Heal it Forward
Integrative Touch Celebrates 20th Anniversary
By Valerie Vinyard
While attending UCLA for a graduate degree in public health, Shay Beider thought she’d become a pediatric surgeon.
She ended up creating something much bigger – Integrative Touch, a healing movement in Tucson that can serve as a model for other cities worldwide. The organization celebrated its 20th anniversary in October.
The idea came to Beider during her studies at UCLA. The Kansas City, Mo., native was working at a Los Angeles hospital and witnessed a young girl being admitted for an appendectomy.
“From her perspective, she was really scared and alone,” Beider said. “I saw all of her fear.
“I had an epiphany. I said to myself, ‘It doesn’t have to be this way.’” So, Beider co-wrote a $1 million grant to bring therapy and massage into Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.
Beider stayed at Children’s Hospital from 2000 to 2005, while earning her graduate degree in public health. Because of Beider, that hospital continues to offer a comprehensive program in pediatric integrative medicine.
When she moved to Tucson in 2005, she wanted to create a model that addressed the entire family, not just those with illness or trauma. In 2009, she created integrative medicine retreats. The first year was at White Stallion Ranch, with future retreats taking place at Hacienda del Sol Guest Ranch Resort. Today, Integrative Touch provides support for people of all ages—anyone who has experienced or is experiencing pain, trauma, or illness—through a variety of integrative therapies.
In 2014, she started at Banner-University Medical Center Tucson, but when COVID-19 hit, she focused on creating the Integrative Touch Healing Center. “We were going places,” Beider said. “I always knew there would be a healing center.”
Integrative Touch opened its 3,500-square-foot healing center in October 2023 near Ina and Oracle roads. It provides about 50 treatments a week and will help approximately 3,000 people this year. “This center is a prototype,” Beider said. “It can be laid down in any community.”
Integrative Touch uses a “heal it forward” model. “Ninety percent of what we think of health care happens outside of health care facilities,” she said. “We look at (Integrative Touch) like an ecosystem.”
At the Oracle Road center, there are five treatment rooms, each named after a young patient; a classroom; and a kid sanctuary. A recent Sunday featured a dance class and other activities including Compassion Camps, massage and counseling. “All of the activities are inclusive of all people and abilities,” Beider said.
As a nonprofit, Integrative Touch remains affordable, with scholarships available and services offered on a sliding scale fee. Its $1.2 million-budget is fueled by donations and grants.
Its biggest fundraiser will be the Feb. 8 Butterfly Gala at El Conquistador Resort. The $195 early-bird tickets must be purchased by Jan. 20. Tickets will then cost $225 and are available online at www.integrativetouch.org. The event will include a live and silent auction and a dance party to the cover band Gigi & the GLOW.
Integrative Touch helps with “every kind of illness and health challenge you can imagine,” Beider said. “We can help them on an emotional, psychological and spiritual level.”
Griselda Ramirez is a single mom to Allyson Carmona, who had cerebral palsy. Early in Carmona’s life, she applied to Integrative Touch for help.
One of Carmona’s early experiences was visiting a ranch, where she benefited from a variety of therapies. “It was an amazing experience to be there,” Ramirez said. “At the time, she wasn’t able to walk. Now she’s able to walk. Everything came from that place.”
Now 13, Carmona continues to receive therapy. Her mom has noticed a dramatic change.
“She’s looking like she really wants to enjoy life,” Ramirez said. “She’s alive now.”
Morgan O’Crotty is the VP of strategy for Phoenix-based Convey Communications. “I’ve been a volunteer with InTouch for over a decade, and each experience has given me more than I could have imagined,” she said. “It’s incredibly rewarding to work alongside others toward a shared goal and to contribute, even in small ways, to an organization that’s making a real, meaningful impact in Tucson and beyond.”
Over the years, O’Crotty has served on Integrative Touch’s marketing committee. She assisted as a volunteer at healing retreats, helped launch its podcast in 2020; and currently serves on the gala committee.
“This organization has taught me so much about health and wellness and has deeply enriched my life,” she said.” I’m incredibly proud to see Shay’s vision come to life, and I can’t wait to see what’s next.”
Katie Frazee, the VP of programs and community wellness, has been involved with Integrative Touch for 13 years – three as a volunteer and 10 as an employee.
“I fell in love with the concept and the seed of the dream and the mission of the organization and the integrity,” Frazee said. “I started volunteering more and more until I became a staff member.
“We are connecting people who are really isolated with each other and we are providing safe, affordable quality of care,” she added. “Within this model, my well-being is connected to yours.”
Integrative Touch Butterfly Gala
6 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 26, 2025
El Conquistador, A Hilton Resort