About Us

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

           

 

 

 

 

   

 



Lisa Haverly, Owner & Facilitator of Rainbow Tree 

What’s in the name Rainbow Tree Therapies?

The name Rainbow Tree Therapies reflects a deep commitment to hope, belonging, and the beauty that emerges when differences are honored.

A rainbow symbolizes hope, often appearing after storms, and represents the journey many children and families experience: layered, complex, and filled with possibility even in the midst of challenge.

The word tree represents strength, rootedness, and diversity. No two trees grow the same way. Some are tall and straight, others twist and bend, shaped by their environment, experiences, and inner design. In nature, diversity creates resilience and the same is true for human development.

Rainbow Tree Therapies is committed to providing a space where children feel deeply rooted so they can move forward with confidence, resilience, hope and joy. 

When Storms and Daily Challenges Arise

When storms roll in, whether they arrive as developmental challenges, emotional overwhelm, sensory differences, family stressors, or the quieter daily struggles, what often makes the difference is not more pressure, but the right support at the right time.

Sometimes resilience grows through offering the right kind of stimulation, not too much and not too little. Sometimes it comes from a thoughtfully chosen intervention, an improved context, or adjusting the environment so a child’s nervous system can feel safe enough to engage and learn. And sometimes, resilience is built by patiently tending to foundational skills such as postural control, sensory integration, regulation, communication, or motor planning that may take longer to develop, but form the roots for everything that comes after.

At its heart, occupational therapy recognizes that development is not linear. Growth happens through cycles of effort and rest, challenge and repair, rupture and return. When we slow down, observe closely, and honor each child’s unique rhythm, we create the conditions where resilience can emerge. often quietly, and often over time.

🌈 Mission Statement
The mission of Rainbow Tree Therapies is to support children and their families through nature-based occupational therapy, enrichment programs, and educational opportunities that fosters ease, joy, and meaningful connection. By honoring each child’s unique strengths, spirit, and lived experience, Rainbow Tree Therapies helps build confidence, resilience, and self-determination through purposeful, everyday experiences grounded in the natural world.

🌈 Vision Statement
The vision of Rainbow Tree Therapies is a world in which all children, across abilities, disabilities, cultures, and neurotypes have access to the healing and empowering benefits of nature. Rainbow Tree Therapies envisions inclusive environments where every child feels a deep sense of belonging, is supported through authentic connection, and is free to grow into their fullest potential with confidence, creativity, and resilience.

🌈 Our Values

At Rainbow Tree Therapies, we are guided by the following core values:

  • Possibility – We believe in the potential within every child and family, and we honor the journey toward growth, healing, and new beginnings.
  • Compassion – We value showing up with kindness, empathy, and respect, creating a safe and supportive space for children to thrive.
  • Collaboration – We deeply value partnering with families, other professionals and our community to support others. 
  • Nature as a Partner.  – We value the nature connection and nature context to support growth, development and wellbeing.  Nature is our co-therapist.
  • Autonomy & Sense of Agency - We honor the strengths and interests of those that we serve and let that guide us and empower the child to be active participants in our programming.
  • Rhythm – We value the power of rhythm whether that be rhythm of movement, sound, season, or routines.  Rhythm supports the whole person. 
  • Community - We value bringing children together to find a sense of belonging.

WHAT WE PROVIDE:

Lisa's journey to launching Rainbow Tree Therapies:

Lisa's story begins on the wide-open prairie of South Dakota, where childhood unfolded outdoors and imagination had endless room to roam. She spent her days playing Laura Ingalls Wilder with her uncle’s horses, digging in the dirt, and wandering through her grandmothers’ gardens. One grandmother grew cucumbers destined for homemade pickles and heirloom tomatoes so sweet they tasted like sunshine. The other had the most incredible strawberry patch, berries so ripe and sugary they rarely made it to the house.

Her grandfathers were quiet, steady men, shaped by experiences they rarely spoke about. Both had lived through World War II, carrying those years closely and privately, resilience etched into their posture and presence rather than their words. They taught her that strength does not need to be loud. One loved his apples. The other whistled familiar tunes and took her along on slow rides to check the cows. From them, she learned that resilience can be gentle, grounded, and deeply human.

She grew up on the edge of town, where her dad kept a small herd of Charolais cattle. Life was simple, hardworking, and deeply connected to the rhythms of the land. Her parents modeled perseverance every day. Her dad ran an implement and car dealership, a family business that began as a blacksmith shop and her mom, a high school art teacher, taught her that beauty, creativity, and connection are not luxuries, but essentials. Together, they showed her that resilience lives at the intersection of work, care, and meaning.

She and her sisters were happiest outside. Summers were spent riding bikes across town to the swimming pool, wet towels slung over handlebars or their necks, sun-warmed concrete under bare feet, hours marked not by clocks but by whistles and laughter. That same small-town pool in Highmore has recently been renewed through a community, wide effort, with residents fundraising one million dollars for its renovation, a testament to the enduring strength, pride, and commitment of the place that raised her.

They rode bikes everywhere, crossed railroad tracks to get to their grandma’s house, played summer softball, and took risks that quietly built confidence and capability. Looking back, she sees how those experiences shaped her nervous system, her sense of self, and her deep belief in what children truly need to grow.

She was introduced to occupational therapy at age 14, after watching her infant cousin benefit profoundly from it. She was struck not only by his progress, but by how deeply his family trusted and adored their school-based occupational therapist. It felt like a calling, a profession rooted in resilience, relationship, and possibility.

She went on to earn her undergraduate degree in psychology and then her master’s in occupational therapy. She never imagined becoming a business owner. She had watched her dad carry the long hours, risk, and responsibility that come with building something of your own. When she asked him if he thought she could do it, he nodded and said yes, acknowledging both her capacity and the hard work it would require. That quiet confidence became another inheritance.

Nearly 27 years into her career as an occupational therapist, she is deeply grateful for the continued growth and success of Rainbow Tree Therapies, which began in 2013 with just a few summer camps and a handful of children. It started with a simple hope: if five or six children came to each camp, she would be thrilled. And if no one came? At least she tried. That willingness to try, to risk, and to build slowly was shaped by generations before her.

For more than two decades, she spent her career as an occupational therapist in the public school system, most recently in Somerset, Wisconsin. She deeply valued the collaborative work with her school-based teams and found great meaning in supporting children as they worked toward their academic and functional goals through occupational therapy. As the demand for Rainbow Tree Therapies continued to grow, she made the thoughtful decision to step away from school-based practice in 2022 in order to fully devote her time and energy to this expanding work.

What fueled those early days was her own childhood: freedom, movement, nature, and connection. She believed then, and still does, that reconnecting children to these experiences is vital to healthy development. Too much sitting. Too many expectations too soon. Children need childhood to build resilient brains and bodies.

She wanted to be part of a resurgence—even a small one—of what many remember from days gone by: time outdoors, meaningful play, and space to belong. Today, Rainbow Tree Therapies offers seven camps, private individualized occupational therapy, educational opportunities, and sleep support. This work has been shaped alongside a few treasured friends who walked the journey with her, especially Michelle, Rachel, and Sean.

Experiences shape us. Lineage guides us. Resilience is not something taught—it is something passed on through environments, relationships, and presence.

She remains deeply grateful for her childhood in rural Highmore, South Dakota. That life on the prairie lives on in her work today, serving children, creating spaces of safety and belonging, and honoring each child’s capacity to grow in their own time.

OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY PROFESSIONALS: 

If you are a professional interested in or currently using nature in your service to others, please check out the Nature Superhero Network https://lisarhaverly.podia.com/. and the facebook group:  @Nature Based Occupational Therapy and Related Professions Group