One of the most important factors for a successful counseling experience is the client feeling comfortable in revealing himself/herself to the counselor.  During the counseling sessions, the focus is all about the client.  However, in this space, I would like to share some personal information about myself.

I was born in Washington, DC and lived in Arlington, VA during my childhood.  During my high school years, our family moved to St. Clair, PA a small coal mining town.  It is a place of good, hardworking people and I have always been proud to call St. Clair my home.   I was good at mathematics in school and so, without much thought, I attended Penn State University and received BS degrees in mathematics and physics.  In 1989, after graduation, I was hired by the Defense Mapping Agency (DMA) to work at their Bethesda, MD office.  Four years later, the government moved me to St. Louis.  This was a joyous time for me – I loved St. Louis and I still do!  I worked as a geodetic scientist for most of my career with the federal government (DMA eventually transitioned to National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA)).  I also earned a master’s degree in Civil Engineering from Purdue University.

While I was honored to serve our government, by the time I had reached my mid-40s, I was feeling a general frustration with my life.  You could call it a mid-life crisis.  I was tired of the technical work.  I wanted to work directly with people, and I wanted to learn and experience new things.  After about one year “in the fog”, I determined to pursue a career in mental health counseling.  How did I come to that conclusion?  It met the qualifications that I was looking for.  I also believed that I would be good at it.  I was a geodetic analyst for most of my government career.  Now, I would be listening to people, analyzing their problems, and offering suggestions for their self-help.  In 2012, I started taking evening courses at UMSL and, in 2018, I received a Master of Social Work (MSW) degree.  By then, I was already retired from NGA and pursuing my second career full time.  For the past three years, I have been working at Mercy-South / Hyland Behavioral Health Hospital; first as a student intern and then as full-time staff.  I am grateful for the opportunity Mercy/Hyland offered me to learn about the problems endured by people with psychological disorders.

I am excited to open my own practice!  I approach the job with humility and utmost respect for the clients who seek my assistance.