Not many people can say they’ve gotten to lay their hands on a professional athlete before, but Sandy Fritz can.
No, the 1971 Oxford grad isn’t a stalker of sports celebrities ? she’s a massage therapist with close to 30 years experience of using her hands to heal, and considers herself an ‘expert in the field.?
Like most entrepreneurs, Fritz, a resident of Lapeer, didn’t originally plan to become a massage therapist. The single mother of three was trained in accounting, but was always interested in the holistic, all natural form of healing.
‘I just thought I’d give it a shot,? the 53-year-old said.
With no formal education, Fritz began to build a clientele base, where she would travel to homes to perform her work.
Eventually, people began asking her to teach them the skill, so she received a state license and opened her own school, called the Health Enrichment Center (HEC) School of Therapeutic Massage in 1985. She then moved her home-based school to its current location in Lapeer 12 years ago.
In 1999, she received her bachelor’s degree in health sciences from Central Michigan University and received her master’s degree in management leadership in 2003 from the Thomas Edison College in New Jersey.
Since then, Fritz has penned eight text books used worldwide by students of massage therapy, some of which have already seen their third and fourth editions.
‘When you write a text book, it’s a lot like being married,? she joked. ‘You have to keep renewing the relationship.?
Although she has battled dyslexia all her life, Fritz said she was happy to have the help of coauthors to produce the books.
Fritz’s work also spills over into the world of professional athletes. Some of her clients include Chauncey Billups and Antonio McDyess from the Detroit Pistons and NFL players Charlie Batch, Cory Redding and Charles Rogers. She’s also worked on MLB and PGA players, too.
For the last 10 years, the HEC has partnered with the Detroit Lion’s Organization to work with their players during training camps.
One thing Fritz said she has learned from working with professional athletes is that they’re not all as physically fit as we think they are. ‘They’re on the edge of injury and illness,? she said.
So how does she prevent being ‘star-struck? whenever she’s with a sports celebrity?
‘I say if you’re going to work with any person with a public status, you’ve gotta realize that underneath that is a human being who’s probably really stressed,? she said. ‘You cannot be a fan, you have to be a professional.?
Another thing she’s learned is that the sportsmen she’s worked with are sincere, genuine and very caring.
In the midst of writing her fourth text book in 2006, Fritz underwent a triple bypass surgery. Both Antonio McDyess and Chauncey Billups sent flowers to her hospital room with a handwritten note, which made some of the hospital workers find reasons to sneak into her room to get a peek.
And when her eldest son, Greg, passed away after being hit by a car last year, some of her NFL clients, like Robert Porchet, attended the funeral.
Although working in the sports industry has its fun moments, Fritz said she’s most proud of her school’s pro bono work at the John D. Dingell VA Hospital in Detroit as well as an outreach program to a residential hospice in Goodrich.
‘It’s fun to talk about the athletes, but where we do our best work as a school is providing massage therapy for the people who probably would not be able to get it on their own,? she said.
For now, Fritz is planning to continue working on her text books and focus on helping her massage therapy students become the best they can be.
‘I want to be training the future generation of teachers,? she said.\For more information on Sandy Fritz? work, visit www.sandyfritz.info.