"There is no greater gift than
to make a difference in the life of another person."
Sage School of Massage Faculty Members
A.J. Buehler, LMT
After 22 years of
teaching the Martial Arts, AJ Buehler fulfilled his dream of
becoming a Massage Therapist. AJ brings 13 years of
experience as a Licensed Massage Therapist and is continuing
another dream: his love of teaching. AJ feels that by
teaching others, it helps him to be a better massage
therapist.
AJ owns Therapeutic Massage in downtown Bend and specializes in
Deep Tissue, Sports, and Swedish massage. He also works
with clients in pain management and teaches them stretching
techniques to help them with their ongoing
rehabilitation. AJ likes to incorporate humor into his
lessons as well as creative Power Point demonstrations to keep
students engaged and learning.
AJ lives with his wife, two young daughters, and their Shlab
(Siberian-Husky- Lab) in Bend, and enjoys hiking, camping, and
Aikido. AJ enjoys the fact that he is a life long
learner!
Rodney Cross, DC
Rodney graduated from Western States Chiropractic College in 1986. He has been in private practice in central Oregon since 1987. He brings to the classroom not only knowledge of Anatomy and Physiology, but a wealth of clinical experience to share. Rodney is married to his wife Lynn and has three grown boys. He enjoys outdoor activities like biking, hiking and fishing. Hobbies include woodworking and yard work.
Kathi Cullen, LMT
Kathi brings thirty years of fi nance and accounting experience
to Sage School of Massage. Along with serving as Corporate
Controller for two different companies Kathi was also 
nationally certifi ed with the
Society of Human Resource Management (SHRM) and the American
Payroll Association (APA).
Kathi completed her massage training at Central Oregon
Community College. Preferring to be the one at the massage
table giving massage rather than the accountant on the table
with stress knots in the back and shoulders, Kathi is drawn to
the healing aspects of massage. Chemotherapy patients benefi t
from Kathi volunteering several hours a week for hand and foot
massage while they get the chemotherapy infusions.
While bringing her corporate knowledge to share with her
students, Kathi is also committed to learning more about
various aspects of massage and brings the dedication to the
field of massage that she brought to the corporate finance and
accounting field.
Diane Flowers, BS, LMT
Diane attended massage school at the Healing Arts Institute in
Fort Collins, CO while finishing her Bachelor of Science at
Colorado State University. She graduated in 1996 and opened a
private massage practice.
After practicing for about a year, she decided to further
explore her interest in the healing arts by spending fi ve
years studying at the National College of Naturopathic
Medicine. After fi nishing school in 2002, she moved to
Bozeman, MT to open a practice. Before long, Diane met and fell
in love with her husband and moved to Sisters, OR to marry
him.
Diane now has a private massage practice in Sisters where she
focuses primarily on injury treatment and rehabilitation. She
continues to practice massage because of the benefi ts that her
clients experience, the fulfi llment that she feels, and the fl
exibility that it affords as she raises three children. Diane
also loves to run, mountain bike, rock climb, and occasionally
compete in adventure racing.
Diane has taught in a number of settings in the past, and is
very excited about teaching massage. Her main goal for teaching
is communicating information that will be relevant to practice
in the “real world” while having fun and
cultivating a passion for massage.
Deby Grant-Bowman, LMT, AAS Massage
Deby has 26 years of teaching experience and 15 years as a
licensed massage therapist. She has developed successful
private practices in Portland and Bend Oregon. Her primary 
focus is treating chronic pain
conditions, auto injuries, and stress management.
She loves to teach because she loves to learn. Deby often says,
“Teaching makes me a better therapist and my private
practice makes me a better instructor”. She enjoys
inspiring and motivating students to believe in themselves and
their abilities to be the best massage therapist they can.
Her desire is to give the knowledge and skills she has learned
in a fun, creative, learning environment. Students say she
communicates the main objectives of a lesson clearly, so that
they can understand the importance, for their own massage
careers.
Amy Lafferty, BA, MS, OTR/L, LMT
Amy Lafferty, MS, OTR/L, LMT has a wealth of experience as a
health care provider. She worked for several years as an
Occupational Therapist at the University Hospital in Denver, at
the 
Mapleton Center for
Rehabilitation in Boulder, CO, and in Idaho before discovering
the highly gratifying work of Massage Therapy. Amy holds a BA
degree from the University of Colorado at Boulder, a MS degree
in environmental education from Colorado State University, and
a MS degree in Occupational Therapy from Colorado State
University.
Amy completed her massage training (including advanced deep
tissue training) at COCC. She is both a Licensed Occupational
Therapist and a Licensed Massage Therapist in Oregon.
As an environmental education curriculum developer and
front-line educator, Amy learned that individuals learn from
various paths. She is committed to making learning experiences
relevant and meaningful to students.
Tim Monaco, LMT
Tim Monaco
has been an an Oregon Licensed Massage Therapist since 2006 and
began his practice in Northern California in 2000.
Specializing in Neuromuscular Reprograming (NMR), he
incorporates numerous techniques into sessions to best suit the
client's needs. Tim is also a Holistic Nutrition
Consultant and Corrective Exercise specialist. With over
twenty years of experience as a practitioner and athlete, Tim
focuses on expanding and sharing his knowledge and effectively
guiding his clients to better health, wellness and performance.
Tim holds several certifications: C.H.E.K. Certified as: Holistic Nutrition & Lifestyle Coach Level III; Certified Metabolic Typing Advisor (CMTA); NSCA Certified personal Trainer (NSCA-CPT); USA Cycling Level II Coach; Carmichael Training Systems Elite Coach; Titlist Performance Institute (TPI); and Certified golf Fitness Instructor.
Ellyn Lindquist, BA, LMT
Ellyn brings over 15 years of experience in bodywork and
Rolfing® to her classroom and creates a fun and creative
environment. She graduated from Indiana University with a
degree in 
Psychology and then
went on to attend East West College of the Healing Arts in
Portland, OR and the Rolf Institute for Structural Integration
in Boulder, CO.
Ellyn has taught anatomy, kinesiology and pathology at East
West College, assisted at the Rolf Institute and for continuing
education classes and is now teaching myofascial work and
pathology at Sage School of Massage. She also has had teaching
experience in rock climbing and mountaineering classes.
Ellyn owns Central Oregon Rolfing® & Therapeutic
Bodyworks in Bend and has a full practice in structural work
and Rolfing. She is active in triathlon, skiing and Pilates.
She has a sound background in rock climbing, yoga, dance and
playing music and was a choreographer for musicals in her
hometown of Appleton, WI.
Her realistic approach to teaching helps students to understand
what they will experience in their practice. She uses humor and
philosophy to integrate scientific knowledge into practical
application. Ellyn’s philosophy of being a therapist and
teacher is “I simply want to help educate people to
better understand their bodies and minds and the correlation
between the two”.
Bonnie Snyder, BA, LMT
Bonnie graduated from Seattle’s Brenneke School of
Massage in 1995 and began a private massage therapy practice in
Bellingham, WA. After moving to Bend in 1997, she started her
private
practice and taught at the former Central Oregon School of
Massage. In 2000 she began teaching in the Massage Therapy
Program at Central Oregon Community College, where taught
kinesiology, massage, and introduction to massage therapy as a
career, a course she designed and developed.
Bonnie has taught infant massage at the Athletic Club of Bend
and in private classes. She loves her profession and is
committed to the field of massage, and massage education.
Bonnie believes massage can be of benefit to every body, and
has a passion for offering excellent skills to her clients. Her
continuing education courses have covered a wide range of
techniques, including myofascial release, treatment of whiplash
injuries, cadaver anatomy, and cranial sacral therapy. She has
studied deep tissue massage with Bill Musser, LMT, and has
assisted in workshops on whiplash treatment, and SOAP charting
with Diana Thompson, LMT.
Bonnie lives with her husband, Bob, their two cats and three
dogs. She also does dog training at Dancin’ Woofs
Compassionate Dog Training and Daycare, and has raised two
service dogs for Canine Companions for Independence.
Kelly Ward, BS, LMT
Like so many people drawn to the practice of massage
therapy, Kelly started out as just another massage junkie. It
was after years of receiving body work that Kelly finally sent
himself to 
massage school to
learn the craft. Educated at Utah College of Massage Therapy in
Salt Lake City Utah, Kelly’s career path has taken him to
spas in Utah, Idaho, California and currently Shibui Spa in
Sisters Oregon. Kelly brings 9 years of spa management and
massage experience to our staff.
Kelly has been teaching Swedish massage, hydrotherapy and deep tissue classes since 2007. Before becoming an educator, Kelly has spent the bulk of his career as a lead massage therapist, a job description that includes, hiring and training massage staff as well as the concept and design of body treatments.
Kelly’s passion for bodywork is evident in his teaching
style. He brings real world experience to the class room, and
gives students the strong fundamentals they need to succeed.
“Teaching is a way for me to give back all that I have
learned as a successful massage therapist to ensure the next
generation of body-worker has a strong foundation on which to
build their career.”
Continuing Education
Bill Musser, MS, LMT Massage
Bill Musser has had private practices in Colorado, New Mexico,
and Oregon and has worked in a variety of treatment settings.
He holds a Master’s degree in Exercise Physiology and has
been a Registered Nurse. bill has over 30 years of bodywork
experience. Prior to moving to bodywork on a full-time
basis he had a career in college teaching and administration.
He has served as chairman of the Oregon State Board of Massage
Therapists and has performed as a principal investigator in
research on carpal tunnel syndrome for a National Institute of
Health study. Bill was selected as the Jerome Perlinski
National Teacher of the Year by the Council of Schools of the
American Massage Therapy Association for the
year 2000. His clients have included motor vehicle accident
victims, injured workers and athletes (recreational and
intercollegiate to Olympic Gold medalists and world
record-holders). Bill developed and taught the
advanced massage courses at Central Oregon Community College in
Bend for over ten years. A former NCAA College Division
All-American, he also performs biomechanical analysis for
swimmers.
