© 2024 Interlochen
CLASSICAL IPR | 88.7 FM Interlochen | 94.7 FM Traverse City | 88.5 FM Mackinaw City IPR NEWS | 91.5 FM Traverse City | 90.1 FM Harbor Springs/Petoskey | 89.7 FM Manistee/Ludington
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Lisa Wamsley

“It goes back to rubbing my mom’s feet when I was five,” Lisa Wamsley says.  “My hands are always on people.”  She laughs, knowing that sounds a little strange—but maybe not for a massage therapist.  Despite her mom’s happy feet, Lisa didn’t start out with this career in mind. “I was in banking for nine years but I was out of place in the corporate world.”

Using self-taught massage, she worked with a pregnant woman and was present at the birth.  Afterwards, the parents of the child told her, “This is your calling and we’ll loan you the money to get certified.”  She took them up on their offer and started her own business 16 years ago.  “I’m doing something that fulfills me and that helps people,” she says.  “It’s worth the financial uncertainty.”

“I’m humbled when someone walks in in pain and walks out in gratitude,” she says.  “Even if I can’t fix it, I can still help.”  She also gets massage herself.  “It’s a very physical job, the wear and tear on my shoulders and fingers.  And I do it for research—so I can learn from others and keep improving.  You can always get better.”