Stacy, a hometown girl, loved to play with children and was drawn to finding strengths in those of all abilities since she was a little girl. These qualities led her to the University of Pittsburgh in hopes of becoming a pediatric occupational therapist. With over 25 years as an occupational therapist, she has nationwide pediatric experience in a variety of settings where she learned from accomplished colleagues in Sensory Integration and Neuro-developmental Treatment. She holds certifications in Sensory Integration and Praxis Tests, Therapeutic Listening, Interactive Metronome and Integrated Listening Systems. Stacy has studied and applied the DIR model in her work with children and families for over 15 years. She enjoys training and mentoring for Profectum by sharing the simple joys of interactions to the complex intricacies of the model with other professionals. Stacy also presents nationally on the importance of family-centered therapy and relationship-based work and helps others recognize the need for a strong mental health component and reflective practice to effectively support children and families. She is the first author with with Dr. DeLana Honaker OTR, FAOTA and Ruby Salazar LSCW, BCD to the chapter Putting Families First: Family Occupations and Family-Centered Therapy in the recent Foundations for Pediatric Practice for the OTA. Also, she published her research on the semi-structured interview and assessment Family LIFE (Looking Into Family Experiences) in the American Journal of Occupational Therapy. Her research and graduate studies at Texas Woman’s University on families and children paved the way for her growing private practice, Embrace the Child¨, Ltd. Barbara Corcoran of the acclaimed The Corcoran Group and ABC television’s, Shark Tank, identified Stacy’s passion as the cornerstone for success in her business to serve the children and families of Pittsburgh and beyond. In her practice, Stacy uses DIR FCD™ model and her own Family-Centered Therapy Model across settings to richly improve quality of life for children and families. In 2019, she was honored at by the AOTA with the Emerging and Innovative Practice award for “Defining Excellence and Leadership in Family-Centered Practice.”