HELLO WORLD, WE ARE REWILD ARKANSAS INC!
Rewild Arkansas was founded by two pediatric Occupational Therapy Practitioners, Christy Pierce and Melissa Wells, after experiencing years of compounding phenomenal growth in their private therapy practice. They realized families in Northwest Arkansas whose children did not need actual therapy could still benefit from their non-traditional approach to early childhood development, as well as opportunities for supervised, quality time spent outside.
Because “Nature is for everyone”.
Kids need less time indoors and on screens, and more outdoor experiences for optimal physical and emotional well-being. Rewild’s unique curriculum was developed over four years of providing outdoor programming for kids of all ages. With the out-of-doors as the main backdrop, Rewild uses sensory play to develop fine motor skills and for social development. Through involvement in the program, children are encouraged to explore nature, make meaningful connections with peers and adults, and grow their communication skills.
Christy and Melissa merged their professional worlds in 2015 via their involvement in the OT space. With a love for nature and similar interests, they decided to work together to develop a program to urge kids outside and away from excess technology. They began reading and researching, and soon, ReWild The Child NWA, LLC was founded. After four years of growth, great teamwork and hundreds of ideas, Christy and Melissa decided to found a non-profit to further serve the community with much needed nature programming beyond basic therapy services. Rewild Arkansas Inc. was formed in 2022.
Christy Pierce received her Masters of Occupational Therapy at the University of Missouri
Melissa Wells has a Bachelors of Health Science from the University of Montana
Meet our team
Learn more about our Leadership Team. Rewild’s Board of Directors includes prominent and accomplished women from all areas of the Northwest Arkansas business community.
Lisa
President
Lisa is a native of California, but after spending many years overseas, she is happy to call Arkansas home. She studied biology at Brigham Young University and holds a PhD from Cambridge University. She is passionate about experiences in nature and life-long learning. She has worked as a Tinkergarten leader, a teacher, and currently as a lactation consultant at Northwest Medical Center. When not at work or with her four kids, she is most likely to be found rowing on a nearby lake. Lisa is honored to work with ReWild Arkansas, an organization that helps kids grow and learn in the very best of environments.
Amber
Vice President
Amber is a lover of good coffee, the great outdoors, books and learning. She and her husband own and operate their family run business, Airship Coffee. All things outside fascinate her and she enjoys exploring them with her family in play and school. She has seven children including three adults. All were home educated with outdoors being a central aspect of their curriculum. As a child her favorite place to be was exploring the mountain desert terrain in her native New Mexico and Colorado. Amber made her way to NWA twenty-five years ago with her husband Mark.
Elizabeth
CFO
Bio coming soon!
Tonya
Secretary
Tonya grew up in a small town in Oregon and enjoyed playing sports throughout high school. Her favorite summer activities include horseback riding, fishing, going to the lake and spending time with her family. She and her husband Brad moved to Bella Vista in 2009, and quickly grew to love the beauty of nature here. Tonya enjoys hiking, and family bike rides on the Razorback Greenway. In her free time she also enjoys creating things and working with kids.
Janay
Board Member
Janay Nutt is a REALTOR® with Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Journey in Northwest Arkansas. She and her husband moved here 14 years ago and soon developed a love for the hiking and biking trails, and all the local breweries this area is becoming famous for. In her spare time, Janay is either training for her next race, taking her son to archery, or supporting her husband in his Ultra Trail racing endeavors.
Marisa
Treasurer
Marisa was born and raised in NWA, and has lived here for over 30 years. She has two children who love the outdoors as much as she does. Marisa loves animals and all things outdoors, including camping, kayaking, biking, hiking, skiing and time on the lake. Family is everything to her.
Cynthia
Board Member
Cynthia has been in NWA for 16 years, after stints in Nashville, TN, London, England, and Savannah, GA. With a degree in Journalism, she spent 20 years in the radio business. An avid mountain biker and cycling advocate since the early days of the sport in Bentonville, she currently works in commercial real estate. When not riding or working, she can be found taking care of her plants or tweaking the chemistry in her backyard stock tank pool.
Melissa
Co-Executive Director
From Wyoming, Melissa grew up fishing, camping and playing outdoor sports throughout high school, then started mountain biking in college. She relocated to NWA in 2013 with her husband Wes and their 2 boys, and now live above the bike trails of Blowing Springs park. In her free time you may see her out on the trails with her family, or spending time with her beloved french bulldog, Mona, whom you’re likely to see tagging along in her backpack on a casual bike ride. Along with riding for fun, Melissa’s entire family competes in local and regional mountain bike races. Melissa also loves to be creative, making her own wall art, and starting DIY projects around her house.
Christy
Co-Executive Director
A Missouri native, Christy grew up in the Ozarks on a grass fed cattle farm, driving tractors, working cows, and hauling hay, and spent summers exploring creeks and canoeing. As an adult, she became a Razorback football fan, and early in her career, found herself at Freeman Hospital Orthopedics during the 2011 Joplin tornado. Her family relocated here from Kansas City in 2016. She is currently raising 2 girls and keeping honey bees with husband, Mark on a country acreage in Bentonville. In her free time you may find her canning fresh veggies from her garden, Dutch oven cooking outdoors, chasing her two Cairn Terriers or nature crafting.