EDMONDS EATING DISORDER PROGRAM

Maureen Peterson, MA, LMHC, CEDS-S

Maureen Peterson is the NorthWestern Outpatient Regional Director and Program Director at Center for Discovery Tacoma OP treating adolescents, adults, and families impacted by eating disorders. Maureen is a licensed mental health counselor and earned her BA  in Psychology from Pacific Lutheran University and her MA in Counseling Psychology from Saint Martin’s University. She also completed a certificate program in The Long Term Treatment of Psychiatric Disorders through the University of Washington School of Social Work. Maureen has been working in the mental health field since 1991 and has specialized in the treatment of eating disorders since 1996. She is a Certified Eating Disorder Specialist and Supervisor through the International Association of Eating Disorder Professionals. In 2011, Maureen received the “Spirit of the Alliance” award through the Alliance for Families, a national organization. She is passionate about community service, and enjoys reading, traveling, and spending time with friends and family.

Melissa Homes, PA-C

Melissa Holmes PA-C is a board certified physician assistant who graduated from Duke University’s PA program in 1999. She has 17 years of experience in Family Practice.. She enjoys providing personalized healthcare and a medical home to her panel of patients who range from newborns to geriatrics. She started specializing in eating disorders in 2011 and practices a multidisciplinary team approach to treating eating disorders and has expertise in monitoring and treating medical complications in these patients. She provides medical support to all levels of care in eating disorder treatment. Melissa works closely with Dr Naomi Busch, who supervises all admissions to Edmonds. Dr Busch is a Board Certified Family Physician working out of her primary care office in Seattle.

Jenni Scharf

Jenni Scharf is the Clinical Outreach Supervisor and Staff Recruitment Representative at Center For Discovery in the Northwest treating adolescents, adults and families impacted by eating disorders. Jenni earned her degree in Journalism, with an emphasis in Management from Western Washington University. Jenni has been working in healthcare marketing since 2001 and has held seats on 4 separate Pacific Northwest iaedp chapter boards. Jenni loves being a resource for professionals. She is a wife and mom to three kids and is passionate about helping families find the recovery they need to be healthy, whole and happy once again.

Christina Riesen, BSN, RN

Christina Riesen received her Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing from Seattle Pacific University. She earned her stripes working as a night nurse at an addiction recovery unit at a local hospital, but started working at Center for Discovery Edmonds as an on-call nurse and counselor in 2016 because she enjoyed working with teenagers and being able to spend quality time every day with them. In April, she started working full time as the RN Administrator/ Lead Nurse at Center for Discovery . In her spare time, she enjoys taking her dog on walking (and sometimes swimming) adventures.

Lisa Green

Lisa has over 15 years of experience working with adolescents with co-occurring disorders and their families in inpatient, residential, detention centers and day treatment settings. She believes that creating a space that enables clients and families to have a voice in treatment planning and creating individualized treatment helps them discover their strengths, builds support systems, adapts new coping skills and develops healthy lifestyles. She trusts in the supportive and structured treatment focused environment that Center for Discovery provides to all the clients and their families, which is essential in the recovery process. Lisa’s compassion for adolescents and the work with their families is rooted in experience and understanding.

Jane Haas, RD, CD

Jane completed her undergraduate degree in food science and nutrition from Central Washington University. She completed 1200 hours of supervised practice in her dietetic internship at the University of Oklahoma. Jane is now a registered dietitian nutritionist and certified dietitian in Washington State. Jane is passionate about helping adolescents develop a positive relationship with food, weight-inclusive care, Intuitive Eating and All Foods Fit. In her free time, Jane enjoys baking, reading, spending time with friends and getting outside.

Saer Smith

Saer is a licensed clinical social worker (LSWAIC) with a passion for eating disorder recovery. Saer has a bachelor’s in history from the University of South Florida and a master’s in social work from Smith College. Previously, they worked as a live-in house parent in an adult eating disorder residential. They also completed clinical internships with Veritas Collaborative’s adolescent inpatient eating disorders program and Tapestry’s adolescent eating disorder residential. They joined Center for Discovery Edmonds in November of 2020. Saer is passionate about helping teens and their families learn skills to challenge eating disorders and build towards recovery. Saer enjoys bringing honesty, openness and humor into the therapy room and encourages patients and families to have the hard conversations that move us forward.

In their personal life, Saer is more than a little obsessed with their cats and talks about them as much as others will allow. They also talk a lot about Alaska, their home away from Seattle. In their off-time, Saer provides diversity and inclusion training and consulting for organizations. Saer is passionate about developing programs that are inclusive to all.

Mara Serafin, LMHC

Hi there! Thanks for stopping by our page. We know that sending your kids to treatment can activate feelings of fear, anxiety, panic, confusion and anger. Treatment is very often complex and requires education around eating disorders, triggers, family dynamics and societal standards. At Edmonds, we pride ourselves on providing treatment and support for kids and their families. I stand behind a strong team of compassionate, creative and committed professionals that are here for you and your child. I am involved in daily treatment and can be found in meals, therapy groups, weekly parent process groups and monthly family day presentations. We are all in this together and believe full recovery is possible!

Mara Serafin, is the executive program director at Center for Discovery of Edmonds and helps adolescents and families impacted by eating disorders and related co-occurring disorders. Mara is a licensed mental health counselor who earned her bachelor’s in clinical psychology from Alfred University and her master’s in forensic psychology from The Chicago School of Professional Psychology. Mara has been working in mental health with adolescents and families for over 15 years in day programs, hospitals and residential settings. Passion projects include program development, staff training, clinical supervision and family education around eating disorders. Mara enjoys applying acceptance & commitment therapy (ACT) and dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) techniques in her work with adolescents and families. When not busy with work, Mara is in nature, typically with a camera in hand.

Mariya Popruzhnyy

Mariya is a licensed mental health counselor associate (LMHCA) who earned her master’s in counseling and psychology at The Seattle School of Theology & Psychology. She completed her clinical internship at Northwest University in the counseling center for undergraduate students. Prior to that, Mariya worked at a local non-profit doing social work for five years. She provided support to individuals who had experienced sexual exploitation and helped them address barriers to work towards recovery. Mariya is passionate about helping teens and their families gain the tools they need to confront eating disorders and work towards recovery. When not working, Mariya enjoys backpacking, the beach, cooking, friends and a good book with a strong cup of coffee.

Clacy Albert

Clacy Albert is the Regional Clinical Outreach Representative at Center for Discovery in the Northwest treating adolescents, adults, and families impacted by eating disorders. Clacy earned her BA in Speech Communication in 2000 from the University of Washington. Clacy has been working in healthcare sales, marketing, and education since 2001.  In 2017, Clacy found her passion in helping those affected by eating disorders and joined Center for Discovery in 2019. Clacy loves being a resource for professionals, patients, and families.  When she is not working, she can be found hanging out with her dog, her nieces and nephew, and the rest of her family and friends.