Ashy Palliparambil

Director of Programs

Ashy Palliparambil is a registered Art Therapist who graduated with a Masters of Science in Art Therapy Counseling from Eastern Virginia Medical School. The majority of her career focused on working with service members and their families. During her eight years at the USO of Metropolitan Washington-Baltimore, she had the enormous opportunity to grow resiliency programs specific to wounded, ill, and injured service members and their caregivers to make a lasting impact during their recovery in the DC Metro area. She prioritized increasing the healthy coping skills of service members and their caregivers and awareness of resiliency programs among the military community. Ashy developed innovative programs which began with her expertise in Art Therapy and expanded to include music, adaptive sports, wellness, and other modalities. She facilitated various workshops and programs, always encouraging recovering service members to “find what works” for them. Whether it be the visual arts, music, or writing, she is always supportive in helping service members find the healing power of art.

Ashy sought after and partnered with other mission-aligned nonprofits to maximize program offering and support for service members, caregivers, and the medical staff supporting them. In 2021, Walter Reed National Military Medical Center awarded her the Civilian Achievement Award for her outstanding work and support of healthcare workers during the height of the pandemic.

In early 2021, Ashy took on the role of Director of Programs and Art Therapist at Project Create, a nonprofit focused on making arts accessible to children and families of Southeast DC. During her tenure, she successfully led the team through the difficult transition from virtual to in-person programming. Her highest achievement was working with a team to develop and launch Project Create’s new HeART Space Family Art Therapy Program focused on alleviating stress and anxiety caused by the isolations of the pandemic.