About Us
Our program was started by Bonnie Munson, M.S., an Infant & Family Development Specialist who has been providing evaluations and home-based intervention for infants and toddlers with special needs for over 25 years. She witnessed the fragmentation and confusion that can occur when helpers are not working with a united purpose, and wanted to create a program that created opportunities for therapists to support and learn from each other. She brought along the insights of her daughter, Rachel Gilstrap-Katen, to keep her balanced and forward-thinking. They have hired a team of amazing interventionists who have each brought their training, skills, and hearts to this important work
Developmental Specialists and Interventionists
Occupational and Sensory Therapists
Physical Therapists
Speech and Feeding Therapists
Nurse Consultations
Meet Our Team of Licensed Therapists & Trained Teachers
Early Interventionist
Katie was the first teacher hired to work with Bonnie at ABove the Clouds. Her energy and enthusiasm and ability to explain behavioral techniques to families have made her sought after by both families and Regional Center Service Coordinators. Her Bachelor's degree is in Speech pathology which also adds to her repertoire of skills.
Early Interventionist
Kelly filled in when we needed a substitute, and proved herself so capable that she never left and now carries a full-time caseload of her own. She has a friendly, easy way that puts parents and children at ease. She finds her Bachelor's degree in Psychology and her work experience as a behavior technician in an intensive autism program to both be helpful with infants and toddlers.
Speech Therapist
Ashley is a Speech Therapist who came to our company early in her career (and early in our existence), already trained and experienced with oral motor feeding issues in young children, and passionate about helping families improve their child's speech and communication, as well as their feeding skills.
Physical Therapist
Amy is a Physical Therapist with extensive experience both in a medical clinic setting and in the homes of individual children. She splits her time with our program and CCS-MTU, giving her the invaluable ability to keep lines of communication open. The focus and joy she has in helping children strengthen their mobility skills is obvious, whether mastering their first steps or getting them specialized equipment.
Early Interventionist
Jayne Marie has years of experience as a Kindergarten teacher, a Master's degree in Educational Counseling, and now more than 5 years providing Early Intervention. She is able to combine her playful and encouraging teaching style with her empathy and understanding, to coach parents to be their child's best teacher.
Infant Development Specialist, Owner
Bonnie assigns and directs the other staff members, along with carrying a small caseload herself. She has many years experience with developmental evaluations of young children, and a passion for helping families gain confidence and joy in parenting. Her Master's degree is in Human Development and Family Studies.
Executive Administrator, Owner
Rachel is co-owner of ABove the Clouds with Bonnie, who is also her mother. Bonnie needed her insightful problem-solving abilities and her surprising (to her mother) organizational skills. Rachel handles our Human Resources and Payroll and keeps current with best practices in child and family development, while working toward a degree in Infant Mental Health.
Ann is a nurse with a Master's degree, who has worked in hospital, public health, and school settings. She enjoys helping families access needed health care and understanding the complexities of medical diagnoses. She works with us part-time, checking in on some of our more medically complex children.
Jen is a Speech Therapist who has trained and supervised other Speech Therapists and still teaches part-time in UOP's Communication Disorders program. She has honed her skills for providing video therapy and parent coaching, so she is able to provide about half of her therapy visits virtually, when home visits are difficult.
Lorena works part-time with us as a developmental specialist. Her Master's is in Education and she has taken many courses in early childhood education. Lorena is an accomplished technical writer, which helps her clearly explain concepts and activities to parents – in English or Spanish!
Miriam finished out her speech therapy fellowship with our company, and we loved her sweet spirit and fierce attention to detail! The same traits make her a very successful builder of communication and relationships with her little clients. She is also able to deliver services in English or Spanish.
Natalie was and is mentored by our very-own Ashley Flores, SLP and it was while shadowing Ashley that she learned that Early Intervention in young children's homes was very rewarding and fascinating. She really enjoys getting to "begin at the beginning" with all types of speech delays and differences, and help children and families build communication skills. She is also bilingual.
Nikki discovered us (through a cute chain of events) soon after she finished her Master's in Early Childhood Education. She has launched her second career with us, and we are thrilled with her kind, thoughtful presence and love of explaining and guiding young children's development.
Tecla has a whole lifetime of experience working with children with Special Needs. Bonnie knew of her work and expertise with the sensory processing problems of autistic children, and asked her to join us after she retired from the public schools. Tecla's analytical and creative assessment of children comes with a quiet confidence that helps her approach and assist both sensory defensiveness and hand-eye coordination difficulties.
Tony has upheld his position as the only male on our staff with quiet confidence, and would encourage other men to join our therapeutic service team. He brings his own experience with rehabilitation, his degree in Human Development, and his interest in motivating and mentoring skills to his "play is a child's work" practice. Speaking fluent Spanish is another oft-used skill.
**We also have two other OTs who have been with us a long while, but are currently taking only a few cases at a time.
Looking for highly trained specialists with a passion for children to join our team!
