MEET OUR TEAM
Our Gifts, Given in Service to Your Healing
We're so excited to introduce you to the hearts behind Walk Alongside!
Each member of our team brings their own unique gifts, wisdom, and passion to this sacred work. Together, we're united by one purpose: to walk alongside you with empathy, presence, and genuine care. Meet the people who make this community thrive
Christine Racic 🧭
CEO, Co-founder & Therapist
Christine is the co-founder of Walk Alongside Counseling and Coaching, where she leads with grace, intentionality, and authentic connection.
As a Rogerian psychotherapist, with over three decades of experience across clinical practice, teaching, and senior leadership in human services, she meets clients exactly where they are, creating a safe sacred space where healing can unfold naturally.
When she's not in session, you'll find her hiking through nature, spending quality time with her grandbabies or diving into research, as she's passionate about lifelong learning.
Christine’s superpower lies in gently dismantling shame and supporting individuals in reclaiming their light, intrinsic value, and authorship of their lives. Guided by the principle “we teach people how to treat us” (Maya Angelou), she helps clients cultivate healthy boundaries that support meaningful, thriving relationships.
Core Philosophy: "See life through the lens of Grace"
What Lights Her Up: Witnessing stories, authentic connection, and the privilege of walking alongside others in their
healing journey
Bethany Hackman 💖
CEO, Co-founder, Somatic Practitioner, Holistic Nutritionist & Personal Trainer
Bethany is the co-founder and CEO of Walk Alongside Counseling and Coaching, where she leads with magnetic presence, devotion, and catalytic energy that helps women come home to their bodies.
As an international retreat and immersion facilitator, with experience supporting thousands of women since 2016, she guides clients through somatic and nervous system-based healing experiences across North America. Known for "DJing people's nervous systems," Beth creates spaces where women don't just learn about healing—they experience it through movement, music, and presence that translates complex nervous system work into real embodied shifts.
When she's not facilitating, you'll find her unwinding with essential oils, somatic movement practices, and candle-lit bubble baths, embodying the very nervous system care she teaches.
Bethany's superpower lies in helping people feel safe enough to return to themselves, transforming shame into self-compassion, disconnection into embodiment, and overwhelm into grounded strength. Shaped by her own journey through postpartum depression and learning to feel safe in her body again, she understands the profound ripple effects of this work, not just on personal health, but on marriages, families, and generational patterns.
Core Philosophy: "We come into this world whole and holy, healing is remembering who we've always been."
What Lights Her Up: Watching a woman's shoulders drop, her breath deepen, and witnessing the moment she realizes she's not broken, she's overwhelmed and worthy of care. The privilege of helping women steward their bodies and live out their sacred assignment.
Meggie Martin 🦉
Somatic Practitioner & Strength Training Coach
Meggie brings energetic, bright, and relentless energy to Walk Alongside, where she helps clients turn chaos into clarity.
As a somatic practitioner and strength training coach, she believes in the beauty that exists deep within, beyond surface-level perfection, honoring the scars, stories, and lived experiences that shape us all.
Scrappy and resourceful, Meggie has a gift for figuring things out even when solutions seem impossible. There's always a way, and she'll find it with you.
When she's not working with clients, you'll find Meggie watching nature documentaries, cheering on her kids at sports games, or being goofy with her husband Matt. What drives her every day is simple: making the world a little bit brighter for her kids and their kids.
Guiding Truth: "She was beautiful, deep down to her soul." — F. Scott Fitzgerald
Mandy Peters ✨
Administrator & Team Motivator
Mandy brings energetic, empathetic, and compassionate support to Walk Alongside, where she serves as the heart behind the private community.
A natural cheerleader with a superpower for motivating others to see how beautiful and powerful they truly are, Mandy creates a space where no masks are required, just authenticity, value, and love.
A former roller derby team captain for 10 years, Mandy knows how to help people face their fears and rise up stronger. Her resilience shines through every challenge, and she's determined to break generational barriers and create hope for a brighter future for her children, grandchildren, and everyone in her circle.
When she's not supporting the team, you'll find Mandy roller skating with the tunes cranked, running with music blasting, or grounding herself in nature with her feet in the dirt.
Guiding Light: "Keep your face always toward the sunshine—and shadows will fall behind you." —Walt Whitman
What Lights Her Up: Creating a safe community where people can heal, be whole, and shine without masks
Denille Gadd 🦋
Spiritual Support
Denille brings a gentle, intentional, and humble presence to Walk Alongside, where she serves as a prayer warrior and connector.
Her greatest joy is witnessing the deepened relationships with God that unfold in every gathering, He is ever present in these sacred connections.
With a gift for making meaningful connections and a superpower of persistent resilience, Denille gets back up every single time. She lives by the truth that we don't have to carry it all alone, guided by
Philippians 4:6: "Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything."
When she's not offering spiritual support, you'll find Denille thrifting treasures or sipping on a good cup of coffee.
Fun fact: she once worked on a bee farm (despite being allergic to bees!) to save up for a six-month adventure in New Zealand.
Guiding Scripture: "Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done." —Philippians 4:6
Hospitality Support
Rebecca brings a trustworthy, kind-hearted, and considerate presence to Walk Alongside, where she creates warm, welcoming spaces for women to feel loved and supported.
With a superpower of enhanced empathy, she holds space for others with flexibility and accountability, always showing up with honesty, openness, and relatability.
Food is Rebecca's love language, and she pours care into every meal she cooks and bakes for the people she loves. When she's not serving the team, you'll find her growing flowers from seed, tending to her garden, or creating something delicious in the kitchen.
What motivates Rebecca most is leaving shame at the door, being real and authentic so others can do the same. She's inspired daily by witnessing the team hold space and change lives, one connection at a time.
Guiding Truth: "A flower does not think of competing with the flower next to it. It just blooms."
What Lights Her Up: Witnessing women feel loved, supported, and free to bloom without dimming their sparkle
Chelsey Goodwin 🌱
Registered Social Worker & Mental Health Therapist
Chelsey brings compassionate, evidence-based support to Walk Alongside, where she walks with people through trauma, healing, and personal growth. As a proud mom of two wonderful children with autism, Molly and Elliot, she carries a deep passion for autism awareness, disability understanding, and supporting individuals and families navigating complex needs or chronic pain.
With experience in crisis work and therapeutic support across all ages—teens, adults, and elderly, Chelsey grounds her practice in acceptance, compassion, and a genuine belief in each person's capacity for growth. She became a Registered Social Worker in 2024, and is honored to support anyone who reaches out for help.
Originally from Ontario, Chelsey is an animal lover with what she lovingly calls a "mini zoo." When the weather is warm, you'll find her by the water or in the garden with her feet in the dirt—that's where she feels most grounded. She shares her life with her fiancé Kyle, and they're excited to be getting married this July.
What Lights Her Up: The privilege of walking alongside people as they grow, heal, and learn together
Executive Virtual Assistant
As our resident Unicorn, she brings a rare blend of skills that spans website support, strategy, content creation, time management, and back-end operations. If it keeps the team running smoothly, Cara's on it.
With a gift for anticipating needs before they're spoken, Cara has a superpower for freeing up space, so the people she supports can pour their whole hearts into the work that lights them up. She doesn't just check tasks off a list; she creates the clarity and calm that lets a team truly thrive.
When she's not working her behind-the-scenes magic, you'll find Cara… spending time with her family, reading and or heading our to the lake.
Guiding Light: "She believed she could, so she did."
What Lights Her Up: Supporting a team so they can focus on what they do best!
More about our team!
Our team draws on evidence-based methodology such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT), Solution-Focused Therapy, Exposure Therapy, EMDR, Narrative Therapy, Internal Family Systems, Somatic Experiencing, and Polyvagal Theory, along with a multitude of other somatic attunement and embodiment practices.
Every approach is grounded in trauma-informed care and personalized to your unique needs.
We offer mental, emotional, physical, social, and spiritual support through:
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1:1 Clinical and Somatic Sessions
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Group therapy and mentorship (because healing happens in community)
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Integrated immersions and retreat experiences
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Customized 1:1 and group mentorship programs
We work with individuals, couples, teens, and families to address challenges like anxiety, grief, trauma, stress, and life transitions.
Most importantly, we create a space where you can feel safe, seen, heard, held, and valued.