Meet: Melissa Hayman
Mel grew up in the farm fields of northern Illinois, playing soccer, dancing, and running & skiing in Wisconsin. Her parents and sister still live in Johnsburg, and her brother, sister-in-law, & 2 nephews live in Chicago by Wrigley Field, where they go to lots of Cubs games.
Not knowing what she wanted to do for a career, she went to NIU doing what she liked- dancing. She continued to take Spanish classes, studied abroad for a semester in Spain, and graduated with a degree in Spanish and dance performance from NIU.
Realizing she couldn’t sit behind a desk, she received her Doctorate of Physical Therapy from Northwestern University in 2004 and pursued dance medicine. She continued her studies with manual therapy, doing a fellowship with NAIOMT and needling certification. She worked in Chicago outpatient sports medicine clinics, focusing on performing arts, working with multiple Chicago dance companies and musical theater with Broadway in Chicago.
She would spend many vacation days in Summit and Eagle County skiing and hiking with friends. In 2020, she moved to Breckenridge to work in the “Ski ER” at BMC and ski and snowboard as much as possible. When ski season ended, she started working at Axis in Silverthorne and occasionally other offices.
In November 2021, she left Breckenridge to work on tour as the physical therapist for the Broadway musical Hamilton, traveling with the company for 15 months throughout the Rockies, West Coast, Canada, and Hawaii. While on tour, she got to visit lots of state & national parks and had many ski days and beach time. Afterward, traveling for fun to Australia, Thailand & Cambodia before returning to Breckenridge and Axis.
In her free time, she enjoys playing in the mountains with friends, hiking, paddleboarding & rafting in the summer, and skiing and snowboarding all winter. She loves traveling home to see friends, family & the Cubs and abroad for new adventures.
