Jessi Irvin Joins Aspiro Group

For Immediate Release
March 24, 2009


(Mount Pleasant, UT) Aspiro is pleased to announce the hiring of Jessi Irvin as a therapist in our unique Wilderness Adventure Therapy (WAT) model.

Our management team is thrilled to have the opportunity to work with such a respected, outstanding therapist, said Brian Church, Vice President, Business Development.

"Jessi will play a major role in our continued growth as a program, and is a wonderful addition to our clinical team."

"I felt very connected to and welcomed by everyone I met there," said Irvin. "I love the adventure component as a means for challenging kids to look at their patterns, while giving them an opportunity to increase their confidence and push themselves outside of their comfort zone. I'm excited to interact w/ students and share in their adventures. I like the structure, coupled with the flexibility in my role as a therapist to coordinate a student's program based on their needs and those of their family. I'm also excited about the strong parent involvement, which I've so come to appreciate in my work at Three Rivers Montana. It's important to have the support of parents while their kids are away and also necessary, I believe, to have them involved in doing their own work and work as a family if there is to be true, lasting change."

"I worked at Three Rivers for nearly three years and have loved working with kids and families in the wilderness," said Irvin. "I feel very comfortable in that role, along with the expectations related to working with consultants and attending conferences. I enjoy the opportunity to network and meet people face-to-face, since so much work is done over the phone. There's an intimacy that comes with this work we do in this industry that really fits for me. I've also maintained a very small private practice while at Three Rivers and have enjoyed working with adolescents and young adults in transition. Prior to working at Three Rivers, I was a therapist at a few local, community-based counseling clinics. While there, I worked with a broad spectrum of clients, including families, adults, couples, young children and adolescents facing a wide variety of challenges."

Jessi will be moving to Utah, from Montana, over the next month, and will begin taking on a case load the first week of May. Please join us in welcoming Jessi to Aspiro.

Business Office: (801) 349-2740 | Toll Free - 888-266-5136

The Fourth Shave of Christmas

If you think going to the Christmas party produced a lot of strange looks, you can only imagine what it was like going to church yesterday. With only four shaves left it will only get better. News of Justin’s holiday tradition is spreading. Please feel free to post both supportive comments for me or mocking comments for Justin.

Spotlight: Clinical Director, Justin Robinson

Justin has been with Aspiro since its inception in April of 2006. Justin brought with him a wealth of experience.

His undergraduate degree is in Recreation Therapy and his Masters Degree is in Social Work. Justin has been working with adolescents for about twelve years in a variety of settings and capacities.

Justin started in the field as a live-in counselor at a Therapeutic Boarding School.

Shortly after getting married Justin and his wife spent a year working as home parents in a group home. He then worked as a Recreation Therapist in an RTC.

From there, Justin spent a short time leading psycho-educational groups in the Utah state prison. While working at the prison he was asked to develop a Recreation Therapy program to work in conjunction with the existing psycho-educational classes.

Justin has also facilitated adolescent outpatient therapy, but the majority of his experience as a therapist has been working with adolescents and their families in a Therapeutic Boarding School.

With his background in recreation, Justin has always been drawn to experiential learning.

“While working in residential treatment, I found I could accomplish more with a student in a week in the outdoors than I could in months of therapy in the office. When I saw what Aspiro was doing, I jumped at the opportunity to be involved,” said Robinson

Justin grew up in Utah, however, he has also lived in Hawaii, Alaska, and Puerto Rico. Justin is married and has four kids. In addition to raising four children, Justin and his wife have also (until recently) been temporary foster parents to adolescents transitioning from treatment. In total they have had over a dozen teens living with their family.

Director of Clinical Services - Justin Robinson, LCSW

Spotlight: Aspiro Admissions Director - Josh Watson, LCSW

The unique vision of Aspiro convinced Josh that he needed to make a move from the Southeast all the way to the beautiful state of Utah. After spending several months learning about Aspiro’s innovative approach through high-impact adventure therapy, Josh and his family decided to join the Aspiro team back in October of 2006.

“After doing my research it wasn’t hard for Brian Church, a former colleague of mine, and now the Director of Business Development for Aspiro, to convince me that Aspiro would be the pioneer for a new and more effective outdoor therapy model,” said Watson.

Josh has a Master’s Degree in Social Work and over seven years of experience working with adolescents and families in crisis.

Over the past several years he has been a therapist and an admissions officer for a therapeutic boarding school.

As the Director of Admissions, Josh will be working diligently with consultants and families on assessment, communication, and quality control. His clinical experience is rich with diversity and he has a genuine desire to help others.

“Aspiro has managed to exceed all of my expectations. It is a breath of fresh air for me to see students smiling as they achieve success on a very high level. I am privileged to work with such a dynamic team that is truly committed, authentic, and unified in their approach.”

Please feel free to contact Josh directly to learn more about his personal journey, and to find out more details about Aspiro.

jwatson@aspiroadventure.com.

Admissions: 888-266-5136 www.wherehealingstarts.com