massage
therapy professionals, ltd.
President / Massage Therapist
Michael
J. Patrick
Michael
has earned an Associate
in Science Degree in Massage Therapy from Community College of
Allegheny County, Allegheny Campus and graduated in 2006 with highest
honors. This is currently the
highest
level of academic training one can receive in massage
therapy. Part of this training included externships where
he provided chair massages for the medical staff at Allegheny General
Hospital and UPMC Shadyside. He participated as a massage
therapist in a pilot study on the addition of chair massage in the
management of diabetes as part of externship experience in conjunction
with The Kingsley Association Community Center and the Healthy Hearts
& Souls program. He has been a member of the American Massage
Therapy Association since July 2005.
Michael has taken an
interesting path in his professional life:
In addition to being a massage therapist, he also earned a Master's
Degree in Analytical Chemistry from Youngstown State University in
1994. He has worked in the field of fluorescent dye chemistry for
over 10 years. He was employed from 1995-2001 by Amersham
Biosciences (now a part of GE Healthcare) where he manufactured and
analyzed fluorescent CyDyes. This lead to a 3 year assignment in
Cardiff, Wales, UK where he trained personnel to manufacture the dyes
and did additional process development. Living in Wales was one
of the most enjoyable experiences of his life.
He
concurrently enjoys a career in research chemistry at the Molecular
Biosensor & Imaging Center (Carnegie Mellon University) where he is
currently synthesizing voltage-sensitive fluoresent dyes for use in
studying cardiac physiology. He has worked at CMU since 2002 and
has had academic research published recently in the Journal of Membrane
Biology (Vol. 208, p125-140, 2005).
Research
Chemistry and Massage Therapy appear to be diametrically opposed,
however both require dedication, creativity and the ability to react to
what is observed, or in the case of massage therapy, palpated.
Work in both fields complements the other -- his analytical approach
has allowed him to engage his mind along with his intuitive abilities
in massage therapy. In turn, the relaxation techniques and
increased body awareness have made him more effective as a researcher,
allowing for the ability to better manage stressful deadlines.
Michael formed Massage
Therapy Professionals in late 2005 as a Sole Proprietorship. In
Feb 2007, it became a Limited Liability Company.
Our Skilled Massage Therapists
Maria Hancock
- Maria is a graduate of Community
College of Allegheny County, Associate in Science in Massage Therapy
degree. She graduated with high honors. She is also a level
one Reiki Practitioner. She started practicing massage in the
summer of 2005, taking her table or chair to clients homes.
Maria chose massage therapy because she believes that touch has such
has so many
wonderful benefits and we do not touch enough in our culture. She
loves to use positive energy to help people. She also
has experience in the Medical Field, graduating from ICM School of
Business with a Medical Assisting certificate, also with high
honors. She has worked as a Phlebotomist for three years and as a
Dialysis Technician for six years for Allegheny General Hospital.
Killeen Martinez
- Killeen credits her love of massage therapy to the enjoyment
she gets from a job well done and exploring the many avenues life has
to offer. Her background includes working as a freelance writer
and her pieces have been featured in Pittsburgh City Paper,
Pittsburgh's E Resource, and The Checkerboard. While serving in
the U.S. Army Reserves Killeen received the Army's prestigious Keith L.
Ware Journalism Award for her article, "Women in the Armed
Forces."
Handwriting Analysis is another one of Killeen's interests.
She has had the pleasure of providing her talents to several high
profile companies including the Pittsburgh Pirates, Alcoa Corporation,
and McDonald's Restaurant. Her reputation as a Handwriting
Analyst also earned her a spot as a featured guest on Star 100.7's
morning show with John, J.R. & Kate. Killeen is working
toward completing her associate degree in massage therapy and is
scheduled to meet all of the requirements by December 2006. She
enjoys massage because she reognizes that everyone has some amount of
stress or a health concern in his or her life. Rather than
seeking an unnatural form of relief, massage can bring an overall sense
of peace and wellness to a person's life.
Diane Barbin
- Diane has entered massage therapy as a second career, after
retiring from AT&T with 30 years of service. She became
interested in massage therapy and earned a Certificate in Massage
Therapy form CCAC, graduating with Highest Honors. Diane enjoys
perfoming massage much more than working behind the desk. She
loves seeing the effect of her work on clients, evidenced by the
transformation of stress to relaxation on their faces. Family
life is very important to Diane and she takes great pride in cheering
her son on at soccer games. Diane plans to further her education in
massage therapy. She believes learning new modalities will help
not only her clients but also herself. She has found a renewed
purpose in life and passes it on to her clients.
Bob Eich
- Bob comes to us with over fifteen years of experience in the
medical field. He attended the Community College of Allegheny
County, where he obtained a Certificate in Medical Assisting, as
well as a Certificate in Massage Therapy and an Associate Degree in
Science in General Studies. He is also a Level I Reiki Practitioner.
Bob became oriented towards massage therapy after many years of
experiencing the importance of the human touch in the healing
process, as well as witnessing the healing powers of the ancient
Japanese healing art of Reiki. Bob is currently employed in the
Emergency Department of Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh,
PA. He is a member of AMTA
Janet Dreher, NCMTB
- After experiencing a sense of peace and well-being after her
first massage, Jan enrolled in a weekend course, “Massage for Friends
and Family” at The Pittsburgh School of Massage Therapy (PSMT).
She enjoyed the class tremendously, and after much soul-searching and
prayer, left her 27 year career in the financial world. She
enrolled as a full time student at PSMT in 2000 and has never looked
back!! Jan completed the 616 hour program, and graduated in
October 2001. Jan is the sole practitioner of a private practice
in Marshall Township. She incorporates Swedish (relaxation)
massage, deep tissue massage, and Muscle Release Technique TM,
as appropriate, to meet the unique needs her clients. She is also
certified in Pregnancy Massage and Lypossage TM. Jan is a
professional member of the American Massage Therapy Association (AMTA);
Secretary for the Southwestern Unit of the AMTA Pennsylvania Chapter;
Co-Chair for Membership of the AMTA Pennsylvania Chapter; and was the
Awards Chair for the AMTA Pennsylvania Chapter from 2004-2006.
Jan earned national certification in massage therapy and bodywork
(NCMTB) in 2002.
Melanie Evans
- Melanie's biography will be available soon.
Cathy Niccolai
- Cathy's biography will be available soon.
Nicole Puckett
- Nicole's biography will be available soon.