This week's episode is one we didn't plan to record, but one that felt necessary.

On the day our community learned of the passing of Dr. Garry Landreth, Kylie sat down to record this special tribute episode in honour of one of the most influential figures in child-centred play therapy history.

Dr. Landreth's contributions to the field are immeasurable. As a Regents Professor at the University of North Texas, he founded the Center for Play Therapy in 1988, growing it into the largest play therapy training and research program in the world. He authored Play Therapy: The Art of the Relationship, now in its fourth edition and the most widely used play therapy textbook globally, and produced over 150 publications across journals, books, and training videos. He co-developed Child-Parent Relationship Therapy (CPRT) with Sue Bratton, was a founding board member of the Association for Play Therapy and received APT's Lifetime Achievement Award among countless other honours.

But beyond the accolades, Dr. Landreth gave child-centred play therapy its name, its identity, and its structure. Building on the lineage of Carl Rogers, Virginia Axline, and the Gurneys, he codified CCPT for training, defended its integrity against more directive approaches, and passionately championed the idea that CCPT is not simply a set of techniques, it is a way of being with a child.

In this heartfelt episode, Kylie reflects on how Dr. Landreth's writings shaped her own journey as a play therapist, clinical supervisor, and trainer. From first encountering The Art of the Relationship during her training in 2015, to leaning on it as a lifeline in her early years of practice, to building her training program and this very podcast on the foundations he laid, his influence is woven through everything the Play Therapy Circle community stands for.

Kylie also invites our global community to reflect on and share how Dr. Landreth touched their own professional lives, because his reach truly is everywhere.

All roads in child-centred play therapy lead back to Garry Landreth. This episode is our community's small way of saying thank you.

"Toys are children's words and play is their language."

Dr. Garry Landreth