The Vision Behind Unity Kitsap
From Struggle to Strength
Hi, I’m Rebecca — founder of Unity & Wellness Center and Unity Wellness Project 501(c)(3), and the heart behind Unity Kitsap.
My journey into wellness, community support, and accessible services comes from real-life experience. I’m a mom, a wife, and a caregiver for my dad who is living with dementia. I’ve spent years supporting individuals and families through mental health and substance use challenges, and I’ve learned that healing rarely happens alone — it happens in community.
Becoming a mother changed everything. My son opened my eyes to how deeply kids need support, connection, and safe places to grow emotionally and physically. And as a new single mom, the struggle was real. I was doing everything I could, yet the support we needed — whether through school services, therapy, or community programs — was often inaccessible, unavailable, or too complicated to actually help. Navigating big feelings and big transitions alone was overwhelming, and it showed me how many parents are trying to do the best they can with far too little support.
My brother’s journey living with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and ADHD also shaped my path. His struggles, strengths, and the impact of the systems around him taught me firsthand how much families need community care and accessible resources. His story is a reminder of why trauma-informed spaces matter — because families need compassion, understanding, and opportunities to thrive.
I’m also a wife supporting a partner in long-term recovery, and someone who walks my own recovery journey. Our paths have looked different, but they’ve taught me the same truth: recovery is not one-size-fits-all. Each journey is deeply personal, shaped by lived experience, and deserves dignity, space, and support.
These pieces of my life — motherhood, caregiving, recovery, and family — are the foundation of Unity Kitsap.
From Passion to Purpose
My path toward Unity Kitsap began nearly seven years ago when I started a small health and wellness business. But even then, my heart was pulled toward something bigger. I wanted to create a nonprofit long before I ever envisioned running a business. I found myself volunteering far more often than I was gaining clients — and honestly, that felt right. Being of service lit something up in me that business alone never could.
Volunteering in a treatment center became one of the most defining chapters of my journey. Supporting individuals in recovery, hearing their stories, and witnessing the gaps in our systems made me realize how much our community needed accessible, compassionate support. It wasn’t just work to me — it was purpose.
Then COVID happened, and everything shifted. My office closed, the business slowed, and life forced me to reevaluate my path. Instead of stepping back, I stepped deeper into helping others. That season opened the door for me to become a counselor, allowing me to walk alongside people through some of their hardest moments. It showed me the heartache families carry, the lack of accessible services, and the barriers that stop people from receiving the support they deserve.
During that time, I continued expanding my skills in ways that blended wellness, healing, and community connection, earning credentials such as:
- Licensed Substance Use Disorder Professional (SUDP)
- Board-Certified Health Coach
- 200-hour Registered Yoga Teacher
- Kidding Around Yoga–certified kids yoga instructor
- Drugless Practitioner
- CAMS-II Anger Management Specialist
As I grew personally and professionally, the vision that had always been inside me — a nonprofit rooted in accessibility, connection, and healing — grew clearer.
And as my dad’s dementia progressed in early 2025, I decided to leave my role as a co-occurring counselor to become his full-time caregiver. It was one of the hardest choices I’ve ever made, but it grounded me even deeper in my purpose: creating spaces that support families, honor lived experience, and recognize the very real challenges people face behind the scenes.
Unity & Wellness Center (LLC) became the space where this work could physically begin: a place for movement, creativity, healing, and belonging.
Unity Wellness Project (501c3) followed, finally bringing to life the nonprofit I had dreamed of years earlier — a way to offer trauma-informed community programs without financial barriers.
Together, they form Unity Kitsap — one mission, two pathways, united by the belief that wellness, support, and connection should be accessible to everyone.
How I Hold Space
At the heart of everything I do is this:
Meet people where they are, honor their lived experience, and create a space where everyone feels safe, supported, and welcome.
I believe in:
- Trauma-informed care
- Whole-person wellness
- Accessibility and inclusion
- Strength-based support
- Community connection
- Real-life practicality (because life is messy and that’s okay)
Whether I’m teaching kids yoga, supporting families, hosting wellness classes, offering community programs, or helping someone book a service, my goal is always the same:
To help people feel connected, capable, and cared for.
Unity means one, and Unity Kitsap reflects that — one community, one place to land, one step at a time toward a healthier, stronger you.
