Check Out Erin Moore’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Erin Moore.

Hi Erin, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I began as a counseling intern at a community agency in Chardon where Jennifer Emch served as my supervisor. We aligned well both in personality and clinical/humanistic approach. I spent my practicum and internship at this agency and found myself feeling not only adequately supported by Jen and other coworkers, but simultaneously sad that both students and professionals serving through counseling and case management are pigeonholed in such sterile and clinical approaches attached to expectations of productivity due to bureaucratic oversight. There was a certain level of guilt felt when working with clients using unorthodox or alternative approaches. How do I word notes and not get in trouble although I am keeping my clients at the center of my objectives? Etc.
Anyways, Jen approached me in 2015 very emphatically wanting to look at a vacancy on Chardon Square. My first thought: Uhhhhh, I am the wrong person for this pursuit. Second thought: You’re the right person and that might be good for me. Third thought: Wait, what’s the plan? I have been a licesed massage therapist since 2005 and Jen has an extensive background in dance as both a dance major and then recent certification in a form of expressive arts using Dance as an integrative approach to counseling, The idea to approach people through a holistic lens was born. Jen came across a story of an anthropolgist working in Africa who proposed a game where whoever won received a basket of fruit. The children proposed a different definition of winning: whoever wins feels rewarded through sharing with others their bounty.
The journey has been full of incredible challenges but not met without determination and dedication of an entire community of providers and clients leading us to growth in the bodywork and ancillary wellness services and the opening of another a location in Chagrin Falls.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
No road worth traveling is smooth!! It’s like knowing the best spot in the woods to see a waterfall or meadow. We weren’t confident in our ability to stay open after the first two years, but Ubuntu as a philosophy is community, humanity and working together to heal and grow with one another. So naturally, there were a lot of growing pains after tremendous lengths of unknown direction in service provisions outside of counseling: the integrative components not covered by insurance. We worried about space in Chardon until we were blessed with the serendipidous vacancy across the hall in 2019 which allowed us more treatment space, followed by the COVID pandemic in 2020 which any business can attest created so many service and process modifications. And then there’s the business end of everything: you don’t realize how difficult it is and humbly ask questions, delegate where appropriate and needed, and learn to be an effective communicator when there are so many moving parts. Personally, I built a family concurrently (2016: opened Ubuntu and got married; 2017: birthed my first child; 2019: opened second Chardon space across hall and birthed my second child ; 2021: opened and began building downstairs yoga/bodywork studio. But it was only challenging because I felt equally guilty for not being at work as I did not being with my children while at work.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I love working as a licensed massage therapist and professional counselor. I don’t believe I”m “known for” anything, but I do feel passionate about working with people processing trauma and integrating the body and nervous system as tools for healing. I don’t normally (I could write a whole essay on this) see counseling clients for massage, however we have built a dynamic massage, Reiki and yoga team whose work is so complementary and aligned with our counseling services through a trauma informed lens. I am most proud of my business partner and the community I work with; everyone is so supportive and open to ideas, compassionate when life takes a left-hand turn and passionate about helping others through their professional strengths. The environment here is indescribable and feels like a second home. I can’t express my gratitude in words.

In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?
I wish Insurance companies would start treating America’s health care system through the lens of prevention instead of trying to keep us all sick. My hope is over the next decade, we will see a complete reconstruction of healthcare through the lens of health, rather than illness, encompassing care that is integrative, holistic, and collaborative. I won’t hold my breath but I do believe that there is already a trend towards health education that guides people in the direction of preventative and individualized care.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.ubuntuwellnessohio.com
• Instagram: @ubuntuwellnessllc
• Facebook: Ubuntu Wellness