Barbara Huntress Tresness is an author, disability advocate and founder of CHAT Collective and Ultimate Yu. Her son Graham serves as the inspiration for all of her writing. As a result of a life changing occurrence at the Upledger Institute where she and Graham were part of the dolphin assisted therapy program, Barb began a healing journey and became a certified craniosacral therapist with the Upledger Institute. She started Ultimate Yu with the desire to give back the gift of CST that her family benefited from, and has helped hundreds of clients on their healing journey with craniosacral therapy.

Barb's journey to becoming a leading advocate for Nonverbal and Limited Communicators began when her son, Graham, was born with Cerebral Palsy. She witnessed firsthand the challenges of a community poorly equipped to meet the needs of a nonverbal child. Therefore, she embarked upon a worldwide search for techniques, technologies and treatments to help Graham and others with limited communication skills. Graham has touched many lives and telling his story has become her life work.

As an advocate, expert, and national speaker, Barb is on a mission to give the gift of communication and hope to the world. Barb is passionate about revolutionizing the way the verbal community socializes and communicates with people that have communication challenges. She founded CHAT Collective and has developed communication tools, techniques and also written Everyone Communicates: Learn How to Talk to Me! - The guidebook to communicating and socializing with Non Verbal Communicators (NVC's) and Limited Communicators (LC's).

She received a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Vermont, and currently lives with her husband and three sons in Manlius, New York. You can connect with Barb at www.chatcollective.com and on Facebook. Also at www.barbarahuntresstresness.com