Leadership
Board Members
President – Brenda Padilla
president.amta.texas@gmail.com
President Position Description
I’m Brenda Padilla your Texas Chapter President. I have been involved with AMTA for 15 years, in the massage field for 18 years and do not see myself stopping anytime soon. I have been on the Texas Chapter Board for many years as the Financial Administrator and now the President. I’m an instructor too! I teach at the local community college’s massage therapy program – molding the minds and hands of our future. I do run my own small massage business along with AMTA. All of these keep me very busy. I do make time for my family. I have a loving and totally supporting husband of 28 years, my Momma and of course my dog Muggles. He is a Great Pyrenees/Anatolian Shepard mix. He does do his herding job very well with my Mom, and 2 important little ladies- my grand daughters-Dezi and Gracie.
Financial Administrator – David Falknor
dfalknor.finad.amta.tx@gmail.com
Financial Administrator Position Description
Graduated from Southeastern Institute in Nashville, TN in April 21, 2011, 4 days after my 48th birthday and became a student member of AMTA. I started my practice in Brentwood, TN at Pure Life Massage and Wellness. My family and I returned to our home state of Texas in 2013 to be near my wife’s parents in Northwest Houston. In 2014, I obtained my Massage Therapy Instructor’s license. I work on athletes at marathons, tri-athelons and Iron-Man competitions as well as MMA and boxing competitors. I joined the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo’s Sports Medicine Team in 2018. Today, I focus my time on my clients and helping them to return to health lifestyle holistically and in conjunction with chiropractic service.
Secretary, Delegate, School Liaison & Regional Coordinator SE Houston – Carolyn Miller
Secretary Position Description
Carolyn graduated from the Texas School of Massage in 2010 and started her career in central Texas, specializing in various spa services, working with service men and women in the military, and training massage therapist. She returned home to Houston in 2019 and continued to train massage therapist at a day spa. At the ten-year mark, her career took a shift. She obtained her instructors license in 2021. Today, Carolyn is an instructor at the Phoenix School of Massage and continues to practice in a Chiropractic setting, specializing in prenatal massage. In her spare time, she volunteers as a delegate for the AMTA Texas chapter, and assist other massage therapist with the AMTA mentorship program.
First Board Member – Timeka Hunt
1stboardmemeber.texas.amta@gmail.com
Board Member Position Description
I have been a massage therapist for 19 years. I have worked in a lot of areas including spas, wellness centers, pediatric hospital, Oncology, massage chains, etc. All while I was running and maintaining my own practice. I have found my niche in geriatric massage. I’m dedicated to aiding in the health literacy of massage therapy to those that didn’t have access or didn’t know of Massage until the last 20/30 years. Recently, I completed my certification in Complete Decongestive Therapy and I’m now a Certified Lymphedema Therapist which I am incorporating into my practice. Im also an occupational therapist assistant. I have 2 beautiful children, a girl teenager and a boy toddler. I enjoy my quality time with family and shopping, of course, lol. I love massage therapy and how it aids in bringing the body into homeostasis.
Second Board Member & Delegate- Michaelle Fisher
2ndboardmemberamtatx@gmail.com
Board Member Position Description
Howdy!
I’ve been a Texas massage therapist for 33 years and received my 30 year AMTA pin at National Convention earlier this year.
Since my initial training in 1988, I’ve studied NMT, CST, LDT, Sports massage, Bodywork for the Childbearing Year and more.
Many of the classes I decided to take after experiencing an introduction to the method at AMTA State Convention.
Venerable massage therapists of distinction have led the way, making AMTA TX Chapter one of the best in the nation.
After watching amazing volunteers do these jobs, I’ve served as TX Chapter Secretary, Ft Worth Unit Director, Chapter Delegate, and enjoyed many years as Awards Chair.
I encourage you to join me in serving our organization.
Hope to meet you in El Paso and hear what excites you!
Always an honor to serve the AMTA TX Chapter.
Chair Positions
Education Chair – Michelle Burns
educationchair.amtatexas@gmail.com
Education Chair Position Description
MICHELLE BURNS, BSN, LMT, MTI, CEP, BCTMB, is a Licensed Massage Therapist, Massage Therapy Instructor and Continuing Education Provider with more than 25 years of experience in massage and over 20 years of experience as a Registered Nurse in surgical and intensive care. She is the founder and director of Advanced Holistic Healing Arts, a medical and clinical massage business that offers advanced training and continuing education for therapists. Ms. Burns believes in the benefits of both traditional medicine and complementary therapies, and works to incorporate both the science and art of techniques in her practice and in her classes. For the past 20 years she has focused on collaborating with traditional medical practitioners to support healing and recovery from illnesses and injury through bodywork, movement, and lymph drainage. She became the Education Chair for the Texas Chapter of the American Massage Therapy Association in 2019. To learn more about Ms. Burns, please visit her website at www.holistichealingarts.net.
Event Chair – Monica Garza
eventchairtexas.amta@gmail.com
My name is Monica Garza, founder of 180 Massage Therapy LLC. I am a licensed massage therapist and certified in medical massage. My passion for massage therapy started in my early years in college. I knew massage was where my heart was. I opened 180 Massage Therapy LLC during the COVID-19 Pandemic not knowing what the future held, just going by how I was ready to help all those who were in need of massage. I am provider for TriWest and am grateful to have the opportunity to give back to the Veteran’s of the United States who have sacrificed for our country. On my down time, I love spending time with my family, my faith, reading, and enjoying the journey of learning what all that massage therapy has to offer.
Technology Chair – Sherry Scott, BS, MLA
technologychair.amtatx@gmail.com
Technology Chair Position Description
Highlights –
- 10+ years experience in professional pre-digital photo processing
- 15 years in media production and web development in higher education
- 10 years managing a development team and acting as a facilitator for wide ranging groups of constituents
- 17+ years as an independent designer/developer
Working in professional photo labs pre-digital, Sherry developed skills in image manipulation, eventually completing a Bachelor’s Degree in Photography. She also completed the Kodak Color Correction course, so she gets color, she REALLY gets color. As film began to phase out, Sherry found other ways to work in the creative field, moving into academia.
While managing media production and equipment for university classrooms she taught herself HTML, creating a website for her then employer, St. Edward’s University. She became their first webmaster, and for the next 11 years grew the web development team, learning skills as a manager. Her role in managing this very large site required training in facilitation skills in order to create a collaborative environment between site users, programmers, and audiences. Active listening, re-framing, and mind-mapping are the tools Sherry uses well.
Then in 2005 Sherry struck out on her own. Since then she has developed numerous websites, logos, illustrations, promotional products, and print pieces.
Social Media Chair
Kacie Owens
Social Media Chair Job Description
I have been an LMT since 2007 and a Massage Therapy Instructor since 2018! I have lived and worked in Central Texas for my entire career! I have a passion for the Massage industry and love learning new modalities.
Government Relations – Russell Rust
Government Relations Chair Position Description
I am Russell Rust, your Government Relation chair, a position I have held since 2001. I have been practicing massage therapy since 1994 and opened my first massage school with my wife Kim in 1998. A massage therapist from 1986 to 2007 was called a registered massage therapist without a lot of privileges. I have worked to pass legislation giving the massage profession the same privileges today that other health care providers enjoy,now that we are Licensed Massage Therapists. I joined the AMTA in 1994 and have held pretty much every position (more than once). I take pride in being a massage therapist and an AMTA member and understand the history from where we started to where we are now and that would not have happened without volunteers and the AMTA Texas Chapter. My wife and I have dedicated ourselves to training massage therapists the right way to ensure our profession continues to advance in the eyes of the public. Together we have raised a soon to be biologist who will start PA school next year after graduation. The massage profession has allowed us the time to spend raising our beautiful daughter into the woman she is today.
School Liaison
Carolyn Miller
Carolyn graduated from the Texas School of Massage in 2010 and started her career in central Texas, specializing in various spa services, working with service men and women in the military, and training massage therapist. She returned home to Houston in 2019 and continued to train massage therapist at a day spa. At the ten-year mark, her career took a shift. She obtained her instructors license in 2021. Today, Carolyn is an instructor at the Phoenix School of Massage and continues to practice in a Chiropractic setting, specializing in prenatal massage. In her spare time, she volunteers as a delegate for the AMTA Texas chapter, and assist other massage therapist with the AMTA mentorship program.