Meet Jess: Your Adult and Early Language Speech Pathologist

​Hello and welcome! My name is Jess, and I’m a speech pathologist with a passion for helping people improve their communication, swallowing, and overall quality of life. I’d like to share a little about my journey, both personal and professional, and how it brought me to where I am today.

​I was born and raised in Kissimmee, Florida, growing up with my younger brother and our parents. Our childhoods were full of adventures—spending time on the boat, at the beach, and making a ruckus in our neighbourhood. From a young age, I knew I loved language and communication, which eventually shaped my career path. I attended the University of Florida, earning a Bachelor’s degree in Linguistics with a minor in Teaching English as a Second Language. I had grand plans to travel the world and revive dead languages—but a conversation with my dad reminded me how much I dislike bugs and how much I love hot showers. Suddenly, traveling to remote areas didn’t seem so appealing! I knew I wanted to work with language, but in a more realistic setting. This led me to discover the field of Speech Pathology. I pursued a second Bachelor’s Degree in Communication Sciences and Disorders and then went on to earn my Master’s in Speech-Language Pathology from Florida Atlantic University in August 2016.

After graduation, I wanted to combine my love of travel with my career, which led me to a position as a traveling speech pathologist in Anchorage, Alaska—arriving there the day after graduation! Originally, my contract was for nine months, but life had other plans. About a month in, as winter approached and the cold set in (coming from sunny Florida, I was definitely not prepared!), I tried online dating to meet locals. On my second date, I met my now husband, Bryan. By the end of my contract, we decided to build a life together—marrying four years later in October 2020 and welcoming our son in July 2022.

Over the next five years, I worked in a hospital setting both in intensive care and inpatient rehabilitation in Anchorage. I loved being part of people’s journeys to recovery, but when COVID hit, hospital work became extremely challenging. I chose to then transition into home health, visiting clients in their own homes. Goals were different as I was now helping clients achieve functional goals and improving their quality of life often after being discharged from the Hospital. This work was deeply rewarding and led us to move slightly north to Wasilla, Alaska, where I continued to grow professionally while impacting my clients’ lives in meaningful ways. Eventually, I became the Rehab Director for the company I worked with, building a rehab program tailored to community needs while still maintaining client-facing work.

In a pursuit of a life aligned with our values, and with a safe, supportive environment for our son, we decided to move abroad. We fell in love with Sound Abilities Speech Pathology for their community-focused goals and welcoming team, and in June 2025, we officially relocated! We have loved life here on the Island, the community has been so welcoming, and spending everyday on the beach certainly doesn’t hurt anything.

Clinically, I have extensive experience working with adults in the areas of swallowing, voice, cognition and language. The ability to improve someone’s quality of life across these domains is a truly rewarding part of my work and shaped my career for 8 years. Two years ago, my career shifted as our son was diagnosed with a severe language impairment. As we were getting him services with other Speech Pathologists, I made it my mission to increase my knowledge so I can offer him the best chance possible to communicate. Through the therapy we were lucky to have and our home practice, he was able to catch up to his peers.  Through this experience with our own child, a new passion was ignited in me, working with early language development and helping parents navigate the process of supporting their children. I am deeply committed to helping families support their children, be a support system for worried parents, and watch other children grow in their own communication journeys.

I am thrilled to be part of the Sound Abilities team and to bring my expertise to the community. My goal is to provide high-quality, individualised speech pathology services that enhance communication, independence and overall quality of life for all my clients. Thank you for taking the time to get to know me. I look forward to meeting you and supporting your journey to better communication and functional independence!

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