Growing up in a large family with 9 siblings, Ashley was a caregiver from a very young age. Her dad has been chronically ill for most of her life with her mother and the older siblings taking on caregiver and provider roles from a young age. When her late aunt Fern was diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer, Ashley moved in to be a caregiver to her aunt. Ashley saw a broken healthcare system that treated her aunt like another number, another patient. In caring for her aunt through end of life, Ashley was determined to find a health profession that cared beyond the diagnosis. She discovered occupational therapy, a health profession that starts from a place of purpose: what do you love to do, or what do you have to do, and how can we work together to achieve those goals?

While studying neuroscience and psychology in undergrad, and researching executive functioning, Ashley became passionate about how both the science and behavior of the brain impact every day tasks and how a person interacts within their environment based on brain health. She has devoted 20+ years to being a caregiver, and  8+ years of research practice bridging the gaps in neurological aging, diagnosis and traumatic brain injury. She practices in both the home and community settings to understand the daily contexts in which her patients live and operate, taking a wholistic approach to brain health recovery and mitigating progression of symptoms.