from the University of Texas at Austin
MS In Communication Science & Disorders from Baylor University
Licensed to practice in Texas and Florida, ASHA CCC-SLP, Hanen Certified Parent Trainer "It Takes 2 to Talk", also trained in SCERTS and TEACCH approaches for working with Autism Spectrum Disorders, ASL and conversational Spanish.
Special studies and interests include Autism, TBI, Auditory Processing Disorders, and Voice disorders with 28 years experience in the field of Speech-Language Hearing & Swallowing Therapy.
Hobbies and activities include avid kayaking, hiking, traveling and gardening.
Emily Page, M.S., CCC - SLP
Speech Language Pathologist
Emily is originally from Alabama. She graduated with a B.S. in Communication Sciences and Disorders from the University of Montevallo in 2017 and a M.S. in Communication Sciences and Disorders from Baylor University in 2018.
Emily has been a part of the Hope and Believe family since 2019 - working initially at our Belton clinic and now in Waco. She is passionate about serving children of all ages with a wide-variety of communication and feeding needs. Her special interests include: augmentative and alternative communication, language therapy, and feeding therapy.
Emily's hobbies include kayaking, hiking, and traveling. She also enjoys serving at a local church in the special needs ministry.
Debbie Tanguma, SLPA
Speech Language Pathologist Assistant
Debbie is a Speech Language Pathologist at our Waco location. At the office, Debbie is interested in behavior and language. In her spare time, Debbie enjoys reading, watching movies, and spending time with her family.
Kaitlyn Gose, M.S., CCC - SLP
Speech Language Pathologist
Kaitlyn is a native of Riesel, TX. She graduated with a B.A. in Communication Sciences and Disorders from Baylor University in 2014 and a M.S. in Communication Sciences and Disorders from Baylor University in 2015.
Kaitlyn has worked in schools, home health, and private practice. Kaitlyn’s area of expertise include articulation disorders and language delays specifically in Deaf/Hard of Hearing children. Kaitlyn is fluent in Signed Exact English (SEE).
Kaitlyn enjoys playing with her dogs, spending time with family, and going to Baylor sporting events with her husband, Shawn.
Eva Martinez, M.S., CCC - SLP
Speech Language Pathologist
Eva is a Speech Language Pathologist at our Waco location. At the office, her interests include articulation, feeding, language, and neurological disorders. In her spare time, Eva enjoys Baylor football, outdoor activities, singing, and watching Hallmark movies.
Carol Lutz, M.S., CCC - SLP
Speech Language Pathologist
Bio Coming Soon
Jilinda Robinson, M.S., CCC - SLP LSLS Cert. AVT
Speech Langauge Pathologist
Jilinda Robinson is a Speech-Language Pathologist and Listening and Spoken Language Specialist, Certified Auditory-Verbal Therapist. She has extensive training and experience working with children who have hearing loss and their families to develop listening and spoken language. Jilinda also has a love for treating children with speech sound disorders and partnering with families to help their children reach their highest communication potential.
In her free time, Jilinda and her husband Michael enjoy cheering on their 2 children at their sporting events and spending time with their extended Waco family and beloved labradoodle.
Skyler Donnelly, M.S., CCC - SLP
Speech Language Pathologist
Skyler is a Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP) originally from Anaheim, California. Skyler received her Bachelor’s Degree in Communicative Disorders from California State University, Fullerton. She received her Master’s Degree in Speech-Language Pathology from Michigan State University in 2017. Skyler has evaluated and treated individuals with articulation and phonological disorders, language disorders, childhood apraxia of speech, stuttering, traumatic brain injury, autism spectrum disorders, down syndrome, craniofacial anomalies, feeding difficulties, and more.
Skyler and her husband, Stephen, recently moved to Texas with their pet bunny rabbit. She currently lives in Temple. Skyler has lived in 5 states! In her free time, she enjoys hiking, cooking, reading, and learning to play the piano.
Skyler is licensed by the state of Texas and has her Certificate of Clinical Competence from the American Speech-Language and Hearing Association. She looks forward to helping your child meet their speech and language goals!
Mandie Vander Vorst, M.S., SLP - Intern
Speech Language Pathologist
Bio Coming Soon
Nikki Fliegelman, M.S., SLP - Intern
Speech Language Pathologist
Bio Coming Soon
Administrative Leadership Team
Evonne Fraga
Clinic Manager
Bio Coming Soon
John Eagle
Marketing Director
John is our Marketing Director.
A few of John's special interests are coaching, economics and kid's ministry. During his free time, John enjoys fishing, playing volleyball and eating.
Hannah Penson
Clinic Manager
Hannah is our Clinic Manager. In her free time, Hannah enjoys baking, painting and sleeping.
Ryan Lambert
Director of Business Development
Ryan is the Director of Business Development. Ryan enjoys playing video games during his free time.
