Megan Mertaugh-Graber, MEd, MSW, LICSW, was born and raised in northern Michigan on Anishinaabe land, where she was introduced to the healing relationships of animals, nature and landscapes. Now the owner of Care-O-Van, a mobile mental health service platform, she’s creating partnerships to facilitate learning and healing. Her home base is the Attuned Visceral Expansive Care Farm, in Traverse City.

            As a variation of traditional in-home, outpatient and school-linked mental health services, Care-O-Van provides innovative, accessible and adaptive therapeutic support to children, individuals and families, specializing in the integration of nature, play, arts, music, culinary and movement-based therapies. The COVID-19 pandemic created an elevated need for a mobile, confidential platform to provide children and families in rural communities with a flexible and safe space for mental health services. Using a renovated school bus, Care-O-Van hosts an innovative therapeutic space, providing scheduled services in a variety of locations and settings.

            Mertaugh-Graber is seeking partnerships with local farms, CSAs, area schools and community organizations to enable Care-O-Van to facilitate nature-based therapeutic services for individuals onsite at farms located throughout the community such as therapeutic horticulture, animal-assisted services, healing gardens, aromatherapy and care farming.

For donations and more information, visit careovan.com.