Jodi Negrin, Owner, Speech/Language Pathologist
jodi@soundchildrenstherapy.com

As the owner of Sound Children’s Therapy Clinic, Jodi makes it her mission that all clients and their families that come through the door for therapy services are provided with the highest level of care in a caring, professional, and relaxed environment. She prides herself on fostering and maintaining a close-knit, dedicated, professional team of therapists and employees which then translates to a high-level of service provided to the clients.

Jodi is a speech/language pathologist. She is a proud graduate of the University of Washington with a Bachelor of Science in Speech and Hearing sciences and Master of Science in Speech/Language Pathology (1998). Jodi is licensed as a speech/language pathologist in the State of Washington and has been a longstanding member of the American Speech/Language/Hearing Association. Throughout her career, Jodi has worked as a pediatric speech/language pathologist (SLP) serving children in a variety of settings including private clinics, home-based, and public schools.

Outside of work, Jodi enjoys spending time with her husband and three sons, cooking, watching movies, and exercising (she can often be found at the local Orangetheory Fitness studio!). She believes in working hard but also in carving out time for self-care, relaxation, and spending time with family and friends.

Vera Girard, Client Relations Manager
vgirard@soundchildrenstherapy.com

Vera is our Client Relations Manager and she is often the first friendly face or voice our clients see or hear!

Vera has worked in the legal field for many years, but made the switch to the medical field in 2014. She is an integral part of our team and particularly enjoys working at Sound, getting to know and meet all the families that come through our doors.

In her spare time, Vera enjoys spending as much time as possible in the sun, when it decides to shine in the Pacific Northwest. She usually takes 3 or 4 camping trips a year with her family. She also likes to read and go to the movies with her daughter.

Tara Jesson, Lead Occupational Therapist, OTR/L
tjesson@soundchildrenstherapy.com

Tara is our clinical team lead and an occupational therapist. She received her BS in Occupational Therapy from Texas Women’s University. Her additional training includes the areas of: sequential oral sensory therapy; visual and perceptual deficits; sensory defensiveness and diet; and anxiety disorders. Her interests and expertise include feeding therapy, muscle strengthening and tone normalization, and functional activities as a tool to achieving therapy outcomes.

In her time outside of work, Tara enjoys hiking in the Summer and skiing in the Winter. Golf is another outdoor activity that she has found a passion for and is trying to improve her golf swing. She loves reading, musicals, and concerts. Tara relishes trying out new restaurants with her husband and friends and balances that with Orange Theory Fitness classes!

Ruhama Bestavros, OT Project Coordinator, MOT, OTR/L
rbestavros@soundchildrenstherapy.com

Ruhama is an Occupational Therapist. She received a BS in Biology with a minor in Psychology (2008) from the University of Texas Pan-American, a BS in Healthcare Services (2013) and an MS in Occupational Therapy (2013) from the University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, TX. Her additional training includes Certification in Pediatric Kinesio Taping, continuing education in neurological deficits, and feeding. Her professional interests include birth to three, feeding across the lifespan, and neuro-developmental treatment. Ruhama loves event planning and is also the social coordinator for all the “fun” stuff at Sound!

Ruhama is an experienced bilingual therapist who is fluent in English and Spanish. She has been treating pediatric clients in both home health and outpatient settings. She specializes in treating children with Autism, developmental delays, feeding difficulties, and sensory processing disorders. Ruhama also has specialized training in working with infants with feeding challenges (breastfeeding, poor latch, bottle feeding) and in infant/toddler feeding challenges with transition to solid foods. In her personal time, Ruhama enjoys hiking, skiing, running, playing sports, traveling, spending time with her family, and attending music concerts.

Karen Cherry, AAS, COTA/L
kcherry@soundchildrenstherapy.com

Karen has experience working with children who have Cerebral Palsy, Autism, PDD-NOS, visual perceptual impairments, TBI, seizure disorders, developmental delays, craniosacral therapy, and sensory integration dysfunction. Her primary interest is pediatrics after multiple internships in pediatric outpatient settings. Karen graduated from the Occupational Therapy Assistant Program at Lake Washington Technical College in 2011.

Karen has two grown children. She enjoys hiking, working out, reading, continuing education, and spending time with her family.

Abigail (Abby) LePage, OT
alepage@soundchildrenstherapy.com

Abby graduated with her Master’s in Occupational Therapy from the University of Washington in 2020. Originally from Boise, Idaho, Abby graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology from Boise State University in 2016 before moving to Washington. While in graduate school, Abby gained experience in Constraint Induced Movement Therapy, creating sensory friendly public spaces and completed a capstone project about the Xbox Adaptive Controller. Abby completed a Fieldwork in a pediatric clinic where she worked with clients of various ages and diagnoses such as Autism, developmental delay and cerebral palsy.

In her free time, Abby enjoys running, biking, rock climbing and trying out new restaurants in Seattle with her husband.

Mallika Palecanda, OTR/L
mpalecanda@soundchildrenstherapy.com

Mallika is an occupational therapist. She graduated with her Master’s in Occupational Therapy from the University of Washington in 2021. Originally from California, she received her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from University of California, Santa Cruz. Between her undergraduate and graduate education Mallika spent time working with adults with developmental delay, and Autism, both in the United Kingdom and the United States. She enjoys working with a neurodiverse population and is passionate about supporting neurodiversity across the lifespan. Mallika completed her Fieldwork rotation in a clinical and school-based pediatric setting working with clients with a variety of diagnoses including Autism, developmental delay, and pediatric stroke recovery.

In her free time Mallika enjoys rock climbing, baking, and exploring Seattle’s many libraries!

Alison Longbottom, PT
alongbottom@soundchildrenstherapy.com

Alison C. Longbottom, PT, PCS, C/NDT is a APTA board certified pediatric physical therapist and certified Neurodevelopmental Treatment therapist for pediatrics and infants with over 31 years of clinic experience. Alison graduated with a B.S. in Physical Therapy from the University of Texas Medical Branch in 1990, and she is currently pursuing her Doctorate in Physical Therapy in Pediatric Science from Rocky Mountain University of Health Professions.

Over the years, Alison has worked in a variety of pediatric settings, including inpatient hospitals and PICU, hospital-based outpatient, private practice, Early Intervention, and school-based physical therapy. Alison has worked with a wide range of pediatric diagnoses and the full range of ages, from newborns to teenagers. Alison has a particular interest and experience working with infants diagnosed with prematurity, developmental delays, Torticollis and Brachial Plexus Injuries and working with children diagnosed with cerebral palsy and idiopathic toe walking, as well as evaluating and fitting children for orthotics. Alison enjoys working as part of a multidisciplinary team with opportunities to collaborate.

Outside work, Alison enjoys spending time with her family, hiking, walking on the beach, building Lego sets, and travelling internationally.

Grace Neff, Lead Speech/Language Pathologist, SLP
gneff@soundchildrenstherapy.com

Grace is a Speech Language Pathologist. Originally from North Carolina, she graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2014 with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and a Minor in Speech and Hearing Sciences. After moving out west, Grace earned her Master of Science in Speech and Hearing Sciences in 2017 from Washington State University.

Grace has worked with clients of all ages and with a variety of communication disorders but has particular interest in social/pragmatic communication, early language intervention, and in working with children who use augmentative and alternative communication devices.

Grace has recently relocated to North Carolina to be closer to family, and is working remotely. She is available to see clients via teletherapy and also remotely mentors and leads the Speech/Language Pathology Team.

In her spare time, Grace enjoys hiking, camping, traveling, and spending quality time with her friends, family, and dog.

Ellie Hurlbert, SLP-CF
ehurlbert@soundchildrenstherapy.com

Ellie is a Speech-Language Pathologist who is currently completing her clinical fellowship at Sound Children’s Therapy. She graduated from the University of Washington in 2021, earning a Master of Science in Medical Speech-Language Pathology. Her areas of focus in graduate school were infant feeding and swallowing, cognitive communication, early language intervention, and articulation/phonological disorders. Ellie is also fluent in ASL (American Sign Language).

Ellie is originally from Montana but has lived in Seattle for almost 6 years. In her free time, she enjoys traveling to see her family, camping, taking her dogs to the dog park, and doing puzzles at home.

Emma Jones, SLP
ejones@soundchildrenstherapy.com

Emma graduated with her Master of Science in Speech Language Pathology from the University of Montana in 2021. Originally from Wisconsin, she received her Bachelor of Science in Communication Sciences and Disorders in 2019 from the University of Wisconsin Eau-Claire.

Between graduate school and her clinical fellowship year, she has worked with clients across the life span with a variety of communication disorders. She has a passion for supporting the neurodiverse population, early language intervention, childhood apraxia of speech and working with children who use augmentative and alternative communication devices.

In her free time, Emma enjoys trail running, rock climbing, backpacking with her dog and making jewelry.