DR. ED ASHBY, LHMC

Dr. Ed Ashby is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor and co-owner of Family Legacy Counseling along with his wife Pat. In addition to serving as an individual, marriage and family counselor for the past twenty years, Dr. Ashby has been an ordained minister for over 30 years, pastoring churches in California, Ohio, and Iowa. Ed earned his Doctor of Ministry and Master of Divinity degrees from Fuller Theological Seminary in California, his Masters in Counseling Psychology from Ashland Theological Seminary in Ohio, and a Masters in Contemporary Ministry from Azusa Pacific University. Dr. Ashby addresses a wide variety of issues in counseling, including depression, anxiety, anger management, addictive behaviors, abuse recovery, post traumatic stress disorder, relational conflict, communication skills, leadership development, and spiritual formation. A significant portion of Ed’s work is helping clients whose self-esteem has been damaged by abuse (physical, emotional or sexual) and the resulting difficulties that emerge in their adult lives. In addition to counseling, Ed works with a wide range of issues within the church, as well as the specific stresses relating to ministerial families. Ed’s work as a pastor, and serving on local and regional boards, enable him to speak and coach with insight, passion and empathy.

Ed has been married to Pat for over 35 years, and they have three children and five grandchildren to date. A lover of the outdoors, Ed enjoys bow hunting and fishing, entertaining friends at their home in the country, riding his motorcycle, sprint triathlons, and most especially his children and grandchildren.

PATRICIA ASHBY, LISW

Patricia Ashby is a Licensed Independent Social Worker (LISW) with over 20 years of counseling experience with individuals, couples and families. She is also the owner/director of Workplace and Family Life Services, an employee assistance program providing counseling and referral services for the past eighteen years for an Iowa company of 2000 employees. Pat earned her Master’s degree in Social Work with a clinical emphasis in Family Therapy from the University of Iowa. She also studied at Azusa Pacific University in southern California, earning a major in Biblical studies. Areas of clinical focus for Pat include anxiety, depression, grief, codependency/boundaries, marital health, relational conflict, divorce recovery, and women’s adjustments in their life stages. Her practice models include Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (becoming aware of self-talk and learning how thoughts and feelings impact behavior) and Family Systems Therapy (learning to recognize messages and themes received growing up and how they impact our lives today). For clients who are Christian faith based in their life perspective, Pat enjoys integrating faith and scripture in counseling conversations, which provides a unique setting for healing and restoration of hope. In the counseling relationship, Pat offers warmth, humor, and practical ideas for growth.

Pat is married to Dr. Ed Ashby, co-owner of Family Legacy, and they have three children and five grandchildren. Going to the gym regularly allows her to indulge in chocolate every day, and Pat’s dream would be to travel anywhere, anytime, as long as the destination included sunshine.

SARAH MORRIS, LMSW

Sarah Morris is a Licensed Master Social Worker (LMSW). She received her Master’s of Social Work (with a concentration in Family Therapy) from University of Iowa, and her Bachelor’s in Social Work (with a minor in Biblical Studies) from Abilene Christian University. She has had the opportunity to work in a variety of settings, including medical, residential, school and clinical settings, working with individuals, adolescents, and families. Her areas of focus are anxiety, depression, trauma, grief and loss, substance abuse, and spiritual growth. Sarah utilizes traditional talk therapy, along with art and music therapy techniques. Sarah actively consults the Bible for wisdom and understanding of human design, and has found that its collective truths are often mirrored and affirmed in modern psychological research. Sarah’s personal and professional philosophical belief is that God created individuals with very specific dreams, talents, and wiring, and that when we live from an understanding of this, we will find freedom offered by nothing else. Sarah seeks to understand and respect clients individualistically, and in no way expects clients to hold her same beliefs. She asserts that clients are in the driver’s seat of their recovery, and that it’s her role as the therapist to provide compassion and unconditional acceptance. Sarah takes a holistic approach to therapy, addressing the mind, body, spirit, social network, and emotions as equally integral components that profoundly affect one another.

DEB GIPPLE, LMHC

Deb is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor and has been in private practice in the area of child/adolescent therapy for over 20 years. She has a Master’s Degree in child counseling from the University of Northern Iowa and a Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary/Special Education from UNI. Her clinical areas of focus for children and adolescents include, but are not limited to, ADHD/ADD, anxiety disorders, Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, mood disorders, adjustment disorders, oppositional defiant disorder, physical/sexual abuse, loss/grief, divorce recovery, blended family issues, and parent-child relationship issues. Deb taught emotionally disturbed/behaviorally disordered children for eight years in the Des Moines Public Schools and has served as a Guidance Counselor in both public and Christian school settings. She also taught in a missionary school in Taichung, Taiwan, has been published in the Iowa Journal of Counseling and speaks at churches and schools in the local area on topics pertaining to parenting and child/teen issues. Deb is a member of the American Association of Christian Counselors, has been married for 25 years and has three grown sons.

DR. JOEL ASHBY, PSY. D.

Dr. Joel Ashby is a licensed psychologist and health service provider for the State of Iowa. He earned his doctorate in clinical psychology with an emphasis in Family Psychology from Azusa Pacific University. Family Psychology is a specialty area that focuses on relationships in couples, families, and groups and the broader contexts in which those relationships exist. This area of training enables Dr. Ashby to be particularly effective in understanding and working with individuals and the larger systems with which they are a part.

Additionally, Dr. Ashby is trained in the treatment of specific mood and anxiety disorders, as well as more persistent mental illness such as bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. He also conducts personality assessment and neuropsychological screening. His training in diverse settings, as well his post-doctoral residency at Philhaven psychiatric hospital, have prepared him to work effectively with issues that confront the individual and the family. He has been providing psychological services since 2004.

Joel’s areas of interest include integration of client values and faith in psychotherapy, anger regulation, group therapy, and personality assessment. He believes in promoting wholeness in the lives of those he treats and in his own life. Joel’s personal interests include fly fishing, rock climbing, photography, and spending time with his family. Dr. Ashby is a member of the American Psychological Association and the division of Family Psychology.

NANCY SCHORNACK, LMHC

Nancy has been working in the field of counseling for over 25 years. She received her M.A. in Biblical Counseling from Colorado Christian University in Denver, CO, and is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor in the State of Iowa. Her past clinical experiences include work in residential treatment and in an agency setting providing an array of services to children and families. Since 1995 she has been in private practice with Family Legacy, focusing her clinical work towards teens, women, and marriages. She has extensive experience in the areas of anxiety, depression, trauma and abuse recovery, grief and loss, women with ADD, addictions, eating disorders, marriage counseling, and divorce recovery, and participates in ongoing clinical training in all of these areas.

Nancy draws upon a Biblical understanding of change, men and women, and relationships as a foundation for her counseling, and is passionate about spiritual formation. Her therapeutic approach is also informed by Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) and Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT). Nancy enjoys facilitating groups and retreats for women and couples that enhance relationships with God and others.

Nancy would say her greatest joy is being wife to her husband of 26 years, and mom to her two grown sons. She also loves books, movies, music, traveling, sports, and friends!

DIANNE JONES, MA

Dianne Jones is a licensed mental health counselor. She earned a master’s degree in counseling from West Texas A & M University and holds an undergraduate degree in Family Finance from Texas Tech University. Dianne provides both marital counseling and counseling for individual, and her clinical focus includes working with depression, anxiety, relationship issues, trauma and life transitions. Dianne specializes in helping clients embrace their authenticity and encourages clients to create lives that reflect their values and passions, and often using the Enneagram with her clients as a tool for deeper self-understanding and personal growth for the individual. Dianne is in the process of being certified as a spiritual director.

DR. DAVID KAPTAIN

Dr. Kaptain has been with Family Legacy Counseling since 1999, providing addiction-related individual, marital and family therapy for both adolescents and adults. He is a certified alcohol and drug counselor in the State of Iowa and is also licensed as a marriage and family therapist. David has a Ph.D. in Human Development and Family Studies from Iowa State University. His over 20 years of experience in the mental health and addiction fields includes work as a psychiatric technician, group home house manager, child and adolescent senior therapist, and Employee Assistance Program supervisor. He currently serves as program manager at Powell Chemical Dependency Center (CDC) in Des Moines. David also provides community service as a board member on the Iowa Board of Certification, and as Powell CDC’s representative at the Iowa Behavioral Health Association. David recently was appointed by the Governor’s office to the Board of Behavioral Science. Current interests of David’s include running, biking, family time, spending time in the mountains, fishing and working outdoors.

Michelle Coon, MA

Michelle Coon is a Master of Social Work candidate, with a Family Therapy emphasis, from the University of Iowa. She holds an undergraduate degree from the University of St. Catherine’s in St. Paul, Minnesota. Michelle has over 10 years of experience working with families in the areas of parenting special needs children, adolescent challenges, and maternal and postpartum depression. Areas of specialized training include EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing), trauma, family mediation, and depression. Currently, Michelle is focusing her clinical work with individuals, couples, adolescents and families on a variety of issues, including personal growth and change, depression, attachment, anxiety, infertility, and issues pertinent to women. A passion of Michelle’s is to assist clients in accessing their own personal strengths and beliefs in order to recognize their potential, improve relationships, and practice better self-care. If clients express a desire to address their concerns from a spiritual perspective, Michelle will work with them within a biblical world view and understanding. Michelle has been active in the church in a variety of areas and is currently a Sunday School teacher in her local church. She has been married for over 20 years and has two daughters. As an MSW candidate through April 2012, Michelle’s fee structure for therapy is private pay at the rate of $30 per clinical hour, with no insurance required.