KENT, Conn. — Walking into Fair Skies Acupuncture feels like stepping into a pocket of calm.
The office—bright, airy, and intentionally simple—glows with natural light that spills across the light-colored floors and clusters of thriving jade and Christmas cactus plants. The effect is both invigorating and grounding.
Even Pandy, owner Stephanie Ho Southard’s dog, seems to understand the space’s purpose, greeting clients with quiet reassurance from a chair where she is curled up.
Ho Southard, a licensed acupuncturist and the founder of Fair Skies, designed the space around the same principles that guide her work. Light matters, she said—not only for the plants, but for the people who come seeking relief, restoration or a deeper connection with their own bodies.
“Acupuncture is very practical, like physical therapy, and also kind of amazing at the same time,” Ho Southard said. “It stimulates the body’s self-healing responses, increases circulation, and trains the body to enhance those healing responses.”
Rooted in traditional Chinese medicine, acupuncture views the body as a microsystem within the larger natural world, Ho Southard said. She blends that traditional perspective with a modern understanding of the nervous system.
During a session, she places sterile, disposable needles—ranging from just 0.12 mm to 0.35 mm—into specific areas of muscle tissue to stimulate healing.
The technique stimulates the body’s meridians: invisible channels through which vital energy—referred to as qi—flows.
“We all have sluggish areas in the body,” she explained. “The needles help call the body’s attention to these areas.”
Joy Brown is a client who seeks restoration at Fair Skies and appreciates the “beautiful space and energy” that permeates there.
“Being a sculptor, it’s physical,” said Brown, who grew up in Japan and is familiar with Eastern medicine. “My body, my heart and soul is called upon [as a sculptor]. I’ve been on a long journey exploring that part of myself, like how to become more whole.”
Brown said that her time at Fair Skies opens up her being.
“When I leave there, I feel more spacious, like everything is going to be okay. They’re guiding me to heal myself, whether it’s my heart aching about something or my body,” she said.
Brown grew up in Japan and is familiar with Easter medicine.
At Fair Skies, every treatment is customized to the client’s needs based on a person’s specific health needs, history, and symptoms. Treatment may involve different needle points, needle techniques and adjustments during the session.
“I always base treatment on how they feel that day,” she said.
Most of Ho Southard’s sessions consist of acupuncture and adjuncts, including moxibustion, cupping and stones.
Moxibustion is a traditional Chinese medicine technique that involves holding a burning moxa stick filled with the dried herb mugwort close to the skin to warm and invigorate the flow of energy and blood.
Cupping, a suction-based technique, is believed to increase circulation, promote healing, and reduce inflammation.
Stone therapies can help release tension and restore balance, Ho Southard said.
Ho Southard describes her style as focused on musculoskeletal conditions and “helping clients release key areas of tension,” but she emphasizes that acupuncture can support many conditions—whether clients arrive after trying Western medicine without success or choose to complement their existing treatments.
Merialis Lewis described the positive experience she has had at Fair Skies, where she has found healing. She lives actively and participates in many sports, among them skiing, scuba diving and martial arts. Over time, she developed issues with both her back and neck. Surgery was not recommended, but acupuncture was suggested as a possibility.
“They fixed me right up,” Lewis said of Fair Skies.
“Acupuncture treats the entire body,” said Lewis, who spent most of her life in Asia. “And we’re all connected from our heads to our toes—this is why I like to go there.”
She complimented Ho Southard on her knowledge and professionalism, and how the treatments at Fair Skies affect her clients.
“You feel like a feather. You can float out of the office because you feel so good because stress and bad energy—for lack of a better word—can flow through,” she related.
Bringing it all together
Before becoming an acupuncturist, Ho Southard spent 22 years as a dental hygienist, a career that taught her to “appreciate people and prioritize their dignity and comfort,” she said.
As the daughter of two TWA employees who took her around the world, she has had a lifelong exposure to different cultures that fostered a deep respect for the body.
“I’ve always had a sense of home in the body,” she said.
Her curiosity eventually led her back to the University of Bridgeport, where she had earned her bachelor’s degree as a dental hygienist years earlier. There she pursued a master’s degree in science and acupuncture. She continues to expand her skills through ongoing education.
Ho Southard said she sees her role as a guide who helps clients access their own capacity to heal.
“I love the term ‘healer’—healer of the self,” she said. “Everything I do is to support the client.”
Her approach emphasizes patience, creativity, and self-awareness—qualities she also encourages in the individuals she works with. She said she learns from every session and feels “lucky” to be part of each person’s journey.
“I appreciate the opportunity to work one-on-one with people and learn whatever works for them,” she said. “Through what I give to them here, I support the good work they do.”
Her goal for each visit is simple but profound: “to help people feel transformed, to stimulate the body and healing.”
Ho Southard shares her office with fellow acupuncturist and herbalist Christopher Kiely, who practices “classical Chinese medicine and Tai Chi,” she said.
Their approaches differ slightly, but their partnership enriches the healing environment.
Ho Southard hopes each person leaves feeling supported and ready to “go thrive and live in a higher vibration in their circles.”
“I love helping people,” she said. “I love being able to use a practical skill that provides a good service and offers support.”
Brown praised both Ho Southard and Kiely for being a part of the town’s wellness community.
“They’re such a blessing to have here in the community,” she said. “They’re a beautiful healing presence in this world.”
Fair Skies Acupuncture is located at 8 Green Pastures, across from Kent Town Hall. Appointments are required by calling 203-733-1837. For more information, visit https://www.fairskiesacupuncture.com or email StephanieHoSouthard@gmail.com. For more information about Kiely’s services, call 802-349-2725, email cloudhandy@yahoo.com or visit www.FallingWaterTaiChi.com.
