A Peoria-based pediatric therapy practice has expanded to Galesburg, bringing a range of specialized services to children and families in Knox County and surrounding communities.
Way to Grow Pediatric Therapy, founded seven years ago by Sarah Meyers, is now seeing children at Ascent Church in Galesburg. The practice serves children from birth to age 18 and their families across central and west central Illinois.
Meyers and Lauren Deppee, marketing manager and speech therapist with Way to Grow, joined Chris Postin on Galesburg In Focus on Saturday, June 6, 2026, to talk about the expansion and what families need to know.
Listen to the full interview below.
What Way to Grow offers in Galesburg
Services available locally include speech-language therapy, occupational therapy, counseling and social-emotional support, and dyslexia diagnostics and therapy. Families who need physical therapy, feeding therapy, audiology, or aquatics therapy can access those services at the Way to Grow clinic in Peoria Heights.
The practice also works directly with local schools, offering professional development for educators on sensory regulation and classroom strategies, and helping rural school districts fill staffing gaps for therapy services.
A play-based, family-centered approach
Way to Grow describes its approach as play-based and child-led — following the child’s interests to build engagement and make learning stick.
“We really want to follow their lead,” Deppee said. “We want to keep things super playful and fun because we know that’s how we get buy-in from children. That’s what makes them excited to want to come back.”
The practice is neurodiversity-affirming — built on the idea that no two brains are the same and that every child brings their own strengths and challenges.
“A diagnosis is just that — it’s just a label,” Meyers said. “The sky’s the limit. Maybe the future doesn’t look like what we thought it was going to look like for our child, but maybe it looks better than what we thought.”
How to get started
No referral is needed. Parents can call the office or fill out a contact form at waytogrowpediatrics.com. Free 15-minute discovery calls are available for families who want to talk through their concerns before committing to an evaluation.
Way to Grow is in-network with Blue Cross Blue Shield and United Healthcare/Caterpillar. Cash pay discounts and grant resources are also available for families who need them.
