A Brief History of The Children’s Therapy Center, Inc.
This year, The Children’s Therapy Center, Inc. (TCTCI) turns 25!! That is a huge milestone. Where did the time go? The current co-owners, Kim Stocker, MA, CCC-SLP, and Dr. Susan A. Zapf, Ph.D., OTR/L, BCP, ATP, just celebrated their 5th anniversary of ownership of TCTCI. In honor of these major milestones, a blog on the history of our clinic was in order.
Ms. Mary Basich is an occupational therapist who was living in the Clear Lake area of Houston working with children at different facilities. After she went through training in Neuro-Developmental Therapy and Sensory Integration, Mary decided to set out on her own in 1994. She began her business with one child and grew from there. As she gradually built up her caseload, Mary moved from one office to another until settling in the present location at El Camino Real and Gemini in Clear Lake. Soon enough, she had built up a great reputation and added more therapists she knew either as colleagues or past students.
While TCTCI was begun as an occupational therapy clinic, other disciplines were added to offer more services to our families. First came Physical Therapy and later Speech Therapy. Mary always made sure to be on the cutting edge of treatment options to help her kiddos. Aside from having extensive continuing education in sensory processing, she and other therapists working at TCTCI have been trained in Neuro-Developmental Therapy and Craniosacral Therapy. She was able to add a variety of technologies such as SAMONAS Sound Therapy, Interactive Metronome, and Integrated Listening Systems.
A parent support group was developed and supported by Mary for families dealing with the many difficulties in raising a child with sensory differences. She also added on Social Skills groups to meet those needs. Mary also shared her knowledge by giving lectures and workshops for a variety of audiences in the Houston region including, of course, families.
These days, you will still find the same quality of care inspired by Mary Basich, and she still checks in now and then. We currently offer Occupational and Speech Therapies as well as Buddy Clubs, Handwriting instruction, Interactive Metronome, Integrated Listening Systems, the Safe & Sound Protocol and much much more. We see a wide variety of populations including Autism Spectrum Disorder, ADHD, Down Syndrome, Dyspraxia, coordination disorders, Expressive and Receptive Language Delays, and more.
Mary always put families first when making decisions, and that legacy has been continued by the present leadership. Families always tell us that there is a very unique feeling at TCTCI, that they feel welcome, and their children are treated with kindness, understanding and a high standard of care. Here’s to many more years of helping children reach their highest potential and claiming their birthright of experiencing the joy of childhood!
Nancy E.A. Weiss, MOT, OTR/L