Meet Our Team

Physician Assistant

Tyler Scicchitano, MSPAS, PA-C

Tyler began his work in the field of addiction treatment 7 years ago at a halfway house for men located in Edwardsville, PA. In 2014 he enrolled at King’s college where he earned his BS in Medical Sciences and eventually a Master of Science in Physician Assistant Studies in 2019. He became certified as a Physician Assistant and began his career in Internal Medicine in Scranton Pennsylvania. After one year of Internal Medicine Tyler joined our team to begin his practice in Addiction Medicine. He was drawn to Silver Pines by our client-centered focus and team approach. Tyler is enthusiastic about providing medical care and education to our clients to enable and empower them to build a foundation for a meaningful, positive and fruitful life.

Physician Assistant

Jessica Schauer PA-C, MA

Jes is a certified physician assistant that graduated from the Pennsylvania College of Technology with a bachelor’s degree in physician assistant studies in 2014. Ever since she became a PA-C, she has worked clinically seeing patients in addiction medicine and family medicine. In 2019, she started working at Silverpines and later Steps to Recovery in 2020.  At both locations, she examines and manages patients who battle substance abuse disorders and co-occurring disease processes. She treats individuals in all levels of care, which includes detox, residential, PHP and IOP. Jes graduated with a Master of Arts for Medical Sciences in Biopsychology from Liberty University in 2022. After graduation, she created an addiction-based neuroscience lecture series, that she presents to both locations. She is passionate about educating people regarding addiction to better serve them during their recovery processes.  

Physician Assistant

Jessica Hoffman MSPAS, PA-C

Jessica is a physician assistant who has worked in various fields of medicine. She obtained a Bachelor’s Degree in Biology and a Master’s Degree in Physician Assistant studies at Arcadia University. After years of clinical practice, she took some time away as a stay-at-home mother to take care of her three children, including being an advocate for her son who is on the autism spectrum. Returning to clinical practice after navigating the healthcare system for a child with special needs helped Jessica gain a perspective and approach to patient care which is unique. Her focus on compassionate care fits well with Step to Recovery’s client-centered approach. In her spare time, Jessica enjoys spending time with her family, going to the gym, reading, and listening to her vinyl album collection.

Psychiatrist

Dr. Newman, MD

Dr. Newman is a graduate of Temple University Medical School. She did her residency in psychiatry at Hahnemann University. Her undergraduate training was at The University of Rochester where she obtained a B.A. in Music. Following this, she spent some time in New York City working in the musical theatre.

Her areas of concentration in psychiatry have included substance use disorders, mood and anxiety disorders, and other process addictive disorders. She has worked in long-term recovery programs, including mother-child programs substance use recovery treatment programs in Philadelphia, and was in private practice previously.

Dr. Newman believes that evidence-based, relational, and holistic approaches are the guide to optimizing care. She seeks out team-based treatment settings and continues to be enthusiastic about working with individuals on their journey and the advances in our field.

Lead Clinician

Erin Carey, MS

Erin is a Clinician at Steps to Recovery, focusing primarily in StR’s Phase II Outpatient Program. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice from Desales University and received her Master’s degree in Clinical and Counseling Psychology, specializing in Addiction Treatment at Chestnut Hill College. Erin has worked in the field since 2008 at various levels of care and specializes in treating the high-risk/chronic relapse population as well as young adults. Erin believes in both an eclectic and holistic approach to treatment; treating the individual as a whole. Erin strives to individualize treatment, instill hope and utilizes CBT, motivational interviewing and strength-based modalities within the treatment process. Erin is compassionate and her passion for the field fuels her work.

Primary Therapist

Jesus Carmona

Jesus Carmona started at Silver Pines as a Care Coordinator in 2021. After building a strong foundation at Silver Pines, Jesus re-enrolled in school to further his education and advance in the addiction field, specifically with Silver Pines. Jesus transitioned from a Care Coordinator to Counselor’s Assistant, into his current role as a Clinician. Jesus is working towards obtaining his Bachelor’s Degree in Human Services with a concentration in substance abuse. Jesus’s passion to help others struggling with addiction derives from being a person in long term recovery. Jesus prides himself in helping clients feel comfortable and safe enough to be themselves and helping clients find love for themselves again. In his free time, Jesus enjoys spending time with his family, taking walks with his dog, watching & playing basketball, and designing clothes.

Primary Therapist

Pate DuBois MS, AMFT

Pate DuBois joined the team of Silver Pines Treatment Center in May of 2023. Pate had been living in California for the past 10+ years. Pate moved to Pennsylvania in December of 2021. Pate obtained a Bachelor’s of Science Degree in Psychology at the University of Valley Forge in 2010. Pate obtained a Master’s of Science Degree in Counseling, specializing in Marriage and Family Therapy at California State University, Sacramento in 2015. Pate approaches life with curiosity and wonder—often responsible, a serious-minded pragmatist, and thinks systemically. Pate in particular enjoys assisting in the process of improving the welfare of people and making things better for the greater good. Pate sees an abundance of situations to improve and accepts the dynamic chaos of life as it is. Pate has a strong sense of justice and fairness and is willing to tolerate and understand the diversity of humanity to further progress for the greater good. Pate achieves an ideal work-life balance, understands how to relax, and the importance of self-care. Pate often incorporates and utilizes therapeutic techniques and interventions from REBT, CBT, ACT, DBT, motivational interviewing, and narrative therapy.

Family Program Clinician

Marianna “Mace” Cooper-Drew, MA, LPC

Mace is a Licensed Professional Counselor with over twenty years experience in community treatment services. She has a passion for helping people and is committed to individuals and families impacted by trauma, loss, substance abuse, and neglect. As Vice President of Behavioral Health Services for one the largest providers in Southeastern PA. she has the opportunity to provide consultation and supervision to therapists, clinical administrators, and interns. Mace also maintains a private practice in Bucks County working with individuals and couples using Emotionally Focused Therapy. A certified anger management specialist, she is also trained in TF-CBT (Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy; ESFT (Eco-Systemic Family Therapy); the ARC (Attachment, Regulation, Competency) Model. Mace’s work at StR includes developing and leading our Family Program, Anger Management Curriculum, and Trauma informed Resiliency groups. Always passionate about ensuring quality clinical care, promoting self-motivation, and learning, she is left believing that “sometimes the bravest and most important thing you can do is just show up.” (Brene Brown).

Primary Therapist

Alisha Barnes MS, LPC, CCTP

Alisha is a primary therapist at Silver Pines Treatment Center. She holds a BA in Psychology from West Chester University and a Masters in Clinical/Counseling Psychology from Chestnut Hill College. As a primary therapist, Alisha is responsible for providing individual and group therapy, as well as insuring case management needs are coordinated in the treatment setting. Alisha presents with a focus in trauma-informed care and is continuing training in furthering this skill set. Alisha began working in Human Services at various clinical settings, providing treatment to young children presenting with behavioral difficulties as a result of both traumatic experiences and in-utero substance dependence. Services focused on offering assistance to both the children themselves, as well as legal guardians, in order to begin the healing process. Over the last 3 years, Alisha has focused on providing services to adults with substance use disorders, as well as other related co-occurring disorders. Her fundamental philosophy is in providing client-centered treatment that attends to the unique needs of each presenting individual. Alisha aims to build a therapeutic alliance, based upon providing a safe and trusting environment that allows for further exploration. As noted by Shannon L. Alder, ” “Courage doesn’t happen when you have all the answers. It happens when you are ready to face the questions you have been avoiding your whole life.”

Primary Therapist

Tiffany Kennedy, BA

Prior to working at Silver Pines, Tiffany worked at White Deer Run and Caron Treatment Centers bringing 12 years of experience to the Silver Pines Treatment Team. She worked in various roles including Student Assistance Program as well as development and running of Family Treatment Programs. Tiffany’s numerous professional experiences have instilled in her a love of working with clients with Substance Use Disorder as well as their families. Tiffany brings a unique family perspective to our team. Tiffany has also developed a keen understanding of how to best address the unique challenges and barriers of clients with Substance Use Disorder. Tiffany joined Silver Pines in March of 2020. She has brought with her extensive experience of working on multidisciplinary teams. Tiffany came to Silver Pines because of our client-centered focus, team mentality and mission to provide individualized care to our clients. Tiffany lives out our values of authenticity and integrity and is an integral part of our team. While at Silver Pines, Tiffany has engrained herself in the program and participates in such things as the APA Committee, Culture Committee along with various department meetings. In her free time Tiffany enjoys spending time with her family and friends.

Primary Therapist

Jennifer Fisher, BS

Jennifer Fisher started at Silver Pines as a Lead Care Coordinator in 2018 decided to go back to school in 2019. Worked full time, attended school full time, and graduated in 2021 with a Bachelor’s in Rehabilitation and Human Services. Jennifer left Silver Pines to further her career as a Program Manager for young adults in an Independent Living setting. Jennifer’s passion has always been to help those in recovery due to battling with addiction. She returned to Silver Pines to be a clinician to fulfill her desire and passion. Jennifer herself has been in long term recovery. She is currently pursuing her master’s in social work at Marywood University.

Primary Therapist

Zachary Houser, BSW

Zachary is a primary therapist at Silver Pines Treatment Center. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work from Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania. Prior to his work at Silver Pines, Zachary has worked as a clinician at Firetree Ltd. and in various case management and therapeutic roles at other agencies including Access Services, and Merakey. Zachary brings a total of 12 years of experience to his role in Silver Pines treatment team. His varied work experiences have instilled in him a desire to help people in need, a respect for granting people’s autonomy, and the practice wisdom to help people make the changes that they want to make. Zachary joined Silver Pines in January of 2023. He has brought along skills of working with various populations including both adults and children, intellectually disabled individuals, autistic individuals, people with mental health diagnoses, as well as people struggling with substance use disorders. Zachary came to Silver Pines because of our client-centered approach, our mission of individualized care, and our willingness to go above and beyond for every one of our clients. When not working, Zachary serves as a volunteer staff member of a local non-profit live-action role-playing organization, Wyvern Rising, and plays bass guitar and ukulele in two bands. He also enjoys spending time with his family and 3 dogs.

Holistic Care Counselor

Kate Blonsky, BS

Kate facilitates Holistic Care Counseling at Silver Pines Treatment center. Kate’s Holistic approach is tailored to the individuality of each person and their unique journey & healing process. Kate’s education includes a BA degree in Psychology & Philosophy at Lock Haven University. Kate is a Reiki Master Teacher and practitioner for over 17 years & trained through schools of the Usui lineage. Kate’s trainings also include Mindfulness teachings through Dharma mentorship of the Thich Nhat Hanh community and Shamanic, Native American teachings within Wellbriety, as well as Interfaith Ministry ordination. Kate implements within group therapy and individual sessions, healing methods of Aromatherapy, Guided Imagery, Drumming & Sound healing, Meditative processes, Reiki & Full Body Reflexology techniques. For Kate, it’s important that each person feels free, in the treatment experience, to explore one’s affinities, interests and what truly brings one to align with happiness and peace within. Also, that each person who would like to discover Spiritual deepening and flourishing–that a Path be opened and lead to well-being, personal freedom from affliction and addiction and find ongoing, Life-Purpose fulfillment.

Art Therapist

Deidre Grieder, MAAT

Deidre is a kind, compassionate, and dedicated professional who received her Master of Arts in Art therapy from Cedar Crest College in Allentown Pennsylvania. She holds a minor in psychology and is certified in Trauma Art Narrative Therapy. Deidre has been a team member at Silver Pines Treatment Center for two years. She believes that getting to know each individual, their strengths, and perceived weaknesses as a person is key to the therapeutic relationship. She treats each person with respect, patience, and loving kindness throughout their treatment process. Deidre utilizes both art as therapy and art psychotherapy approaches. As an art therapist Deidre acts as a guide alongside the patient through the art process. She facilitates both group and individual sessions, using art media, the creative process, and the resulting artwork to explore individuals feelings, reconcile emotional conflicts, encourage self-awareness, introduce the art making process as a way to recognize and manage behavior and addictions, develop social skills, improve reality orientation, reduce anxiety, and increase self-esteem.

Care Manager

Noelle Parisi

Noelle Parisi is a Care Manager at Silver Pines Treatment Center. Noelle’s job includes helping clients when they first arrive in treatment for their intake, as well as, helping them once they are ready to transition to another program or return home. She also helps clients to secure their jobs, legal matters, and anything else that she can assist them with to make their stay here less stressful. Noelle is currently working towards an associate degree in Psychology. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her children and going on vacation. Noelle hopes to become a Primary Therapist when she completes school.

Care Manager

Danielle Swolensky

Danielle Swolensky is the Care Manager at Silver Pines Treatment Center. Danielle’s job includes helping clients when they first arrive to treatment for their intake, as well as helping them once they are ready to transition to another program or return back home. She also will help clients with securing their jobs, legal matters, and anything else that she can assist with in order to make their stay here less stressful. Danielle is also a trained SMART Recovery facilitator. In her free time, Danielle enjoys spending time with her daughter, hiking, being outdoors, and traveling to new places near and far.

Clinician

Megan Toroni, LPC

Meg began her career in the Drug & Alcohol field in 2011 after graduating with a BA in
psychology from Shippensburg University. She has worked a variety of different positions at a residential rehab and detox center until 2015 when she received my master’s from La Salle in Professional Clinical Counseling. After nearly 10 years in the D&A field, Meg decided to transition to family-based services working with high-risk adolescents. She was able to enhance her family therapy skills. She found that it was not the right fit for her because she missed the dynamics of the D&A field. She was able to use what she learned to apply it to her current work at STR.

Meg thinks family/marriage counseling is a crucial asset in strengthening sobriety since
relationships most often are strained. Working with the individual and their support system
is a large component of Adlerian Therapy. This is the therapeutic style she tends to practice in session because there is great focus on perception, trauma, family roles, and goal directed behavior. She believes ultimately the goal is to re-establish a new healthy sense of self through recovery. Early recovery is difficult but how STR designs our program to coordinate with housing and accommodate individual needs is unique. She believes it provides stability and safety with genuine staff that care.

Meg is very proud to be a member of this clinical team. So other than feeling passionate
about the power of recovery, Meg is devoted to her family – a husband and three ginger
babies. Meg’s major interests are live music, scary movies, gardening, Egyptian culture, and Sixers basketball. During the winter, you will find her refereeing youth basketball.

Clinician

Joe Beck, CADC

Joe Beck is a Clinician at Steps to Recovery who has worked in the field of Substance Abuse Treatment since 2014. Joe is a Certified Drug and Alcohol Counselor (CADC) in Pennsylvania and holds a Bachelor’s degree in Rehabilitation and Human Services from Penn State. He is also a 200-Hour Registered Yoga and Meditation Teacher. Currently, Joe is pursuing his Master’s degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling at Capella University. Fueled by his passion for recovery and wellness, Joe believes in treating the individual through a holistic approach. He strongly believes that his ability to help others comes directly from his own personal work. Utilizing a blend of modalities such as Person-Centered Therapy, Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy, Internal Family Systems (IFS), and Narrative Therapy, Joe believes that all beings have the capacity to heal and recover. In his personal life, he is a devoted partner and father who has a passion for life, movement, and spirituality.

Clinician

Pete Demeester, MS

Pete Demeester is a Master’s level Clinician who has over twenty five years of experience in the mental health and drug and alcohol field. Throughout the years, Pete has worked at a variety of providers and therefore has a strong Clinical background and supervisory experience. Pete has extensive experience in Individual and group counseling, trauma and addictions counseling, Treatment planning, discharge planning and case management. He’s also been trained in crisis prevention (CPI) and management of aggression using the Mandt System. As a clinician, Pete focuses on developing and enhancing skills for clients that include budgeting, after-care planning, goal setting and relapse prevention.

Clinician

Michelle Quinones

Michelle is a Clinician at Steps to Recovery, focusing primarily in the STRIDE/MH program. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology with a minor in Sociology from Widener University and received her Master’s degree in Counseling Psychology from Rosemont College. Michelle has over eight years of experience in the field, providing treatment in various levels of care with a number of different populations. Michelle utilizes Cognitive-Behavioral practices (CBT), specifically focusing on the Socratic Method, as her main goal is to provide awareness and security for one’s core values, principles, and beliefs. Michelle strives to ensure that each client’s care is individualized and meaningful to one’s own needs and grasps strongly on not just what is being communicated, but also what is not being communicated through nonverbal cues. Michelle’s passion to help others continues to be the driving force in her work daily, which has allowed the opportunity for opening trust and communication and ultimately witnessing great successes.

Locations: Bucks County

Clinican

Jennifer Bell

Jennifer Bell is a Clinician at Steps to Recovery. Jennifer attended Delaware Valley University where she received her B.A. in Counseling Psychology and is now working toward her Master’s in social work through Rutgers University. Jennifer’s personal experience with recovery and passion for helping others has been her motivation for working in treatment and continuing her education. Jennifer has worked as a direct support professional, group facilitator, and case manager in this field. She believes there is a path to healing for all those who face challenges and is dedicated to individualizing client care to uncover that path to wellness. Jennifer employs a humanistic approach to treatment that is one of exploration and compassion, using techniques such as motivational interviewing while implementing CBT, and DBT skills practice. In her free time, Jennifer enjoys spending time with family and friends, traveling, and finding binge-worthy television series to watch or a good book to read.

Clinician

Chalain Hart

As someone who has been employed in the profession since 2017, Chalain is
knowledgeable in both the domains of mental health and substance use. Chalain graduated with a Bachelor’s in Science from Central Penn College and is presently pursuing her master’s degree at Rosemont College in Clinical Mental Health Counseling. Chalain believes that everyone should have access to a supportive environment where they may work through their personal challenges. Chalain likes to read, listen to live music, go on hikes with her dog Max, and spend time with her family, especially her three nephews.

Clinician

Zaria Raymond

Zaria works as a Clinician in the Outpatient program at Steps to Recovery. Throughout her college career, she has devoted time to studying the effects of racial microaggressions in a college environment. She has a Master’s in Clinical Psychology and has provided counseling to children and adolescents who have been given a variety of mental health diagnoses. She is interested in looking at family systems to understand each person as a whole and focuses mainly on Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy. Zaria is passionate about helping each person develop their autonomy and confidence so they can successfully navigate the challenges of life. She has experience working with people at different levels of care in the SUD field and is passionate about creating an environment that fosters growth and development. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, parasailing and activities rooted in self-growth and development.

Care Manager

Brenda Walker, BA CFRS

Brenda received her BA in Spanish from the College of Wooster after a year of study abroad at the University of Madrid, Spain. She has experience in sales, international business, teaching, healthcare, and hospice. She was also the Activity Director/Assistant Director of an Adult Day Center where she developed therapeutic activities for and engaged with adults living with varying degrees of cognitive decline and intellectual disabilities.

Brenda entered the Recovery field in 2020 when she became the first grant funded CFRS in the state of Pennsylvania. She has extensive experience as a group leader and is certified as a facilitator for the Trauma Recovery and Empowerment Model (TREM), SMART Recovery, the Invitation To Change Approach (ITC), and as a QPR Gatekeeper Instructor for the prevention of suicide. She is also certified in Mental Health First Aid and Basic Life Support.

Brenda has done extensive outreach with the local homeless population in the Lehigh Valley, providing resources and planting seeds of hope for a better future. She most recently developed a reentry program and provided case management services for individuals being released from Northampton County prison where she ran weekly woman’s empowerment groups.

In her free time, Brenda enjoys listening to music, gardening, crafting, and caring for her pets. She is a horse mom and is part of the therapeutic riding community at Manito Equestrian Center where she enjoys riding and caring for the horses.

Locations: Lehigh Valley

Office Manager

Leah Crouthamel

Leah has held a variety of positions ranging from healthcare, mental health, and finance. Leah graduated from Cedar Crest College in 2015 after 10 years of night school. She has worked as a counselor at Crime Victims Council of the Lehigh Valley as well as a Mental Health / Intensive Case Manager across Lehigh County. She is also an interfaith ordained minister. She believes that equality means “everyone, all the time” and there is always a solution, for every problem. Leah knows first-hand that doing things differently and making changes in ourselves is possibly the hardest thing a human can do. In her free time Leah makes soap, lotions, and lip balms, researches her health and organic living, digs up the garden on weekends, raises bunny rabbits, and does crafts.

Care Manager

Amanda Dea

Amanda Dea is the Care Manager for Steps to Recovery.  Amanda attended Rider University for human resource management and has a long history of working in the treatment field .  Being in long term recovery herself, Amanda relates easily to many of the struggles our clients face trying to handle day to day business while incorporating treatment into their lives.  Her responsibilities include client intakes, communication with legal entities and employers, and planning discharge aftercare.  In her free time, Amanda enjoys cooking and spending time with her three small children. 

Office Manager

Pamela Weiner

Pamela Weiner is the Office Manager at Steps to Recovery. Pam graduated from Temple University with a bachelor’s degree in early and Elementary Childhood Education. She has many years of experience in the field of education, as well as customer service. As an alumnus of Steps to Recovery and a person with long term sobriety, Pam likes to use her own personal experiences to help and relate to Clients as they enter treatment. As the Office Manager, some of Pam’s duties include overseeing the medical department, arranging transportation, ordering, and organizing inventory, and getting new clients acclimated to the program. Pam acts as a liaison between departments and takes pride in her organizational skills, making sure to be available whenever and wherever needed. Pam is highly motivated and strives to provide authentic care to each client. In her spare time, Pam enjoys being around her family, shopping, and helping others.

Executive Administrative Assistant

Andrea Harris

Andrea Harris started at Silver Pines in August 2021 as a Care Coordinator. After 6 months, she accepted the position of Executive Administrative Assistant. She previously had a career in Sales for 20-plus years prior to working at Silver Pines. She became passionate about addiction and mental health after being a client at Silver Pines and knew quickly that she wanted to work with others like herself! Andrea’s purpose is to help change the stigma surrounding around addiction and mental health and to share her own experience, strength, and hope so that she can help others along their journey.

Andrea is happily married with two adult children and two fur babies and may have a small obsession with leopard and cheetah prints. She loves to kayak, read self-help books, crochet, the beach, and make others smile. She is super excited to grow within the organization and to help make a difference!