Lisa has been on the forefront of mental health advocacy for much of her adult life. For instance, she helped galvanize support of the Oregon Mental Health Parity legislation that passed in 2006. Her passion for this work comes directly from her lived experience as a mother. Lisa researched dozens of community-based mental health options before embracing Windhorse as an optimal approach for healing and recovery for her son.

Lisa has been intricately involved in the Windhorse community for over a decade in multiple capacities. She served as a Windhorse board member before leading the start-up of the San Luis Obispo site in late 2010. A longtime resident of Portland and acutely aware of how underserved the Pacific Northwest is in terms of mental healthcare, she felt called to return to Oregon to create the Portland, OR Windhorse site in summer of 2015.  She has a deep love for creating therapeutic community, and has a special place in her heart for the clients and parents. She absolutely loves supporting clients and families during the admissions process.

Prior to Windhorse, Lisa’s education and career focused on business and human resource management at Intel, Sequent, and IBM. As a long-term cancer survivor, Lisa embraces holistic healing modalities, and after her career in high tech, she practiced massage therapy for 7 years with a specialty in trauma therapy.

In her free time, Lisa nurtures her spirit with nature, hiking, meditation, music, connecting with family and friends, and spoiling her regal Maine Coon cat. She believes in the power of humor to bridge connection and shorten the distance between two people. An unapologetic optimist, she feels grateful and honored to do this work. One day when she’s not completely consumed with Windhorse start-ups, she has a dream to travel.

Lauren’s passion for working in the mental health field began when a particularly kind professor at University of California, San Diego took her under his wing and introduced her to effective and compassionate ways of working with people with autism and other extreme mind states. That was about 25 years ago.  This experience paved the way for the journey that led her to Windhorse.

Lauren’s formal education is unusually diverse and includes two master’s degrees in psychology; one grounded in behavioral research with an emphasis on autism, the other in counseling. Along the way she completed minors in engineering and biomedical ethics that continue to guide her analytic abilities. Deeply drawn to spirituality and nature, she is certified in spiritual direction and has extensive training in Equine Facilitated Learning.  Lauren has used this education and her life experience in both traditional and alternative settings, each focused on some aspect of mental health.

Prior to becoming Clinical Director at Windhorse, Lauren spent 18 years developing, publishing and implementing behavioral and educational programs for people with autism and traumatic brain injuries.  She gained more expertise with severe mental illness as a therapist at a Veteran’s Administration mental health clinic.  She used those experiences to build a thriving private practice.  All of this work along with personal healing and a deep contemplative practice prepared Lauren well for the skills and sensitivity required of her at Windhorse.

Lauren loves horses and respects not only their beauty and sensitivity but also their ability to assist in healing humans.  She rides and shares space with these majestic creatures at every opportunity. She is also blessed with a wonderful husband, two children and a small “herd” of labradoodles.

Born and raised in the South, Elaine headed west after graduating from College of Charleston in 1993. A self-proclaimed vagabond, she settled in Oregon and received her Master’s degree in sociology at Portland State University in 2000.

Elaine taught sociology at the university level for a few years before heading back to the Carolinas to be closer to her tight knit family. She fell into marketing for mental health programs unexpectedly—working first as an Alumni Coordinator for a residential program for adults, while supporting the outreach efforts of the organization. A natural “people-person” who doesn’t mind travel to far-away places, outreach felt like a perfect fit. Over the years of experience, her passion for helping families find appropriate care during stressful and uncertain times has only grown.

Elaine lives in Portland, OR but her role supports outreach for the entire Windhorse nonprofit. When she’s not traveling for the organization, you can find her outdoors—either hiking with her husband, John and their German Shepherd, Max or in her yard digging in the dirt.

Gabe is a clinical social worker with a particular interest in mindfulness and its relationship to well-being. Prior to joining the Windhorse team, Gabe worked for the Portland VA Medical Center for eight years specializing in mindfulness-based psychotherapies. Gabe has maintained a strong interest in meditation practice throughout his adult life, and lived for ten years as a residential Zen student at the San Francisco Zen Center before moving to Portland and pursuing a career in the mental health field.

A licensed clinical social worker, Scott has been working in the field since 2011. Prior to joining the Windhorse team, Scott provided therapeutic services for some of Oregon’s most vulnerable populations- most recently as child and family therapist supporting youth in Oregon’s foster care system, specializing in trauma informed care and attachment.

Scott brings a passion for social justice, equity and compassionate approaches to healing. He also brings over twenty years of experience in mindfulness and meditation. Prior to becoming a social worker, Scott lived at a monastery for seven years as an ordained Buddhist priest in the Zen tradition. Outside of work, Scott enjoys spending time with his family, making art and being active. He loves playing rugby, basketball and spending time on the many hiking trails in and around Portland.

Originally from Brooklyn, Fred spent his formative years in Florida and graduated from University of South Florida with a degree in English. Inspired after reading an article about Portland in Let’s Go Travel guide, Fred hopped on an Amtrak train and moved west 25 years ago.

After experiencing a life-altering event while working on a train in Alaska in his early 30s, Fred was drawn to Zen Buddhism and meditation to deal with chronic pain. He found the practice helped quiet his mind and provided much needed community in his life. While working with kids at Dharma Rain Zen Center, his teacher recognized his relational approach and encouraged Fred to return to school. He graduated from Portland State University with an MSW degree in 2015. Since then, Fred has worked as a Student Advocate with at-risk youth, as a Crisis Counselor at Project Respond and as a Child and Family Therapist at Trillium Family Services. Grateful for his path, he views social work as a way of giving back to the community.

A published poet, Fred spends his free time writing and creating abstract paintings.

Sarah graduated from Vassar College with a degree in drama and worked as an actor for a decade in New York City. After 25 years in the city and ready for the adventure of a new town, Sarah moved to Portland in 2010.

Sarah is a longtime student of Shambala and Zen Buddhism because the philosophy and discipline provided her with a way to work with and study the mind. It also tapped into a lifelong curiosity about human motivation and behavior. In addition to her work at Windhorse, Sarah is a teacher of yoga instructors. Over the course of twenty years of instruction, she found that people felt comfortable sharing their mind with her. Called to have a broader impact, Sarah returned to university and received her Master’s of Psychology from Saybrook University in Seattle.

In her spare time, Sarah is a potter, gardener, seamstress and cook. She and her husband share their home with three beloved cats.

Raised in New Jersey, Jenny graduated from the University of Delaware with a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and a minor in Art History. In 2007, she received her Master’s degree in Counseling with an emphasis in Family Systems from San Francisco State University. Jenny’s lifelong fascination with people and her approachable nature led her to the study and practice of psychology. Even her childhood nickname was ‘the therapist,’ since family and friends knew she would always lend a compassionate ear.

Jenny began her career as a residential counselor at a group home for children ages 5-13 where she witnessed the profound effects trauma has on young children. In this reparative role, as a pseudo-mom, she began learning how to be with others through their pain and most importantly how to attune to what feels safest for people. Prior to joining Windhorse, Jenny continued her work in trauma and family systems in a variety of settings working with teenagers, adults and couples.

As an appreciator of the arts, Jenny enjoys going to movies, listening to music, attending local concerts and events, and wandering around the city, stopping to smell the roses and notice others in her community.

A recent transplant to Portland, Daniel moved here with his spouse, Aika, and his energetic little mutt, Mochi, from Boulder, Colorado, where he spent the last seven years working as a psychotherapist, team leader and supervisor with Windhorse Community Services.  Prior to that, Daniel received his master’s degree from Naropa University.  There, he became grounded in the practice of meditation and the art of Contemplative Psychotherapy.

Daniel is interested in the Windhorse model as “relational medicine”—how being in genuine relationship with others can support one’s growth, mental health and overall well-being, for client and clinician alike, and how the contemplative aspect seats the work, especially when extreme states are involved.

Before dropping into the world of mental health, Daniel taught ESL in Poland and New York City and studied film production at Brooklyn College. He has a deep love and appreciation of movies, music, and literature and also loves to ride his bike around the city and take in all it has to offer, slowly.

Bio forthcoming.

(Pronouns: They/Them)

Growing up on a small island in northwest Washington state, Ira came to know themself within the richly textured elements of wild places. With an unspoken desire to understand early intonations of dislocation and belonging, they developed an eager curiosity for understanding people, place, and relationship— eventually leading to a self-designed undergraduate concentration titled, Facilitating Empowerment through Body Awareness and Expression.

Ira completed their graduate training in counseling with a concentration in somatic psychology at the California Institute of Integral Studies in San Francisco. Their master’s thesis, Therapeutic Landscapes: Clinical Relationship as Holding Environment, reflects on the metaphor of the clinical relationship as a therapeutic landscape, exploring the use of body process and natural elements as resources for connection, regulation, and transformation.

Ira has worked with adults, teens, and children in diverse educational and therapeutic settings, including environmental education and wilderness therapy programs, a K-8 public school, crisis hotlines, a psychiatric emergency department, and residential treatment centers. Their growing work lies at the intersection of somatic psychology, social and environmental justice, and multi-modal expressive arts. Ira continues to be humbled by the deeply abiding humility, courage, and brilliance of the people with whom they collaborate.

A Clinical Social Work Associate, Zina earned a Master’s of Social Work at Portland State University in 2018. Before returning to school for a second Master’s degree, Zina taught Writing Composition and Critical thinking at several colleges. After, developing a love for teaching, Zina began teaching yoga and meditation in the Portland, Oregon area, where she realized her knack for assisting folks with symptoms of depression and anxiety.

Originally from Odessa, Ukraine Zina immigrated with her family to the States, which provides her with an experience of being “the other” that instilled compassion towards those whom seem to be “misfits” in American society. She completed her BA and MA in English Literature in California, and moved to Portland, OR to teach full time in 2010.

Zina began her meditation journey at the age of 18, while recovering from an unexpected surgery necessitated after four intensive years of high school wrestling. Her philosophy of combining meditation, yoga, and basic psychology translates into a compassionate, practical approach to a therapeutic relationship.

Zina spends her free time with her daughter and husband preferably in nature.

Bio forthcoming

Kevin earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from Arizona State University and is currently working towards becoming a Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor. He plans to pursue a Master’s degree in counseling. Originally from Southern California, Kevin moved to Portland in 2015 to create a community with like-minded people. He co-founded HomeWellnessPDX, a wellness center that helps individuals heal and live a fulfilled and connected life by creating  one’s own personal community. As a life coach, he’s walked with individuals through fears and anxiety and has led workshops focusing on inner child work, codependency, boundaries, vision and personal values.  Inspired by his own struggle with depression and anxiety and his recovery journey through deep interpersonal work at The Bridge, Kevin hosts The Survivor Story, a podcast which gives voice to survivors of Life Struggles.

A Registered Yoga Teacher, Kevin practices Yoga regularly. He is deeply involved in community health groups and has found a deeper awareness and mindfulness practice through cooking daily meals. In his spare time, Kevin enjoys hiking, snowboarding, playing music, writing songs and poetry and being in community. During moments of rest, he enjoys a good movie (his favorite genre? Movies that make you cry!)

Gabby grew up in Spokane, WA in a community deeply impacted by mental health. As a consequence, she’s had a lifelong desire to learn more about the experiences of others. Prior to Windhorse, she worked with adolescents at Trillium Family Services as a skills trainer.

Gabby earned a theater arts degree from Western Washington University in Bellingham in 2014. After graduating, her curiosity for expression and connection led her to study mindfulness and movement. Dance and yoga reconnected Gabby with her body and opened her mind to the intersection between one’s somatic nervous system and psychological trauma. She plans to return to school to study this connection more closely.

In her free time, Gabby enjoys hiking adventures, freestyle dance, creating art, reading novels about witches, and playing with animals of all kinds.

Originally from Virginia, a powerful draw to the Pacific Northwest brought her out west by way of Denver, Colorado and Northern California. A lifelong advocate for mental health awareness, Francesca received her Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from Humboldt State University in 2013. While in school she worked with adults experiencing developmental delays, and was a research assistant under the guidance of Dr. William Reynolds, the chair of the Department of Psychology. Since graduating Francesca has worked in a wide variety of fields ranging from direct services in health services to hospitality and administration. In all aspects of life, she seeks to bring a sense of grounding compassion and honest connection.

In her spare time, Francesca likes spending time outdoors, listening to music, playing on aerial silks and lyra, and bonding with her cat, Kaya.

Emily holds a masters of science in integrative mental health from the National University of Natural Medicine in Portland, OR and is in their final year of studying Naturopathic Medicine.  Her previous experience as an outdoor educator and doula inform her integrative, whole-person wellness approach and appreciation of natural human rhythms. Emily believes that healing and liberation occur interpersonally, in community, and in relationship with the natural world. In their spare time Emily enjoys listening to lofi beats playlists on Spotify, sipping coffee with her husband, hiking and swimming around the PNW and biking around the city on clear nights.

Bio forthcoming.

David Cook received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, with a focus on contemporary dance, performance, and history. That experience gave rise to his belief that art (like recovery) is best done in community. David has co-taught performance with his twin sister ​as members of the mixed-ability dance company Buen Viaje. He has also been a Shambhala Buddhist practitioner for eight years and currently hosts a group for Young Meditators at the Portland Shambhala Center, facilitating practices in meditation and embodied listening. He loves to cook, bike, write poetry, and encourage others on their journey.

Born in Honolulu, Lee was raised in the central coast of California. Seeking adventure, he headed South to work on a private yacht in Cabo San Lucas. As a teenager, Lee began working towards his goal of flying, first washing planes and then taking classes. He earned his pilot license at 17 and for a decade was a Gold Seal flight instructor. A lover of nature with an entrepreneurial spirit, Lee also co-owned a business selling eco-friendly products.

Lee began his career at Windhorse as a housemate in San Luis Obispo before moving to Portland to help launch the third location. With an eye for detail, Lee spends free time drawing.

Annie lives in Northampton, MA but her role as fiscal manager supports the entire nonprofit. Annie brings with her over 20 years of fiscal experience gained from working in a variety of for-profit and nonprofit settings. She has served on the board of directors of her church and currently volunteers there as a prayer chaplain. You might also see her contra dancing, selling her own unique line of handmade skirts, or singing for peace and freedom in the Amandla Community Chorus.

Ana was born in Israel and moved to the Portland Metro area when she was a toddler, where she has resided since. She completed her BS degree at Portland State University and her Master of Public Health at the Oregon Health and Science University. When she isn’t helping coordinate the office, she likes to make and play music around town with friends, as well as discover new delicious brunch spots and pet any cute dogs that may grace her with their presence.

Originally from Southern California, Kelsee moved to Portland in 2011. Growing up, she had a natural affinity towards math, finding the definitive nature of math satisfying. A lifelong fan of Rubik’s cubes, Kelsee’s collection has surpassed twenty.

When she’s not crunching numbers, Kelsee and her partner, Charlie spend their free time with their newborn baby and their two kitties.