Measured in Milestones
A new year does not always begin with fireworks and resolutions. Sometimes it begins with a child whispering their first word and a parent being able to exhale for the first time in months. At Temple Memorial Pediatric Center, new beginnings don’t arrive all at once—they unfold over time and often quietly through the hands and hearts of people who believe every child deserves the chance to thrive.
For more than seven decades, Temple Memorial Pediatric Center has been changing lives, one child, one family, one milestone at a time. The center offers speech therapy, occupational therapy, physical therapy, and applied behavioral analysis (ABA) therapy. Their approach is rooted in partnership and individualized care. “We strive to treat all our clients with respect and dignity and meet them where they are,” said Sandy Varner, Executive Director and CEO. “We celebrate all victories, big and small, because progress looks different for every child and every family.”
From the very first visit, families are asked two questions: What are your concerns, and what do you hope therapy will help your child achieve?
Goals are then created together. When one goal is mastered, another begins. All plans of care are overseen by Medical Director, Dr. Belinda Hutcheson, and parents are never left out of the process. Therapists talk with families after every session and provide home programs to support progress between visits. A licensed social worker is also available to connect families with the additional resources needed. “No one knows a child better than their family,” Varner says. “If they feel something isn’t right, we don’t want them to be afraid to ask for help.”
One of Temple Memorial’s greatest strengths is its collaborative, multidisciplinary approach. Occupational, physical, and speech therapists work closely together. Often, a concern can be identified early and addressed before it becomes a larger issue. Evaluations, along with treatment plans and updates, are shared with the child’s primary care physician, ensuring continuity of care.
Temple Memorial’s story began in the 1950s during the polio epidemic. Concerned citizens, led by Katherine Sage Temple and the T.L.L. Temple family, recognized there was a critical need. They formed what was then called the Texarkana Society for Crippled Children, incorporated in June 1952, and a donated family home served as headquarters. Over the next 70-plus years, the name changed several times, but the mission remained the same. Most locals simply called it Temple Memorial, and the community never stopped supporting it.
In 2019, the center had gone through a period of growth, and the requests for services resulted in a long waiting list. The building at 1315 Walnut could not be expanded to meet the need for additional space, so a dream was made into reality, leading to the purchase and renovation of a former law firm at 1710 Moores Lane. It was converted into a state-of-the-art pediatric therapy center complete with its own ABA autism wing. Varner and a couple of board members presented the dream to the T.L.L. Temple Foundation and asked for seed money to purchase the building. The foundation committed $1.3 million to the cause with overwhelming community support. Every square foot was sponsored, and every wish list item donated. The 26 building quickly filled up, and additional staff members were hired. Varner soon realized, “We didn’t build it big enough.”
An expansion in 2022 added 4,000 square feet to the 14,000 already in use. By 2025, the need had grown again. Temple Memorial then opened a standalone Behavioral Health Center at 6307 Richmond Road, made possible by another $1 million gift from the T.L.L. Foundation. After sleepless nights and hard work, the Behavioral Center opened December 1, 2025, with one board-certified behavior analyst (BCBA) and four registered behavior technicians (RBT). An additional BCBA and several RBTs have been hired and will begin seeing children in mid-January.
The addition of ABA therapy was one of Varner’s earliest goals when she became executive director in 2010. That vision became a reality in 2016 through a grant from the Texas Department of Health and Human Services, providing this treatment free of charge to families. In 2020, Temple hired Allison Rea, a BCBA from the Burkhart Center in Lubbock, and she now oversees all ABA services. At that time, she was the only practitioner providing ABA services within a 100-mile radius.
The hope for this new building is that it will help to ease the long waiting list for ABA services and open up some space at the Moores Lane location to expand speech and feeding therapy services, which are also in high demand. The impact has been profound. “One pediatrician texted me after seeing a patient in our ABA program,” Varner shared. “She said the difference was ‘phenomenal.’ He communicated with her and allowed an exam without a struggle.”
Shea Phillips, whose son Atlas attends ABA therapy, said, “When Atlas began ABA at Temple at age seven, he was nonverbal. Communication and behavior were daily challenges.” Within months, everything changed. “He went from a few words to full sentences, engaging with toys, building friendships, and thriving at home and at school. Because of the progress he has made at Temple, he is in general education classes. He joined Cub Scouts. We even took him to Disney World on a family vacation this summer—all experiences that once felt completely out of reach. Temple Memorial has been genuinely life-changing, and we could not be more grateful for the profound impact it has had on Atlas and on our family!”
India Thompson, whose son, Wylie, attends speech and occupational therapy at Temple, remembers the fear clearly. “By 18 months, my husband and I knew something wasn’t right,” she says. “I was anxious, scared, sad, angry, and confused. I was a new mom, and it felt devastating.” Thompson’s cousin, who is a speechtherapist in Little Rock, referred her to Temple. In April 2023, just a month after Wylie turned two, they were able to start speech and occupational therapy.
“I immediately felt a sense of peace after meeting Mrs. Laurie Dunlap, the speech therapist caring for Wylie,” Thompson said. “The environment felt right. We felt supported. We, as a family, learned to adapt. We learned it’s okay for things not to always be how we think they are supposed to be. Wylie doesn’t have to attend every party. Wylie doesn’t have to speak verbally to everyone who speaks to him or wave back when someone waves. Wylie is perfect just the way God made him. God loves him even more than we do, and God has a plan for his life.”
Wylie was diagnosed with autism in February 2025. Today, nearly three years into therapy, he is thriving. “He’s learned to self-regulate. He’s saying so many words I’ve lost count. He is joyful. He is learning to interact with his peers and learning that it is okay to try new things even if it is uncomfortable. I have not shared this journey with many people, but when I got this chance to share about Temple, I knew it was the time,” Thompson tearfully admits. “I share in hopes that if there are other parents who may have a child who is experiencing sensory processing difficulties or developmental delays that they would know Temple is a place you can feel seen, heard, and supported. You are not alone. My sweet boy would not be where he is today if not for Temple. When Wylie masters a new skill or a new word or phrase, Mrs. Laurie is one of the first people I text. She is always there to celebrate his wins with us. What may be small victories for some are huge to others. She gets that and rejoices with us. Temple is a blessing to so many; to say their work is making a difference is an understatement. I am forever grateful for everyone from the administration, to the office staff, to the clinicians.”
Temple Memorial is supported by endowments, perpetual trusts, United Way funding, and scholarships to ensure access is never denied because of finances. “We are here for everyone,” Varner says. “None of us are immune when it comes to children needing help.”
Varner emphasizes, “I think of how lucky we are to have a place like Temple Center in this community. It is what it is because of one thing: the staff that continually pour themselves into these kids every day. Sometimes it is heartbreaking, but at the end of the day, they love what they do. It takes a special type of person to treat this population, and it’s hard. Each child is unique and may not respond in the same way as another. It’s about finding what works for each one. I hope the community feels blessed knowing that Temple is here. There have been many God winks over the past 73 years. I am happy we were able to facilitate His plan and not get in the way of what was needed for these families and our community.”
