Kelly Tessens

Certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialist (CTRS)
Certified Brain Injury Specialist (CBIS)
Certified Inclusive/Special Needs Fitness Trainer

Kelly received a Bachelor of Applied Arts from Central Michigan University in Therapeutic Recreation in 2013 and has been with the HCRT team ever since, transitioning to her current role of Clinical Manager in 2024. She has experience working with a variety of populations including: Traumatic Brain Injury, Spinal Cord Injury, and a wide range of Mental Health Disorders. In addition to working with HCRT, Kelly has experience working with both children and adults in both inpatient and outpatient psychiatric programs where she has experiencing leading various coping skills groups with a speciality in Mindfulness, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT).She has previously served on the summer board for the Michigan Adaptive Sports organization and has experience with coordinating and leading activities such as adaptive kayaking, water skiing, adaptive snowboarding, adaptive tennis and adaptive hiking using equipment such as the Track Chair. In her free time, Kelly enjoys spending most of her time in the great outdoors! She especially enjoys hiking with her family and two huskies, mushroom foraging, gardening, camping in her old school "hippy van",  bike riding, snowboarding, traveling the world, and anything that keeps her active! One of her other favorite pastimes is fitness and yoga. She has gone through training in both yoga geared towards individuals who have traumatic brain injuries as well as trauma informed yoga. Kelly strives to live a very holistic lifestyle and shares a passion for sharing this knowledge with others. Kelly understands how valuable it is to incorporate our leisure interests into our everyday lives and cannot wait to help others reach their goals and live their lives to the fullest!