Christian counseling works to discover the good longings of our hearts and how God means for us to live.
"I would wholeheartedly recommend CrosRoads
Christian Counseling to all those who are hurting or in crisis. Many of those whom I referred to CrossRoads have called me to tell me of the tremendous help and healing that has occurred in their lives."
Tom Ricks,
Pastor of Green Tree Community Church
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Our Staff
Staff Therapists and Years of Experience
Click a staff member's name to read more.
Directors
Counselors
| Robert Gordon, PhD, LMFT |
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25 years |
| Emeritus Consultant |
| Diane Powell, PhD, LPC |
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23 years |
| Julie Reid, MEd, LPC, CTS |
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18 years |
| Petra Blum, MAC, LPC |
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14 years |
| Lilian Werner, MAC, LPC |
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12 years |
| Peter Maynor, MAC, LPC |
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8 years |
| Christi Brandenstein, MAC, LPC |
|
8 years |
| Margaret Killeen, MAC, MATS |
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8 years |
| Jennifer Vonier, MAC, LPC |
|
5 years |
| Leslie Fisher Bley, MA, LPC |
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5 years |
Counselors in Training
Support Staff
| Jeanne Crivello - Office Manager |
|
12 years |
| Judy Stover - Business Manager |
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1 years |
Directors
Doug Samsel, MA, NCC, LPC
Doug Samsel is a Licensed Professional Counselor in the state of Missouri and Nationally Certified Counselor. Doug has worked with Dr. Gordon for the last 16 years and been the Associate Director of CrossRoads since its inception in 1998. In September of 2003, Doug and Bob traded positions and Doug is now the Executive Director. Doug continues to seek to live out the mission of CrossRoads, "We Were Made To Be More," struggling to live and love well in a beautiful and broken world. His area's of specialization include: sexual abuse, marriage, individuals in broken relationships and children. Doug enjoys living in one of the historic districts of Saint Louis with his wife Carrie and son Kearen doing projects together on their home.
Ashley Lare Watson, MAC, LPC
Ashley Watson is a Licensed Professional Counselor in the state of Missouri. She received her Master of Arts in Counseling from Covenant Theological Seminary in January 2003. As a therapist, Ashley was born and raised at CrossRoads. She has held a number of positions here over the years, including Wounded Heart Coordinator, Intake Coordinator, and Editor of the organization's newsletter, Journey to the CrossRoads. She is delighted to currently serve as CrossRoads' Associate Director. Ashley has worked extensively with individuals and groups dealing with abuse issues and broken relationships. She counts it a tremendous privilege to work with the brave men, women, and teens who walk through her office door. Ashley enjoys living in University City with her husband, Pete, her son, Nathan, and their ridiculous dog, Buddy.
Counselors
Dr. Bob Gordon, Ph.D., LMFT
Dr. Bob Gordon is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in the State of Missouri and a clinical member of the American Association of Marriage and family Therapists. After 14 years of private practice, he was asked by the Board of Central Christian Counseling Center to join them as Executive Director in June of 1998. He along with Doug Samsel, Associate Director, created CrossRoads Christian Counseling. Dr. Gordon's passion to press the truth of the gospel into broken hearts has become the energy and drive of CrossRoads. Though the center offers a full range of biblically-based counseling services, Dr. Gordon's specialties include: Leadership issues, sexual abuse, individual counseling, marriage therapy and systemic family issues. He resides in Chesterfield with his wife Christine, son Andrew age 14 and daughter Kelsey age 18, 2 cats and 1 dog.
Diane Powell, PhD, LPC
Diane Powell has been employed as a counselor by CrossRoads Christian Counseling Center since its conception in 1998. She is a Licensed Professional Counselor in Missouri. Dr. Powell is also currently a visiting professor in counseling at Covenant Theological Seminary.
Diane has been practicing counseling since 1983 and earned her PhD in Marital and Family Therapy from St. Louis University in 1992. Prior to counseling, Diane and her husband Gary served as full time campus ministers for 6 years with Campus Crusade for Christ.
Diane specializes in individual therapy with adults and children, marital and family therapy and has advanced training in abuse recovery and women's issues. She also provides clinical supervision and training for counselor licensure.
She is a member of the American Association of Christian Counselors and a clinical member and approved supervisor of the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy as well as a Board Certified Professional Christian Counselor.
Diane has been married for 33 years to Gary and has two children, Bree and John.
Julie Reid, M.Ed, NCC, LPC, CTS
Julie Reid has been employed as a counselor by CrossRoads Christian Counseling Center since its conception in 1998. She is a National Certified Counselor and Licensed Professional Counselor in Missouri. Since June of 2004 she has been a Certified Trauma Specialist through the Association of Traumatic Stress Specialists. She was a counselor at Central Christian Counseling Center from 1994 until CrossRoads was formed in 1998. Previously she received supervision and worked as a therapist with Mr. Mike Miller, LPC at Christian Family Guidance Center, Dr. Paul Wang and Associates, and Dr. John Forhetz from Christian Counseling and Psychological Services. Julia obtained her Masters in Counseling from the University of Missouri - St. Louis in 1990.
Julie's specialty areas include individual mental and emotional health counseling, especially in the areas of anxiety, grief and trauma. She has had advanced training connected with the issue of sexual abuse and rape, crises intervention, and traumatic loss. She also works with premarital, marital and family issues.
She is a member of the American Association of Christian Counselors and the Association of Traumatic Stress Specialists.
Julie lives with her husband, Marvin, and has 4 adult children and 5 young grandchildren.
Petra S. Blum, MA, NCC, LPC
Petra is a Licensed Professional Counselor, with 13 years experience providing individual, couples, and family therapy. She came to Crossroads Christian Counseling after having provided individual, group and family therapy for 11 years for children, adolescents, and adults who have experienced childhood sexual abuse and other forms of interpersonal trauma and grief.
Petra's clinical interests include emotion-focused therapy, women's issues, sexual abuse and sexual brokenness, grief, depression and anxiety, and expressive therapies (narrative, art).
Petra's specialties and experience include relational trauma, grief, depression and anxiety, sexual development and sexual brokenness, childhood trauma, art and expressive therapies, and parenting for healthy spiritual and emotional development. She enjoys teaching, training, and writing on clinical and theological issues.
Lilian Werner, MAC, LPC
Lilian Werner has a background in secondary education and received her Master of Arts in Counseling from Covenant Seminary in 1998. She has been employed at CrossRoads for 12 years, first as a CIT, and now as a Licensed Professional Counselor. She works predominately with adolescents, women and families with issues of eating disorders and related concerns, abuse and co-dependency. She has received advanced training in the areas of sexual abuse and eating disorders.
Lilian lives with her husband Brad, children Inna (15) and Ivan (9 months), 1 dog and several cats. They are in the process of planting an urban church in St. Louis.
Peter Maynor, MAC, LPC
Senior Therapist Peter Maynor works with individuals and couples to bring about restoration and healing through a process of interpersonal therapy. With continual encouragement and supportive empathy, Peter draws out the deeper concerns, longings, and fears in his client's heart in order to bring the dark things into the light. Peter enjoys working with individuals struggling with relational and spiritual matters, depression, addiction, grief, abuse, sexuality, or mental illness. He has also lead all the Men's Wounded Heart groups at Crossroads for the past eight years, gaining tremendous experience working with those that have been harmed by abuse. He has over six years of experience in the counseling field and has been mentored by some of the best therapists in St Louis. He has several years experience working with persons struggling with chronic mental illness including schizophrenia and Bi-Polar disorder. Peter received his Masters in Counseling from Covenant Theological Seminary after studying philosophy as an undergraduate.
Peter lives in the Central West End with his wife and two children. He is an elder at Grace and Peace Fellowship Church, P.C.A. God has used several critical events in Peter's life to shape his faith and his calling, including the deaths of two of his brothers. He offers the counsel of a wounded healer to those that sit with him in the counseling office.
Christi Brandenstein, MAC, LPC
Biographical information on Christi will be added soon.
Magaret Killeen, MAC, MATS
Margaret Killeen returns to St. Louis after 8 years in Boston and Madison, WI. She served the church with her husband, an ordained PCA minister, and as a therapist through the Boston Christian Counseling Center and the Center for Christian Counseling. She received her MA in Counseling and her MA in Theological Studies from Covenant Theological Seminary.
Margaret’s interests include helping those struggling with depression and anxiety, traumatic life experiences, difficult marriages, and spousal addictions to sex and pornography. Her experience growing up overseas gives her a particular desire to work with second‐generation Americans and third‐culture issues. She also has an interest in working with women and men in ministry, and those wrestling with, or harmed by the church.
Margaret lives with her husband, her three children and a multitude of pets. She loves reading, movies, hiking and writing.
Jennifer Vonier, MAC, LPC
Jennifer Vonier received her Master of Arts in Counseling from Covenant Theological Seminary and joined the staff of CrossRoads in 2005. She is a Licensed Professional Counselor in the state of Missouri.
Jennifer's clients include couples, individuals and families wrestling with broken relationships. She has a special interest in women's issues and has received advanced training in the area of abuse recovery. Other areas of focus include work with adult children and their parents, marital difficulties, boundaries and codependency, anxiety and depression.
In addition to her individual and couples work, Jennifer enjoys coordinating and leading CrossRoads Wounded Heart Groups for survivors of sexual, physical and/or emotional abuse. Prior to her work as a therapist, Jennifer had the privilege of serving for 7 years in women's ministry, walking alongside hurting women in their journey toward hope.
Leslie Fisher Bley, MA, LPC
Leslie Bley joined CrossRoads Christian Counseling in 2007, and has been practicing counseling in St. Louis for over 5 years. She received her Master of Arts in Counseling from Covenant Theological Seminary in 2004. Her experience includes working with groups, couples, and individuals. Leslie specializes in the areas of sexuality (including marital sexuality, same-sex attraction, and sexual addiction and recovery), grief and depression, and issues specific to women. As an adult child of divorce, she also has both experience in and a heart for those in divorce recovery. Leslie’s professional background includes student ministry and corporate recruiting. Therefore, she offers a career coaching service to newly graduating counseling students as well.
Counselors in Training
Tomoko Kabeya, MAC, PLPC
Tomoko Kabeya received her Master or Arts in Counseling from Covenant Theological Seminary in 2006. She is currently working towards state licensure under the supervision of Doug Samsel, MA, NCC, LPC.
Tomoko grew up in Japan and came to St. Louis in 2000. Through her experiences, she has a strong desire to work with those alienated from their home, country, culture, others, and themselves. She is a bi-lingual counselor (Japanese) and works with both individuals and couples.
Susan Wolfe, MAC, PLPC
Susan Wolfe joined Crossroads Christian Counseling in May 2007 as an intern and received her Master of Arts in Counseling from Covenant Theological Seminary in 2008. She is a Provisionally Licensed Professional Counselor in the state of Missouri under the supervision of Senior Therapist, Peter Maynor.
Susan’s areas of interest and experience include depression, anxiety, broken and strained relationships, divorce recovery and abuse (sexual, physical and emotional). She also draws experience professionally from facilitating Wounded Heart Groups for survivors of sexual abuse, physical abuse, and/or emotional abuse and currently serves as the Wounded Heart Coordinator for Self-Led groups. Susan is a member of the American Association of Christian Counselors.
God continues to stretch and grow Susan in her experience with blended families, effects of divorce, and raising three teenage kids in today’s world. She is a member of First Evangelical Free Church and resides in St. Louis with her husband, Andy, and their three children, Drew, Caroline, and Dawson.
Steve Dalby, M.Div., MAC
Biographical information on Steve will be added soon.
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