Faith and Alliance
“You are easy to work with.”
On March 16th, 2016, as I crossed the threshold of a wood-framed glass door onto mottled brown carpet surrounded by teal-painted walls, little did I know that I would be spending most of my days for the following seven years with people I had met only a few days prior; Dr. Chris and Samae Chlebowski.
I am pretty convinced that it was Samae who hired me… perhaps in her desperation to get from behind the front desk. I’m not sure exactly what she saw in me, as my life was somewhat a mess at the time, but whatever it was, her faith in what she saw changed me. I have often joked with Dr. Chris that his wife’s faith in me saved my life and my employment saved his marriage. We’ve had a few laughs over that one.
When I began working at Ashland Natural Medicine, Dr. Chris and Samae had just relocated the clinic from the north end of town in January 2016. The staff consisted of just Dr. Chris, myself, and a newly-hired registered nurse from Anchorage, Alaska named Nara. The hyperbaric chamber was located in what is now Dr. Miki’s treatment room. A lonely massage table was located in what is now the hyperbaric room. Our IV suite was so quietly slow that Dr. Chris would often ask me on Fridays, “Hey Natasha, do you want an IV?!” He and I would sit in the IV suite and chat it up with Nurse Nara about our plans for the weekend.
Soon thereafter, Brittany Allison came on as our Medicinary Manager. Brook Golling and another amazing massage therapist, Sarah Glass, soon joined us after their graduation from Ashland Institute of Massage.
It was the onset of new beginnings for all of us. And we all were beaming with faithful anticipation of good things to come.
Over the years, the ANM team has experienced some triumphs and tribulations. We’ve watched each other’s children grow through milestones; accomplishments, celebrations, graduations and moves towards their independence and life’s work. We’ve seen some people, both staff and patients, come and go. And we’ve grown in unexpected ways.
In 2018, we rebranded the clinic with a new website and added a YouTube channel. Along with these fresh changes and a newly-defined mission statement, Dr. Ajana Miki joined us, brining her expertly-developed skills and highly-sought-after practice to ANM. Nutritional Therapist and amazing LMT, Jessica Soine, and Front Desk Super Star, Lisa (Lucy) Hillenbrand also joined the ANM team. Brittany took leave to raise her newly budding family and Alima Matejcek replaced her as our Mix-Master Medicinary Manager. We extended clinic hours from three days to five days per week. RN, Summer Blue, also joined the ANM team, replacing Sierra Campbell. And on behalf of Samae’s promptings, I published the first ANM newsletter.
One of my favorite adages is, “You don’t really know someone until there’s a crisis.” In 2020, we learned through the experience of a global pandemic who our true allies are. The ties within our team were tested through challenges that the pandemic brought with it, including censorship from YouTube, the FTC and the Oregon DOJ. I am proud to say that I work with some of the most stellar, true-blue, good-hearted people on the planet. Together, we not only allowed each other to maneuver an unprecedented and sometimes frightening experience, but we thrived in the face of staunch criticism and threats to our livelihoods.
In September 2020, as the Almeda Wildfire left many of our patients and community members traumatically devastated, once again, we were reminded why we are really here… To practice good medicine in order to help those in our community get well, stay well, and live well. Our team pulled together to offer our skills and services free-of-charge on “free-clinic” days to those who were suffering from the aftermath of the wildfire. It brought us together with the Ashland community like never before.
Once we recovered from the burn of wildfire, life delivered another devastating blow in February 2021. Our dear colleague, brother and friend, Brook Golling, was killed in an avalanche. I wasn’t really sure our team would recover from the loss. But in our deepest, rawest moments of grief, we pulled together. We cried, we reminisced, we laughed, we sighed deeply, and we cried again. Brook’s passing brought us closer than we ever could have imagined.
Luckily, life seemed to quiet down in 2022. Nurse Summer left for Hawaii to be with her family and Erin Zerr joined our team in her place. Dr. Lisa Hendrick went on a well-deserved sabbatical after a year of residency with us. (It’s not as bad as it may sound!) Dr. Chris added dark field microscopy to his skill set and Dr. Miki began offering Biodecoding sessions to her patients. My own practice as a Energy Therapist began to flourish as a valued service at the clinic.
Then in January 2023, I decided to finally tell my co-workers and friends the difficult news of my calling to move to Boise, ID. When Dr. Chris and Samae hired me, we agreed that I would commitment to two years of employment at ANM. After seven + years, the day of my departure inevitably came.
One recent morning, after a sleepless night worrying about my impending move out of state, a tea bag tab fell out of my pocket with the following inscription:
“Be fearless, know that all will be provided at the right time.”
Walking in faith can be described as walking in KNOWING. A knowing that no matter what happens, everything will work out in the end. Sure there will be trials, obstacles, struggles and losses. That’s life! But we often allow discouragement brought on by challenges convince us that the struggle will continue forever. Don’t let discouragement serve you a crock of F.E.A.R = False-Evidence-Appearing-Real. Have faith and walk in Knowing that, in the words of Bob Marley, “every little thing’s gonna be alright”.
From my personal experience as a patient at ANM over the years, I can say without a doubt, that if you are needing someone who you can call on to help you through even the darkest, scariest times of a health journey, the team at ANM is one to call upon. If you trust them to guide you on your path of wellbeing and walk in faithful Knowing, your health and ultimately your life will change for the better.
Warmest regards and many blessings to all of those who I had the opportunity to serve and serve with over the years at ANM. And for clients who want to continue having energy sessions with me, feel free to book a remote session online!
Faithfully yours in optimal wellbeing,
Natasha Sol