The Team
Claire Heffron and Lauren Drobnjak are the executive directors of The Treehouse. They are pediatric occupational and physical therapists with a passion for promoting healthy development for all children. Lauren and Claire are also the co-creators of The Inspired Treehouse, a blog where they share activities, resources, and tips to help readers conquer common developmental issues that come up for kids.
Executive Directors
Lauren
Lauren has been a physical therapist since 1998 in both clinical and school-based settings. She is a graduate of the Youngstown State University Physical Therapy program. Lauren is a busy mama of 3 who thrives on chaos. Her drive to make a difference in the lives of kids has led her entrepreneurial spirit in the direction of creating opportunities for play-based wellness and skill development.
Claire
Claire has been a pediatric occupational therapist since 2005 and has experience working in school settings. She has a Master of Science in Occupational Therapy from The University of North Carolina and is a mom of 3 boys. Claire started off with an undergraduate degree in magazine journalism and loves blogging as a way to combine her talents as a writer and her experience as a therapist in a unique way.
Staff
Board of Directors
Laurie Gombash is a physical therapist who also holds a Master's degree in Special Education. She is currently serving as our community liaison, helping to broaden the impact of our organization. She has worked in the public school system for more than 20 years, and has created a product designed to help students connect literacy to motor skills: The ABC's of Movement.
Borbala Banto is the managing partner of Concierge CPAs, Inc., a CPA and business advisory firm that helps law firms and other professionals improve their financial performance and get control of their numbers.
She serves on the board of several local non-profits and is passionate about helping women and minority owned start-ups get off the ground. She works and lives in Brecksville with her husband, Attila, their four kids (all of them under the age of nine), and their little Pomeranian called Fluffy.
Manu Adhen, DTM is a production supervisor at Swagelok Company, which is a developer of fluid system products located in Northeast Ohio. Manu leads a team of CNC machinists and acts as a leader to promote associate development. He provides direction including evaluating, encouraging, motivating, and time management.
Manu has been involved with Toastmasters, a non-profit public speaking and leadership organization. He has served as an area and division director. He achieved division director of the year award in 2018 and Distinguished Toastmaster in 2019. Toastmasters has been pivotal in shaping Manu’s career as a leader. Manu immigrated from India in 2004. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering and Master of Science in Industrial Engineering from Cleveland State University. Manu lives in Macedonia with his wife, Preet, and two kids, Ronnik and Rubani.
Robin Rowell has also served in the roles of nurse manager, director of medical-surgical critical care, vice president of medical-surgical services, and associate system chief nursing officer for advanced practice providers. She served as president of UH Richmond and Bedford Medical Centers where she began her career as a nurse in the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit at UH Cleveland Medical Center. Robin earned a bachelor of science in nursing from the University of Akron and a master of science in nursing from the Frances P. Bolton School of Nursing at Case Western Reserve University.