About TMTA
A little background on how it all began……
Way back in 1989 a grassroots movement began so that practitioners of massage could network together and learn from each other. The Knoxville area is where the plan started to come together. As it became clear the growth of massage therapy was happening the interest in this little group started spreading across the state.
Happening at the same time on the other side of the state Karen Craig, the late Bob Straube, Steve & Kay Harper, among others, formed the Memphis Massage Practitioners Association. (MMPA) When information about the Tennessee Massage Therapy Association
(TMTA) reached Memphis, both groups started networking with each other and eventually they decided to merge and form one state association.
The first Fall Retreat sponsored by the TMTA was held in Red Boiling Springs, TN and not long after that therapists from all areas of the state were asked to submit a resume to be considered for a position on the first election ballot for a Board of Directors. The first Board of Directors was elected in 1991 and held their first retreat in October at the Edgar Evans State Park with about 15-20 people attending. My, how we have grown!
In 1994, to unify our forces and not duplicate our efforts, the TMTA
formed an Alliance with the TN chapter of a National Association known as the American Massage Therapy Association (AMTA).
We were advised by State legislative representatives that we would have a much easier time pursuing a state licensure law as a unified group. With that in mind that year the AMTA-TN Chapter co-sponsored our Fall Retreat and continued to do this thru 2003. We still network with each other as therapists and friends and maintain our largest and acquired goal—that of our professional designation as licensed massage therapists (LMT). That was accomplished jointly by much work from representatives of TMTA and AMTA and by caring legislators such as then Representative Carol Chumney, Gary Odom, and lobbyist Nancy Menke.
Following our mission statement to prepare our members to thrive in the new millennium and beyond. With that in mind, TMTA began having a Spring Retreat in Gatlinburg, TN along with the fall workshops in middle TN.
We have had and continue to have outstanding leadership and input from the Massage Licensure Board. TMTA board members Debbie Hicks, Steve Harper and Beccy Eichel have all served on the massage licensure board at one time.
In 2020 the reins of TMTA were passed on to Maj-Lis Nash by the remaining TMTA board members in an effort to reboot this great association and reconnect the TN massage therapists to each other. Maj-Lis glady accepted this challenge while immediately reaching out to her colleagues and past volunteer buddies. It was an overwhelming success of people jumping on board to help. The new TMTA board formed, consisting of; Maj-Lis Nash, Dee Vickers, Jennifer Sloan, Randy Cotterell and Lori Schrader. Committees were formed for Education, Communication and Membership adding Tammy Dunn, Amanda Graham, Charlene Gaffney, Charles West and Marica Richardson. In September of 2021 the TMTA REBOOT campaign was launched and the job of connecting the TN massage therapist to each other began!
This history information was written by Maj-Lis Nash and includes some original information written by Teena Spencer, LMT
TMTA Bylaw 2022
