When Bryce Moen was an MBA student at The University of Texas at Austin, his professor said, “If we’re going to teach you to be capitalists, you also need to think about being philanthropists.” The advice stuck.
Bryce is chief financial officer of Arch Energy Partners, an oil and gas investment firm. In 2018, he founded ChandlerSpeaks, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that raises funds to give children in need access to speech-language pathology services.
In 2019, Bryce asked the Callier Center to be a practice partner and beneficiary of ChandlerSpeaks. To date, ChandlerSpeaks has awarded Callier nearly $50,000 to provide speech-language therapy to children whose families cannot afford care.
ChandlerSpeaks is named for Bryce and Sara Moen’s 7-year-old daughter, Chandler. At 2 years of age, Chandler could say only one word: “mama.” She was later diagnosed with childhood apraxia of speech, a disorder in which the brain struggles to direct speech movement, making it difficult for a child to speak. Developmentally, Chandler was behind in her expressive speech but ahead in her understanding of speech.
“She knew what she wanted to say, but she couldn’t physically say it,” Bryce said.
Chandler received speech services through Early Childhood Intervention and later through the school district. Since age 2, Chandler has also received speech therapy from Molly Augustine MS’07, a speech-language pathologist (SLP) at Holland Speech & Consulting.
“In the public school system, an SLP could have four or five kids per session,” Bryce said. “Speech therapy is an individualized treatment protocol, and from a developmental standpoint, Chandler needed one-on-one care.”
The Moens quickly discovered that many insurance carriers do not cover speech-language services.
“When Chandler was at her peak, you’re talking $600 to $800 per month,” Bryce said. “To get your child into early treatment and carry it forward for a number of years, you’re talking about thousands of dollars.”
ChandlerSpeaks began as a result of the Moens’ desire to help families who cannot afford care.
“Other than Chandler’s individual experience, we didn’t know much about speech pathology, so we focused on finding a place to donate the money where they could provide services,” Bryce said. “I called Molly and asked her who I should work with in Dallas that has a good reputation, and she said, ‘Callier is the best in the country. You need to figure out how to work with them.’”
Molly graduated with a master’s degree in communication sciences and disorders from UT Dallas in 2007. She continues to provide speech therapy for Chandler, who is now in second grade.
“Bryce and I remember when speaking wasn’t a part of Chandler’s communication set,” Sara said, “and she didn’t want to interact with anybody and didn’t feel understood. But last year, her first grade teacher called and said, ‘Chandler volunteered to read today. She got up in front of the class, and she didn’t care that she was reading a different book’ — all these things your mama-heart is worried about because you’ve seen your child struggle for years.”
“As you progress in life, communication is the No. 1 key to your success,” Bryce said. “Through our partnership with Callier, ChandlerSpeaks is a financial bridge to help children like Chandler receive the ability to communicate and connect.”
“Through our partnership with Callier, ChandlerSpeaks is a financial bridge to help children like Chandler receive the ability to communicate and connect.”
— Bryce Moen, ChandlerSpeaks Founder and President
I would like to give to help children in need receive the ability to communicate and connect.
