SŌMA School of Therapeutic Massage Scholarship

If I close my eyes, I can still feel my grandmother’s hands on my shoulders. It was our tradition, our special time. It began when I was five years old, recovering from major neck surgery at the University of Michigan. A team of skilled surgeons removed part of my hip bone and fused my neck to treat a rare birth defect. I was born missing the left side of vertebrae C2 through C5, and the surgeons told my parents it was only the second surgery of its kind they had performed. They believed it would give me a more “normal” life. They were right in many ways, but it also left me with a lifetime of tense shoulders, neck aches, and a constant need for chiropractic and massage care. The first person to ease that pain was my grandmother. She was not a trained massage therapist, but she had a healing touch. Those moments with her taught me that touch can do more than relax muscles. It can soothe fears, quiet the mind, and make someone feel truly cared for. Fast forward 30 years, and I found myself sitting in a postpartum fog, asking myself, “What is your purpose?” while playing *What Was I Made For?* by Billie Eilish on repeat. Before my youngest was born, I spent over a decade in the marketing and advertising world, working with brands that made a difference in people’s lives. I hold a Bachelor’s Degree in Advertising Media and Management from Michigan State University, and for many years I poured my energy into creative work that connected with people. But the industry changed. The creativity and soul I loved had been replaced by automation, and when my entire marketing team was laid off, I realized the spark I once felt was gone. I still had my small dog waste cleanup business, something I had started in 2020 with the idea of eventually passing it on to my children. While it had value, it was not fulfilling my deeper desire to make a lasting difference in people’s lives. Then a simple conversation changed everything. At my WIC office, while I waited for a benefits renewal appointment, the lactation consultant struck up a conversation with me. We talked about my son, my breastfeeding experience, the creative ways I had used WIC benefits to support baby-led feeding, my history of teaching babywearing, and my passion for birth work. She looked at me and said, “You need to be working in this field. You need to be with mothers and babies. You have so much knowledge and love to share. Have you ever considered doing something in the birth and maternity world?” My answer came without hesitation. “Yes, for many years, but I do not have the money to change careers.” Her words stayed with me for months. They pushed me to take the leap and begin training to become a DONA-certified birth doula. The more I studied, the more I knew I had found my calling. Then, in March, I saw a post from SOMA about their weekend massage therapy program. I felt the same tug at my heart that I had felt in my grandmother’s hands decades earlier. I knew this was the perfect complement to my doula work, a way to help others heal through touch just as she helped me. Massage therapy will allow me to expand my services to offer prenatal and postnatal massage, creating a full circle of care for families. During pregnancy and the postpartum period, a parent’s body carries not only the physical demands of new life but also the emotional and mental weight that comes with it. I want to be there in those moments, providing relief, support, and connection. I believe that compassionate touch and informed support can transform the journey of pregnancy and parenthood. My goal is to create a safe, nurturing space where every parent feels cared for in mind, body, and spirit, a space where they can breathe deeply, release tension, and feel truly seen. Earning my massage therapy degree will allow me to merge my personal history, my doula training, and my lifelong passion for helping others. This scholarship would not only help make that education possible, it would allow me to carry forward the healing legacy my grandmother began all those years ago.

For many years, I believed massage therapy was a luxury, something people did when they wanted to relax, but not truly necessary for health. It wasn’t until my own experiences with stress, training, and healing that I began to see how essential it really is. That realization changed everything for me. It reshaped how I trained, how I cared for my body, and how I coached my clients. My wife, who has been both my partner and my mentor, helped open my eyes to the deeper possibilities of massage. Through her influence, I came to understand that massage therapy is not just about easing sore muscles, it is about restoring balance, releasing pain, and helping people reconnect with themselves. I began to see its true purpose. What inspires me most to pursue this profession is the transformation I have both witnessed and experienced. In my work as a strength coach, I saw how much difference recovery and care could make in a client’s performance and confidence. But more than that, I saw how people’s struggles often went beyond physical limits. Stress, trauma, and unspoken burdens showed up in their bodies as tension, pain, and fatigue. I began to realize that healing needed to go deeper. At the same time, my own journey through trauma taught me how the body holds on to the past. For years, I carried grief and stress in my shoulders and chest without recognizing the toll it was taking. When I finally experienced what it meant to let go, I understood that massage therapy was key to relief and renewal that words alone cannot reach. This work means more to me than simply learning a trade. It reflects my values of compassion, service, and resilience. It gives me the chance to turn my own healing into service for others, to meet people where they are, and to remind them that they are not alone. My wife has shown me through her own work in trauma healing that when we give people safe space, we give them permission to release, to breathe, and to heal. I want to do the same through massage therapy. For me, I’m healing and through it finding my true calling. My motivation is to create something bigger than myself. Together, my wife and I share a vision of building a wellness practice that combines massage therapy with trauma informed practices. We believe true wellness cares for both body and spirit. By blending our skills, we can offer a space where people find not only relief from pain, but also peace and grounding. Over time, I hope to transition into a primary role in this practice, expanding the reach of what we offer and making it available to people who might otherwise never experience it. Whether working with athletes, veterans, trauma survivors, or individuals facing daily stress, my goal is to create a place where people feel valued, cared for, and restored. While my passion and vision are clear, the financial reality of pursuing this education is a challenge that my wife and I face together. As adult learners and caregivers, we share the responsibility of supporting our family while also caring for both of our fathers as they battle cancer. At the same time, we are raising children who are either preparing for college or learning to drive. While these are important milestones that bring joy they also bring significant financial strain. These responsibilities are blessings we embrace fully, but they leave little room to invest in ourselves. Pursuing massage therapy is a vital step towards our shared vision for the future. Yet the cost of tuition, supplies, and training adds to an already heavy burden. Receiving this scholarship would not only ease the financial pressure but also give my wife and I the opportunity to continue caring for our family while moving forward toward a practice that will serve others. For us, this scholarship represents more than money, it is a lifeline, a bridge between the responsibilities we carry now and the impact we hope to make in the future. Massage therapy has already changed my life by shifting how I see health, recovery, and healing. Now I want to devote myself to learning this craft so I can offer that same change to others. With the support of this scholarship, I can take the next step in turning my experiences, my passion, and my vision into meaningful work that brings relief, hope, and renewal to those who need it most.

Hello, my name is Josh Harper, and at 49 years old, I am embracing a new chapter of my life, one centered on service, healing, and community. I recently completed yoga teacher training, and I hold an additional 36 hours of continuing education in Yin yoga. Alongside that, I am building a mobile sauna business in Northern Michigan, offering people access to sauna, cold plunge, and contrast therapy. My personal practices of breathwork, yoga, and meditation have shaped me into the person I am today, and now I am ready to incorporate massage therapy into this journey. I am a strong believer in holistic wellness, and this scholarship would give me the chance to pursue the training I need to serve others with even greater depth and skill. Massage therapy has been part of my personal wellness for over 20 years. In that time, massage has supported me physically through stress and recovery, but just as importantly, it has grounded me emotionally and spiritually. I know the feeling of walking into a session carrying tension and pain and walking out with clarity, lightness, and relief. Because of these experiences, I feel called to learn the practice so I can offer the same sense of healing and renewal to others. Completing my yoga teacher training and pursuing further study in yin yoga has shown me how powerful slow, mindful practices can be. Yin yoga, in particular, teaches patience, surrender, and the value of stillness qualities that translate directly into massage therapy. The hours I’ve spent guiding students through breathing, mindfulness, and long-held postures have prepared me to hold space for people in a therapeutic setting. Breathwork and meditation continue to be central to my daily life, teaching me how to be present, grounded, and compassionate. These are qualities that will shape the way I support clients as a massage therapist. Alongside yoga, my mobile sauna business reflects my passion for holistic health. I have seen how sauna, cold therapy, and mindful rest can transform someone’s energy and outlook. These practices, like massage and yoga, encourage people to slow down, connect to their bodies, and release what no longer serves them. My vision is to weave these elements together—sauna, yoga, meditation, and massage—into an immersive wellness practice that supports the body, mind, and spirit. At the heart of this vision is my community. Living in Northern Michigan, I see how many people carry the stress of hard work, long winters, and limited access to restorative practices. My dream is to create accessible opportunities for wellness—spaces where people feel safe, respected, and heard. I want to serve not only paying clients but also those who might otherwise go without - veterans, caregivers, and people living with chronic illness or chronic stress. Massage therapy would allow me to extend healing in ways that yoga or sauna alone cannot. I also recognize that becoming a skilled massage therapist requires discipline and training. Anatomy, physiology, and technique take time and focus to master. At this stage in life, balancing education with building a small business is a challenge, and financial strain could easily become a barrier. A scholarship would help lift that burden and allow me to give my full energy to my studies. Instead of dividing my attention between money and learning, I could dedicate myself to developing into a safe, skilled, and compassionate practitioner.

This is not the first time I've considered making a career change to massage therapy, but my biggest barrier is how to pay for the schooling without taking onexcessive debt. I have wanted to make a change and know that my strenghts lie in my abilities to make everyone feel welcome and at-ease, feel seen and heard, and have a sense of belonging. I have been a single mother to two sons for the past 11 years and a survivor of domestic violence. I understand how trauma lives in a body and takes a toll in the form of chronic pain, restless legs, and aches. I am drawn to the field of massage therapy to be able to provide a safe place for people to release the stress, tension, and trauma they are carrying and find some healing along their own journey. This work, helping bodies to heal, is everything to me. I love learning and have a background in Psychology & Biology. I want to build long-term relationships with clients, so that massages are not a luxury accessible only to a few, but accessible- as a means of body and mind maintenance. I want to create a safe-space where women can talk, be nurtured, and strengthened.Providing trauma-informed massage, opportunites to share stories, and connect with community are some of the ways I have healed and want others to experience the same. There is a level of vulnerability when receiving a massage- especially when bodies may have been harmed or shamed. I beleive that I can help women begin to look at therir bodies and experience through a new lens that offers forgivness and acceptance.Perhaps just trusting one person can help a woman reach out to others and work on the process of discovering a renewed sense of wholeness and hope. It is my own exerience that when are bodies are strong, we have more to pour out to others around us. I hope that my services would always feel personal and restorative. My seed-like vision today is to serve women who would not normally come into a high-end day spa. I've considered having a studio in a tiny house and providing workshops that deal with trauma, healing, nutrition, and community engagement. I'm thinking that I would provide a menu of services that would be accessible to a range of clients. Although I work full-time, I am not able to afford the full-tuition. Honestly, covering my essentials is what I do. There has not been space for any extras during the past 11 years, However, I do believe in contributing my part and could do a portion of the $11,000. A half-scholarship would be ideal and greatly appreciated. I am excited and eager for the opportunity to learn more about becoming a massage therapist through the Soma Institute. I think the timing of finding this school and opportunity is perfect and definitely the next step I have been search for. I would welcome the oppportunity for this experience! Thank you for considering my application! Best, Lesley

First off, thank you! Thank you for working hard to not only open a massage school in Traverse City, but for your efforts to secure financial aid for those of us who thought this type of program might be out of reach. My journey with massage begins with a heartbreaking story. Many years ago, my partner's sister was diagnosed with ALS at an appallingly young age. We witnessed a bright freelance writer, political spitfire and feminist powerhouse deteriorate before our eyes. There was nothing that could be done and the pain was undeniable. Muscle cramps, stiffness, and joint aches slowly took over her body. Within months, what started as a tingle in her feet, left her bed ridden, and eventually led to her untimely death. The only thing that would alleviate the pain was massage. I would rub her feet and legs almost daily, moving away the stiffness and cramping for moments of relief. But those moments of relief for her were moments of realization for me. A discovery of how massage is not only a physical intimacy, but an emotional one. These moments of connection brought us closer than we had ever been before her illness. This was my first immensely impactful experience with the power of body work. I think back to all my relationships with massage therapists over the 20 years I've been back in Northern Michigan. I think about their vulnerability inviting strangers into their space, holding room for their physical and, many times, emotional pain. At times my massage appointments were the rare moments I had a safe place to breathe, relax and let go. The immediate trust given from both sides is both impressive and powerful. It is a community that I would be proud to be a part of. I want to have a safe place for those in need, to have the tools to help and heal, to be vulnerable so others can too. I think this has always been my goal. To carve out a profession that focuses on kindness, understanding, care, tenderness to ease pain. Massage therapy is a culmination of all of these. 2024 was a year of personal transition and growth. I left a toxic job and a long-term toxic relationship and began working in adult special education. Never before have I worked in an environment of such caring and empathetic people, where compassion is first nature. I witness daily the impact these traits have on our students. A listening ear and a gentle touch can calm often explosive behaviors. And I see first hand how massage and body work relieve ailing bodies. With recent budget cuts and the not-so-livable-wage I have been taking stock. Dialing in what I want my future to look like, both professionally and personally. Recently, I had a long conversation with my friend about therapeutic massage schools and what her journey entailed. Not one day later I saw your post announcing the scholarship opportunity and felt the nudge of possibility. The possibility to forge my own path, support myself and contribute to the well-being of others in a field I have always been drawn to. Upon completion of the SOMA program, I would continue my work in special education and practice body work part-time, sharing an office space with my afore-mentioned friend who has an established practice. Ultimately I want to extend discounted rates to teachers and nurses, and to the disabled and under-privileged in our community who could greatly benefit from, but cannot afford body work. Now I ask for help. I cannot afford this program on my own. Recently single, with the cost of living growing exponentially, my monthly costs leave little room for an expense of this size. Obviously receiving the full tuition scholarship would eliminate all financial stress. However, if I lean out my life and a payment plan is possible, I could afford half of the tuition. It is difficult for me to come here and plead my case. To be vulnerable and ask you to trust me with such a significant financial investment. But please know this – I am a committed person and a hard worker. If you see fit to award me one of your scholarships, I will not take it for granted. This would be a life changing opportunity. Thank you so much for your consideration, Breanne Russell