Emily serves children and families throughout Simpsonville, Mauldin, and Fountain Inn. She developed an interest in occupational therapy through early exposure to the therapy world and later fell in love with the profession through hands-on experiences. Emily enjoys creating meaningful relationships with families and celebrating progress that improves quality of life. One of her favorite therapy tools is a piggy bank toy that targets everything from grasping skills to early communication, color and number identification, and crossing midline. Outside of work, she enjoys running with her husband and two dogs Millie and Margo. She has completed seven half marathons and most recently a full marathon. Her favorite treats include iced coffee, Reese's, and Sweet Tart Ropes.

Melissa provides occupational therapy services through our Connecting Hearts Farm Program, where children build skills through meaningful experiences in nature, animal care, movement, and play. She loves helping children uncover the underlying reasons behind their challenges and enjoys the detective work involved in finding the "why" behind a child's struggles. Melissa is passionate about incorporating sensory integration, reflex integration, and farm-based activities into therapy to help children develop functional skills in a motivating and natural environment. Her favorite therapy tool is vibration, which she uses to support regulation, body awareness, and motor development. When she is not working, Melissa enjoys trail riding with her horse and taking her children on adventures. Her favorite snack is chocolate-covered pretzels.

Lilly is a licensed occupational therapist who is passionate about helping children build the skills and confidence they need to succeed in everyday life. She has experience working with children with developmental delays, sensory processing differences, executive functioning challenges, emotional regulation difficulties, and handwriting deficits.

Lilly discovered her passion for occupational therapy after witnessing the positive impact it had on a family friend with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Seeing how occupational therapy improved their independence, confidence, and overall quality of life inspired her to pursue a career where she could make the same meaningful difference for children and their families.

Lilly enjoys using creativity and play to make therapy both engaging and effective. She believes children learn best when they are having fun and values collaborating with families to help each child achieve meaningful goals, whether they are big milestones or small everyday successes. One of her favorite therapy activities is a wooden burger stacking toy, which she uses to target visual motor integration, bilateral coordination, sequencing, memory recall, and problem solving through play.

Outside of work, Lilly enjoys spending time outdoors, traveling to the beach, and cycling. Her favorite snack combination is popcorn and M&Ms!

Lisa Pierce, PT, brings a lifelong passion for pediatric physical therapy to Kid Connections Therapy Services. Her interest in pediatric PT began at age 15 after breaking her foot and becoming intrigued by the physical therapy clinic located next to her orthopedist’s office. Encouraged by a family friend who was a physical therapist, Lisa began volunteering at AI DuPont Children’s Hospital in Wilmington, Delaware, at age 16. That experience sparked a lasting passion for helping children reach their full potential. Lisa loves teaching children that they CAN do hard things. She finds joy in watching children master new skills and seeing their confidence and personalities grow as they develop strength, balance, coordination, and motor control. She also values partnering with families and providing practical strategies they can use at home to support their child’s progress.

Lisa uses creative, engaging activities to make therapy fun while working toward meaningful functional goals. Some of her favorite therapy tools include light up balls, magnet men, vibration activities, and yoga and Pilates exercises that help children build strength through their core, trunk, and hips.

Outside of therapy, Lisa enjoys cooking, baking, reading, kayaking, hiking, and spending time with family and friends.

Kelly serves children and families throughout the Upstate of South Carolina and is passionate about helping children develop the communication skills needed to connect, learn, and thrive. She enjoys creating engaging, individualized therapy sessions that meet each child where they are while helping them build confidence and achieve meaningful goals. Kelly values partnering with families and believes that the best outcomes happen when caregivers and therapists work together as a team. She is dedicated to making therapy both effective and enjoyable while supporting children as they reach their fullest potential. Kelly specializes in receptive, expressive, and social language therapy with 1-to-3-year-olds. She is skilled at keeping her clients engaged and having fun, and she loves to hear them laugh! Kelly lives in Greenville, SC with her husband, 5 children, and 3 dogs. Her favorite thing to do is spend time with her family, and her favorite snack is chocolate-covered peanut clusters.

Celeste specializes in apraxia, autism, articulation, language disorders, fluency, and working with Spanish-speaking families. As one of the longest-serving therapists at Kid Connections, she has helped countless children build confidence and communication skills throughout her years with the company. Celeste loves the creativity and variety that pediatric speech therapy provides and enjoys helping children learn through play. Celeste's favorite thing about offering therapy in her home office is outdoor play, whether going on a treasure hunt, playing in the sprinkler or exploring in the woods. Her favorite snack-anything chocolate!! Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with family, participating in church activities, exercising, traveling, swimming, and spending time on the lake. Her favorite snack is fruit with granola.

Lacy enjoys helping children develop the communication skills needed to connect with others and participate confidently in daily life. She values building strong relationships with families and creating therapy sessions that are engaging, meaningful, and individualized to each child's needs. As a speech-language pathologist, I love making therapy fun and engaging. My favorite activities to use in therapy are games, Play-Doh, and bubbles because they naturally encourage communication, language development, and social interaction while children are having fun.

Outside of work, you’ll usually find me spending time with my husband and our two children. I love cheering on my son at his basketball, baseball, and football games, and supporting my daughter in whatever she’s into at the moment—whether it’s piano, Run Hard, swim team, shopping, skincare, or hunting for the perfect squishy! I love making the most of every opportunity to be involved in my family’s adventures. When I have downtime, I enjoy spending time with friends and family. I love any kind of game—whether it’s a card game, board game, or my newest challenge, Mahjong! I also enjoy reading, spending time on the lake, traveling, going out to eat, and going to concerts—especially if they’re playing ’90s country! I love making memories with the people I care about and embracing new experiences.

Madyson Murphy is a Clinical Fellow Speech-Language Pathologist who is passionate about helping children and families build communication, feeding, and oral motor skills. She has a special interest in pediatric feeding therapy and is dedicated to continuing her education in this area as she works toward becoming a Certified Lactation Counselor (CLC).

Madyson believes that meaningful progress begins with strong relationships. She strives to build trusting connections with children and their families while providing individualized, evidence-based therapy. Her goal is to create a supportive environment where children feel confident and motivated to communicate, play, and grow. Outside of work, Madyson enjoys going for walks, going to Columbia Fireflies baseball games with her husband, and taking day trips to the beach. She looks forward to building meaningful relationships with children and families and supporting them every step of the way!

Tara Starkey has been an integral part of the Kid Connections Therapy Services team since 2021, serving as our Billing Specialist. While much of her work happens behind the scenes, Tara plays a vital role in keeping our practice running smoothly. Her organization, problem solving skills, and attention to detail help ensure that therapists can focus on providing exceptional care while families receive accurate, timely billing support.

Originally from Easley, South Carolina, Tara moved to Columbia in 1992 to attend the University of South Carolina, where she earned her degree in Advertising. She has proudly called the Columbia area home ever since.

Tara is known for her reliability, efficiency, and positive attitude. Whether she is troubleshooting a billing issue, answering questions, or helping streamline office processes, she consistently goes above and beyond to support both our families and our team. She is truly one of the behind the scenes superheroes who helps make Kid Connections successful every day.

Outside of work, Tara enjoys spending quality time with her family, relaxing at the beach, and cheering on her boys from the baseball stands.