COVENANT HILLS ADDICTION TREATMENT CENTER - Key Persons
As a program director at Covenant Hills, Alex oversees the operational and clinical departments for the men's program. With over three years of experience in addiction treatment, Alex's most recent role was outpatient and extended care program manager at Northbound Treatment where he oversaw a large co-ed outpatient and extended care program, as well, he managed the clinical staff to ensure compliance and quality client care.
Blair has been part of the Covenant Hills team since 2015 in the capacity of office manager and financial administrator. Her current role as admissions coordinator finds her interacting with prospective clients and family members looking for guidance about the substance abuse treatment program offered at Covenant Hills. Using her own experience in sobriety as a reference point, she walks with the family through the admissions process and continues to act as the point of contact through the course of treatment.
Her upbeat, can-do personality brings an atmosphere of positivity to the Covenant Hills' program, and her firm belief in the mission of the company gives her a deep sense of joy and pride in her role.
As an alum of the program, she considers herself living proof that sobriety is possible no matter how hopeless and dark life may appear, and that the program at Covenant Hills really does work. Blair truly loves what she does-helping other alcoholics and addicts find hope again, showing them they are not alone and by helping them see that sobriety is possible.
Job Titles:
- Transporation Coordinator
Job Titles:
- Ordained Minister
- Pastoral Counselor
Carice Blazo is the Pastoral Counselor at our women's treatment facility in Dana Point. Carice is an ordained minister and holds a B.A. in Psychology and a M.A. in Pastoral Counseling, Addictions and Recovery. Formerly, as a regional director at Christian non-profit educational organization, Carice has experience discipling, training, and equipping individuals and groups in their educational and spiritual journeys. Her roles in the recovery field include administration, group facilitation, spiritual leadership and counseling.
Carice loves to guide clients in transformational spiritual recovery by facilitating Christ-centered lessons, one-on-one counseling, prayer, evidence-based recovery interventions, and 12-Step principles. Carice provides a grace-filled and comforting environment for clients.
Cody is the Resident Manager Supervisor at Covenant Hills men's residential treatment center in San Clemente, CA. The responsibilities that come with include supervising the resident managers and working alongside the program director and transportation director, making sure they have what they need to do their jobs as efficiently as possible.
Job Titles:
- Chief Development Officer
- Vice President
With nearly 20 years' professional experience in the behavioral health industry and the current Vice President and Chief Development Officer of Covenant Hills Treatment, Dustin Frei is a driving force in the movement of high quality, ethical services across the spectrum of addiction treatment. His passion for meticulous, evidence-based, and compassionate addiction/behavioral health treatment, as well as his experience leading teams, developing marketing strategies, and driving revenue expansion-then ensuring the integration of all aspects of organizational efforts-give him distinct insight and combine to make him a exemplar, leading the way in the realms of behavioral health and addiction treatment.
Ed Volk is the Therapist at the Company's men's treatment facility in San Clemente. Ed Volk is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist with an advanced certification in addiction treatment, Licensed Advanced Alcohol Drug Counselor (LAADC). Ed received his BA and MA from Wheaton College. He has worked in the field for over 20 years and has worked as a clinician on the administrative side overseeing and developing programs. Ed is certified in Motivational Interviewing, Dialectical Behavior Therapy and Seeking Safety. He is also a member of the Orange County, CA Trauma Response Team and has interned at Saddleback Church in the Counseling Dept. Ed has a personal and professional expertise in the field of addiction. He believes in the restorative power of the recovery process with the individual and the family.
Eddie Lysen works in the admissions department at our corporate office where he works through the entire admissions process with families and clients. That ranges everything from engaging through the initial phone calls of individuals looking for addiction treatment, going over the program, explaining insurance/finances, coordinating detox, transportation, and pre-assessment for admission for treatment.
Having had the experience of recovery himself, he can share his story in hopes of helping others. This also gives him particular insight on truly understanding where addition can take someone and how hard it can be asking for help.
Previously Eddie worked as a house manager for Covenant Hills where he was able to work face to face with the clients and over the years developed a sense of how things work at the treatment level.
Ultimately Eddie is most interested in helping lift others out of addiction to give them a new hope in life-in the same way that it was done for him.
According to Heather, the greatest pleasure of being the primary therapist at Covenant Hills women's facility is watching the beautiful evolution of change in others. She remains "ridiculously passionate" about the work she does on a daily basis, which includes being an integral part of the multi-disciplinary treatment team providing individual, group, and family therapy, as well as formulating unique and specific treatment plans of each resident.
Her educational background includes a BS in pastoral ministries and psychology (Vanguard University) and a Master's of Science in Clinical Psychology (Vanguard University). She is also a California licensed marriage and family therapist, a certified eating disorder specialist, and is EMDR certified.
She educates from the efficacy of positive interventions and believes that everyone gets stuck once in a while, but she maintains that "it's never too late to be who you might have been."
Jefferson loves seeing clients break free from the addiction cycle and be free to become the person they were meant to be.
Jefferson has been sober for nine years, is a self-published author and blogger, and performs stand-up comedy for fun. A pop culture aficionado, he loves all things Marvel, Stars Wars, and, of course, attends Comic-Con every year.
Job Titles:
- Operations Manager / Operations
Jeremiah has been around addiction treatment nearly three decades supporting and inspiring men to find sanity and sobriety. He is currently the men's home pastoral counselor where he helps individuals resolve spiritual conflicts to allow them to have a more meaningful relationship with God. He also serves as a case manager and works to educate and help clients walk through the recovery process. He has worked for Teen Challenge International and served as an Associate Pastor for many years. He currently holds a degree in Drug and Alcohol Counseling and is ordained through the International Christian Ministers Association.
Joseph Price knows that people are happier when they are sober. This knowledge has given him a passion to work in the addiction treatment industry for over a decade. This conviction comes from his personal experience with recovery, which he found treatment for here at Covenant Hills (formerly Pacific Hills Treatment).
Mike Robertson is an established authority in the substance use disorder field. He brings a deep understanding of SUD, process addictions, and mental health issues to the field. Beyond that, his intimate knowledge of the community, treatment centers, various programs, and wilderness and therapeutic schools (and more), make him an invaluable pillar of the organization.
Nicole Widman is a Case Manager for the Women's Residential and IOP programs at Covenant Hills Treatment Center. She is currently obtaining clinical hours to become a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and has obtained a master's degree in social work from Louisiana State University and a bachelor's degree in communication from University of California, Santa Barbara. She has worked in the addiction field for over 5 years and is a member of the National Association of Social Work. She believes her most valuable "credential" is her relationship with Jesus where she gets to see her clients according to the Spirit, leading women in receiving the fullness of their identity and inheritance through the simplicity of faith in Him. It is here that she sees stories powerfully redeemed and narratives rewritten with hope. In the past, Nicole has worked as a MSW Intern for The Salvation Army ARC, OC Dream Center and Discovery Mood and Anxiety Program. Her time outside of ‘work' is enveloped in full-time ministry, where she gets to stand in faith with men and women for God's love for them to become their reality.
With over a decade of experience working in the field of recovery, Pooya is responsible for all revenue cycle functions in support of the company mission, vision, and goals. She has been the director of billing & collections and has a vast knowledge of insurance rules and regulations within major payers.
She loves to be able to give back in a way that helps and supports the families she works with.
Job Titles:
- Operations Manager
- Operations Manager / Operations
With over 8 years of experience in the addiction treatment industry, Ryan's day-to-day responsibilities include logistics, staffing, coordinating doctor's appointments, managing medications, supervising house managers, ordering supplies, and overseeing compliance and safety. However, it is seeing broken men go on to lead productive sober lives and rebuild damaged relationships that Ryan finds most rewarding about being an operations manager at Covenant Hills.
Deeply involved in recovery over the years, Ryan has seen many roles, including being an owner/operator of sober living and detox facility. Perhaps the most important role, however, is in working a program of recovery himself. It is from this foundation that Ryan can share his experience, strength, and hope to those that are struggling.
Job Titles:
- Chief Operating Officer
- Vice President
Susan Sloan-Velez has worked in the treatment industry for over 20 years, serving in various administrative and management capacities. Mrs. Sloan-Velez joined Covenant Hills in 2005 as Director of Administration, where she was responsible for credentialing and licensing of all of Covenant Hills' treatment programs, as well as securing and managing contracts with commercial insurance carriers. Additionally, she was in charge of managing utilization review, third-party billing and Human Resources.
In 2018, Mrs. Sloan-Velez was promoted to Chief Operating Officer of the Company and elected as Senior Vice-President. In her current role she is responsible for managing all of clinical operations of the Company while retaining all of her previous management responsibilities.
Susan's recovery journey and renewed faith of over 22 years fuel her commitment to helping others break the chains of addiction. What drew her to Covenant Hills and has kept her here for over 16 years is the compassion and integrity of the company, its program, and staff who provide clinical, emotional, and spiritual healing to all who come through its doors.
Job Titles:
- Outreach Admissions Coordinator
As the outreach admissions coordinator, Tayler serves as the bridge between our marketing efforts, the community, and our admissions team. Though relatively new to the addiction treatment field, she has worked in a myriad of roles in addiction and mental health treatment including project management, utilization review, admissions, and case management. Beyond that, she has experience working in hospitals and for various insurance providers.
Working in the mental health and substance abuse field has enabled her to cultivate a skill set that makes her as adaptable as possible because working in this field requires one to be able to work quickly and efficiently with so many moving parts.
Tayler currently holds a Bachelor's Degree in Healthcare Administration from Concordia University Irvine and is currently expected to graduate with her Master's in Healthcare Administration in 2022.