The Spotlight on Business for February is The Wellness Center at Gress Chiropractic located at 109 South Center Avenue. The Wellness Center at Gress Chiropractic opened their doors in March of 1999 and has been a chamber member from the start. When Dr. Kathy first opened, the Clinic was located on East Second Street. As the practice grew, the space they were in was no longer adequate. Dr. Gress had a vision to add more services and more providers to help more people. In 2001, she bought the old Krueger service station, with the thought of remodeling the existing building. However, it ended up that it would be more economical to start from scratch. In the spring of 2002 the new clinic was complete as was the new home of Gress Chiropractic Clinic, on the corner of South Center and Main.
Dr. Gress not only wanted to grow with multiple associates, but this was an opportunity for other doctors to practice in a family based, wellness practice without dealing with the everyday hassles and risks of owning a business. Currently, Dr. Gress has three other doctors in the practice; Dr. Carri Kennedy, Dr. Matt Marine, and Dr. Giana Backes.
The Wellness Center focuses on family wellness care. Dr. Gress obtained her pediatric and prenatal certification in 2002 with a vision to see more kids and families. Her thought was that she wanted to help parents raise healthy kids and prevent all of the problems that she was seeing surface during the adult years. Being a family-practice they see patients of all ages. The youngest patient being only days old, (the parents stopped by the Clinic on the way home from the hospital to get their baby adjusted!), to the oldest patient seen, being 97 years old.
Dr. Gress feels there is a need to stay up on the technology. She states, “It helps us to better evaluate what is going on with the patients so we can offer the best plan of care to maximize results.” They offer computerized nerve scans and digital x-ray to help with diagnosis. In addition to manual adjusting, they offer a new computerized adjusting technique, called the Sigma Ultralign. It’s technology developed by NASA to detect weak areas on the shuttle. Now it’s used on the human spine and is a great technique for people that don’t want the turning, twisting, popping, and cracking but still want the benefits of Chiropractic care. Other services offered are muscle stimulation to relax tight and spasmed muscles, mechanical massage tables to relax the spine and mind, and rehabilitative exercises to restore strength and build core muscle to support the spine and help hold the adjustments.
The Wellness Center is also very involved in the community. The doctors are part of the Merrill Noon Optimist Club, with Dr. Kennedy being the current president. She is also the secretary of the Merrill Rotary Club. Dr. Kennedy was also chair of the ambassadors in 2015 and 2016 for the chamber, and Ambassador of the Year in 2014. The clinic is involved in the Merrill Small Business Group, does community outreach and educational talks for different area businesses and the county, ergonomic assessments for employers, and regular health classes held at the clinic which are open to the public.
The Wellness Center at Gress Chiropractic, another great example of a home grown, locally owned business that takes care of you and your family right here in Merrill. It’s one more reason we say, “For the Love of Merrill!”