Meet The Team

Dr Casey Ferguson started her career in hospital medicine, a field she worked in for 14 years before taking an interest in Addiction Medicine.  Throughout her career, she cared for many patients in the hospital with complications from addictions. While addressing their hospital medical conditions, she often felt unprepared to support them with their underlying substance use disorders. In this setting, she developed an interest in addiction care, and was accepted to the Addiction Medicine Fellowship program at OHSU, which she completed in 2019.

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She has since practiced Addiction Medicine at Kaiser and Central City Concern. She joined Cielo Treatment Center as Medical Director in September 2022. She loves working with patients in outpatient treatment, providing support with prescribing for mental health and medication supported recovery. She derives inspiration from her patients and the many challenges they overcome in their journeys, and she feels it is an honor to be involved in their care.

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When not working, Casey can be found with her partner and two teenage sons, playing with her dogs or doing outdoor activities such as running, biking, skiing, camping, etc.

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Dr. Phyllis D. Hursey has been a physician for more than 25 years. She began her career in family medicine and worked with a wide range of patients from prenatal and infancy to geriatric. As the years went by Dr. Hursey discovered that she had a passion for both addiction and pain management, and she began to seek additional education in those specific fields.

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Dr. Hursey believes treatment for addiction should always be individualized and there is no “one size fits all” approach. Addiction treatment is both multi-disciplinary and multi-factorial. Often times addiction is caused by an undiagnosed or untreated psychological cause that needs to be addressed in order for the patient to be successful. Dr. Hursey believes in a holistic approach, meaning that along with medication, patients need to learn new coping mechanisms to help them deal with life stresses and that with these tools, her patients can learn to live a balanced and productive life.

 

In her free time, Dr. Hursey enjoys playing with her dogs, spending time with family, traveling, and singing.

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Meghan graduated from Portland State University with a Masters in Community Mental Health in 2006. She has worked as a therapist as well as provided supervision and leadership in treatment centers, health care settings, and in private practice.  Her main clinical focus has been co-occurring disorders and eating disorders.

 

In addition, Meghan recently became a Certified Integrative Mental Health Provider so that she could better help clients make and maintain nutrition and other life-style changes to support their over-all health and recovery.

 

Meghan’s approach is holistic, and trauma informed. She knows that people can grow and be their best selves when give the knowledge and the optimal healthy environment. She is most influenced by Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) and she tries to help people discover, create, and live what Marsha Linehan refers to as “an anti-depressant life.”

 

Meghan grew up in a tiny Vermont town (population 33), and in her free time, loves to take long rural drives to de-stress.

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Marcy Kokinda moved to Portland, Oregon from Oklahoma in 2004, and worked in healthcare as a respiratory therapist for 15 years, before returning to college in 2010 to pursue a degree in Addictions Counselor Education.

Throughout her career, Marcy has maintained a commitment to treating each client with unconditional positive regard, utilizing a strengths-based, trauma-informed approach to help clients re-discover a life worth living in recovery.

Marcy believes in the possibility for change for any person struggling with addiction and is especially passionate about working with young adults and members of the LGBTQ+ community.

As a former United States Marine, Marcy has traveled extensively and enjoys meeting people from all walks of life. Currently Marcy spends her free time with her family and her four dogs.

Sean was born and raised in Portland and loves the Pacific Northwest. After graduating from the University of Oregon with a BA in English, Sean went to China to teach ESL. While there, Sean taught Kindergarten and enjoyed traveling through SE Asia. After a few years, Sean came back to the States to be closer to his family. He now works helping people in a different setting: addiction and recovery.
 

As a former teaching professional, Sean believes in resolving conflicts with compassion. He brings a level-headed approach to the recovery setting and works to support those around him. One of his core beliefs is that nearly any conflict can be resolved through listening and understanding.
 

In his free time, Sean enjoys keeping up with his Mandarin Language studies, exploring different areas of Portland, and spending time with his wife and his two cats. He plans to obtain his CADC certification and become a counselor.

Justina moved from to Portland, Oregon from Denver Colorado in 2018 when she made the decision to get sober. She found an outpatient treatment program, moved into sober living, and dedicated herself to transitioning her life toward health and wellbeing.

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Justina is proud that she has four years sober, and she believes that if you put in the work, doors will open, and wonderful opportunities will arise. She knows that through sobriety, every client can have the life they have always wanted.

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Justina started working in the addiction treatment field three years ago as a house manager and then a certified recovery mentor. She then recognized her passion and skillset for administrative work and learned to excel at insurance billing.

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In her free time, Justina loves spending time with her family, and her three beautiful children, Luca, Millie, and Milo. She also enjoys reading books and spending time in nature.

Cheryl moved to Portland in April of 2021 from the Seattle, WA area. She is currently working on her Human and Social Services and Criminology Degrees.

Cheryl comes to the field of substance use disorder treatment with many years of experience helping those who suffer from addiction and mental illness. She has witnessed firsthand how these disorders affect not only the one suffering from these illnesses, but also friends, family, and loved ones.

 

Cheryl is active in her Alanon program and uses this experience to help guide others. She truly lives her life surrounded by people in recovery and helping others to find their way in their recovery journey. Cheryl's goal is to guide her clients in an assertive and compassionate manner so they can achieve and maintain sobriety and experience how wonderful life without drugs or alcohol.

Cheryl has been married for 32 years and is the mother to 2 wonderful daughters. She also has 4 amazing little humans that call her Nana! She enjoys spending time with her wife and family, as well as working with those that are affected by addiction. She is especially passionate about helping those in the LGBTQ+ community.

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Elyssa graduated from Marylhurst University in 2011 with a Master’s degree in Art therapy Counseling. Being dual trained in art therapy and talk therapy she has worked in community mental health, addictions and private practices health care settings.

 

Elyssa’s approach is client centered and collaborative. The therapeutic approach is CBT and Mindfulness with a focus on developing healthy coping skills, emotional regulation and relapse prevention. Elyssa believes in meeting clients where they are at and being a guide to helping them process through the difficult or disruptive patterns in their lives to help them move forward to meet their goals. She feels that is a great honor to be allowed to witness client’s stories and growth. Elyssa is LGBTQIA+ sensitive and believes everyone has the right to be and love whoever and however that speaks to their heart. She feels it is an honor and privilege to be able to help people on their healing journey and to walk beside them and support them throughout that journey.

 

Elyssa has been married to her husband for 25 years and has two amazing adult children. She spends her free time making art and is an avid Halloween fan. Halloween is her passion and she loves to travel around the country teaching people how to make realistic Halloween props out of styrofoam.

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Deanna was born in Las Vegas, Nevada and came to Portland as a young girl in the early 90's where she fell into a life of addiction. In 2004 Deanna decided to make a change in her life and began her life of recovery from active addiction. She enrolled at Portland Community College and earned her associate degree in Addiction in 2012.  Deanna has worked as a substance abuse counselor for 12 years, in medication assisted treatment, with youth, and has a specialty background in facilitating parenting groups and working with families.  

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Deanna has a passion for helping others learn how to live without drugs and alcohol. She is deeply committed to meeting each client where they are, at whatever motivation level they are at, and believes that everyone has the capacity for positive change.

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Deanna is very passionate about self-care and meditation. She loves music, the color purple, and she enjoys spending time with her four children, six grandchildren, and two dogs, Bear and Jade.

Cheyenne was born and raised in northern California and moved to Portland, Oregon in 2005 as an adolescent. She then relocated up to Olympia, Washington in 2020 to attend rehab and get a fresh start in life.

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Cheyenne works a recovery program based on the 12 steps, Wellbriety, and Dharma based recovery. Cheyenne sees recovery as connecting to spiritual self, building community, and finding a sense of belonging.

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Cheyenne worked as a group counselor for two years in an outpatient program in Olympia, is White Bison certified, and has a specialty in providing culturally specific groups such as drum making, Wellbriety, and connecting clients to sweat lodge.

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Cheyenne believed that addiction is isolation and recovery is community. It is of the utmost importance for clients to connect themselves with others in recovery who not only have the same interests but who have had success in their own recovery journey. Cheyenne believed that there are many paths to recovery, and there is a path out there for every single person seeking help. It is important to address the underlying behaviors, trauma, and environmental factors, that contribute to the addiction cycle. Cheyenne also believes in the importance of connection to culture.

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In addition to working in the recovery treatment field, Cheyenne is also a musician and plays the piano, guitar, ukulele, flute, and writes music and songs. She also loves spending time with family and friends and her two rambunctious cats, Sully and Hakuna.

Sarah was born in Sandy Oregon and has lived in Portland her whole life. Sarah first found her passion for mental health working with high risk teens. That’s when she began her Bachelor’s of Social Work program and began interning at NARA NW where she worked closely with the indigenous population and gained knowledge and appreciate for indigenous culture.  

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Her current specialty is working with clients with severe and persistent mental illness where she also currently works for a non-profit as a residential treatment therapist. Her core beliefs are based on  integrity, empathy,  diversity, equity, inclusion, justice, and understanding that people are unique and each individual deserves the opportunities to be their best selves.

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Her favorite modalities are cognitive behavioral therapy, trauma informed therapy, rational emotive behavioral therapy, Gestalt therapy, Erik Erickson’s stages of development, and person-centered therapy.

Sarah loves the outdoors and her hobbies include horseback riding, camping, water sports, and cars.

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Adetunji grew up in Nigeria, West Africa, where he started his career as a high school teacher. He then moved to the United States and decided to change course working as a counselor with teenagers and young adults. Later, he transitioned to working with individuals with severe and persistent mental illness. After completing his master's degree in clinical social work, he went back to working with pre-teens, teenagers and young adults. In addition, he is also experienced in working in the Emergency Department as a discharge planner, where he worked with a diverse group of people.

Adetunji has the philosophy that the best approach to mental health is solution focused, utilizing collaborative problem solving and motivational interviewing. He believes in allowing each individual to take part in their growth with the support and guidance of their support system. He knows that finding a positive support system goes a long way in the healing process. 

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In his free time, Adetunji loves to go on vacation to warm and sunny locations. 

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Amber was born and raised in Portland, Oregon. She identifies as a cisgender queer woman of color. She graduated from Portland State University with her Bachelor’s in Social Work and is currently finishing her Master’s in Social Work through Fordham University.

 

She describes herself as a radical social worker who works from a person-in-environment perspective and within a framework which defines social work as human relationship. She believes that her clients are the experts of their own life, and she does her best to create a space where individuals feel safe, brave, and valued enough to voice their needs and trust that they will be heard.

 

Within that, she deeply values doing the work of pushing back against the barriers that inhibit addressing the root causes of service-users’ challenges operating in historically harmful systems. She is passionate about equity and social justice work and believes that we are all worthy of autonomy, respect and the access to thrive. Her favorite quote is: “You may not know it, but you are already whole.”

 

She loves to go on walks with her family, finding cool buildings and discovering parks. She also looks forward to taking her bearded dragons out for walks on their little leashes.

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Gigi Goodrich was born and raised on the outskirts of Portland, Oregon. At 18 years old she started using and drinking and then spent her 20's spiraling into alcoholism and addiction. She also struggled with depression and other mental health disorders that greatly contributed to her using and drinking. In 2019 Gigi went to treatment in California for four months, then attended an intensive outpatient program back home in Portland for an additional year. These treatment programs started her on her sobriety journey, and she has been sober and in recovery ever since. 

 

Gigi attends weekly AA meetings, works a 12 step program with a sponsor, and sees two different therapists on a regular basis. She believes that judgement has no place in recovery, and loves supportinging other people in reclaiming their lives and happiness. She wants to see everyone treated with dignity, respect, and kindness. 

 

Gigi is a Bulldog lover, self-care ritual guru, and horror movie fanatic. She listens to gangster rap and heavy metal, and in her spare time, she owns and operates a Crystals, Fossils and Minerals business.

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Travis Knutson was born in Washington and raised across Kitsap County. It was there that he discovered two things he loved: socializing and alcohol. Despite struggling with alcoholism from an early age, he had a strong desire to grow and heal the generational trauma he faced. He graduated from Olympic College at 19 as a part of the Running Start team and received an Associates of the Arts alongside his high school diploma. Eventually, his desire for growth landed him in Portland, Oregon where he attended and subsequently graduated treatment for his substance use disorder.

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Travis practices an abstinence and 12-step based program. He attends weekly AA meetings and CBT sessions, and believes his recovery began with the gift of desperation. He values honesty, empathy, human connection, and a willingness to change as important aspects in all programs of recovery. He also lives by a well-known AA saying, “We can only keep that which was freely given by giving it away”. This philosophy is part of what inspired him to become a CRM/PSS and work for the very same company he graduated from.

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A member of the LGBTQIA+ community, Travis has experience in sober living management, and is proud of his work alongside West Coast Sober Housing to open their first LGBTQIA+ sober living home. He now spends his free time enjoying the rewards of recovery by organizing game nights with friends, indulging in rediscovered hobbies, and relaxing with a good book!

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Elyjah grew up in the Republic of Palau where he had a very close relationship with his family members. He then moved to the United States when he was 30 years old and affter struggling with addiction for six years, he made the decision to turn his life around and seek treatment. Elyjah graduated from his
treatment program and realized his potential for helping others. He then made the decision to change his career path and focus on assisting clients in their struggles with substance use disorders.
 

Elyjah believes that the most important parts of recovery are giving back, staying humble, and helping others. He is passionate about studying psychology and how addiction affects people and the way they think and behave.

 

Elyjah is a certified recovery mentor and is also a house manager at an LGBTQIA+ affirmative house in the community. He loves spending time with his little fur baby, Legend, going to support groups, spending time with family, and going to the gym.

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