Masseuse offering ‘Healing Hands’
Published 7:03 am Tuesday, September 5, 2006
By By ANDY HAMILTON / Niles Daily Star
NILES – Kolleen Moore needed massages.
Not because they were a form of relaxation. Instead, the treatments relaxed the chronically aching muscles in her neck.
Moore, a Dowagiac resident, said she was involved in three auto accidents over a span of a few years in the mid-1980s. Each time, she suffered from whiplash and as a result, she said the muscles in her neck are constantly stretched.
"When I'd get a massage it felt good … and so I wanted to help other people who feel the same," Moore said.
So, she started on the track to becoming a massage therapist. Her dream was eventually realized when she opened Healing Hands massage therapy in Dowagiac.
About 10 years ago, Moore started in classes at the Health Enrichment Center School of Therapeutic Massage near Flint. She was certified within 10 months.
Moore started her massage therapy business in Dowagiac, but her client base extended to the south as well.
"That's why I also wanted a business in Niles, because I had clients from when I lived here before," Moore said, referring to the 10 years she was a resident of the City of Four Flags.
Moore eventually did open an extension of her business in Niles. Though she was unable to keep the building open, she said she still has a few clients in Niles.
She said she would prefer to have a base in Niles. However, instead of the Niles customers coming to her, Moore said she now occasionally goes to people's homes with one of her two portable massage tables.
"It's nice when you get a massage and you don't have to go anywhere – you're already at home," Moore said.
Some massage methods use a softer touch and are meant to energize, Moore said.
"I tend to do more of a therapeutic massage then a relaxing massage," she said.
Moore said her method works muscles that are damaged or stressed. Through the process, Moore said toxins are removed from the body, and some of the benefits can include better sleep.
"Each massage is custom to the person," Moore said.
One individual may only need treatment twice a year. But, a person with a physical or stressful job may want a massage every week, Moore said.
Moore said she visits a friend who also runs a massage business when she is in need of treatment.
"Because, I'm the type of person that can't get enough. I'll never turn down a massage," she said.
The same could not be said about her husband, Danny, who Moore married in February.
"I have to make him get a massage when everybody else is like, 'Yeah, I want one.' I guess he feels he doesn't get the benefit," Moore said.