Meet Our Team

Working With the Alberta Community & Beyond

Our highly skilled and qualified staff also experience the wonders that await them at Dreamcatcher™ Ranch making it a healthy and rewarding place to work. Our students, volunteers and interns alike are blessed too. Together; we learn and experience the benefits of being teachable students ourselves making us fit and ready to 'be' and to 'serve' others in partnership with our furry co-counselors.

Eileen Bona M.Ed., Registered Psychologist, Director and Founder of Dreamcatcher™

Eileen

Eileen is the youngest of 11 children. Eileen's older brother, John, sustained a severe brain injury as a result of a misdiagnosis of Tonsillitis, which was really Meningitis. He was only eight months old. John was able to reside at home until he was 11 with the help of his devoted parents and older siblings but due to hardship and “the times” John went to the children’s institute for his teenage years. He came home every weekend and every special occasion but from this point forward, John’s life was complicated and the family was forced to be strong advocates for him. It was these experiences that led Eileen into the field of helping others, specifically those could not advocate for themselves and whom others did not seem to understand.
For the past 25 years, Eileen has worked with people who had difficulty getting help. Although her career started with adults with severe neurodevelopmental issues, she shifted into working with children and youth shortly after. Today, Eileen specializes in helping children, youth and adults with multiple mental health diagnoses, neurodevelopmental conditions and complex trauma. Due to the fact that Traditional Therapy is typically not effective for her population, she started Dreamcatcher to allow for a non-threatening and motivating therapeutic environment for people to attend to get the help they need.
Eileen is a past Sessional Instructor of Introductory Psychology at King’s University and she designed Canada’s first college-accredited course in Animal Assisted Therapy (AAT). She offered the only certification in Animal Assisted Therapy through Dreamcatcher and has now partnered with Lakeland College to offer the first college certificate in AAT in English in Canada. She is currently the President of the Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association and is working toward developing Standards and Certification for Animal Assisted Therapy in our country.
Eileen presents the concept and techniques of Animal Assisted Therapy nationally at conferences and agency-level presentations. She provides intensive training in Animal Assisted Therapy in both Workshop and Internship formats at Dreamcatcher™ to national and international students as well as travels to help other organizations develop and implement their Animal Assisted programs.

Therapists

Reesa Lerner MSW, Registered Clinical Social Worker

Reesa

Reesa is a registered Clinical Social Worker. Inspired by a beagle named Bailey, she has been researching and training in the Nature and Animal Assisted Therapy field since 2006. Reesa has been involved with Dreamcatcher™ since 2010.
Reesa completed her Masters of Social work, with a clinical focus, at Yeshiva University (NY), her Bachelor of Social Work from York University, and Bachelors in Psychology from the University of Alberta. She specializes in working with teens and adults with complex needs including trauma, addictions, psychosis and especially those who have been marginalized. Her therapeutic approaches include cognitive-behavioural, strengths based, trauma-focused, nature and animal assisted. You will often find her in the chicken coop, goat pen or snuggling with a cat.
Reesa is compassionate and committed to meeting people “where they are”. She finds the best in people and supports them to achieve it through providing them with a genuine healthy mirror. With her quick wit and down to earth personality she is a perfect fit for older teens and young adults.

Melonie Labrecque M.A., Provisional Psychologist

Mel

Mel holds a Master of Counselling Degree and is currently a Registered Provisional Psychologist in Alberta. She has been involved in the area of psychology for over 10 years in a variety of settings with a variety of ages and mental health issues.
During her 2004 and 2005 summers, she was an internship student for the Pathways Regional Mental Health Day Program and Vocational Services working with adults with a variety of mental illnesses. From 2008-2011 she worked as a casual volunteer child mentor with a boy diagnosed as high functioning on the autism spectrum (Pervasive Development Disorder). In 2008- 2009 she was a practicum student with the YWCA facilitating groups for helping children deal with bereavement and divorce and facilitating weekly groups for girls as a part of a pilot girl power program. In 2009-2010 she was a practicum student with the Stollery Children’s Hospital Pediatric Centre for Weight and Health (PCWH) Weight Wise Program co-leading group programs for teens and for the parents of the children/youth referred to the program. From 2009-2012 and 2016-present she has been employed by the Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital as a Recreation Therapy Program Assistant providing activity-based assessment of motor and speech skills and treatment via recreation and social activities. From 2010-2013 she was a Psychological Assistant to a Private Practice Neuropsychologist administering neuropsychological, psychological, vocational and parental assessments. In August of 2009, Mel started at Dreamcatcher™ by taking their Caring with Critters Exploratory Workshop. Her passion for integrating animals into therapeutic practice ignited and took flight. Her love for animals and aim to heal and touch as many lives as possible found its path. She continued to volunteer at Dreamcatcher™ until beginning her practicum in 2012. In October 2012-2013 she was also a practicum student with the Hope Heels Service Dog Team Building Institute providing individual counselling and therapeutic services to adult individuals with a range of presenting challenges and mental health concerns primarily: trauma, anxiety and difficulties with emotional regulation. As aforementioned, in October 2012-2013 she was a practicum student with Dreamcatcher™ Nature-Assisted Therapy providing individual and family therapy to a variety of individuals with a range of presenting challenges and mental health concerns. Ages ranged from 2.5 years old to adults and a variety of mental health concerns such as: trauma, grief and loss, anxiety, depression, developmental delays, emotional dysregulation, attachment disorders, sensory disorders, FASD and witnesses of family addictions and violence.
After practicum Mel stayed on to continue as a Dreamcatcher™ Mental Health Therapist. She became certified as a Canadian Certified Counsellor through the CCPA and then as a Registered Provisional Psychologist with CAP. She primarily utilizes Animal and Nature Assisted Therapy and Traditional Talk therapy and integrates music, play and art-therapy medium based techniques.

Cara Stone MSW, Registered Social Worker

Cara

Cara is deeply passionate about children and youth’s well being and anything that gives her a chance to be outside. She is excited to be at a place where people experience insights about themselves and others by interacting with animals and nature. She came to Dreamcatcher™ after completing her Masters of Social Work and assisting children and youth with their mental health in a variety of residential services and cultural exchange programs.

Cara is naturally a fun loving and genuine person. She practices from a strength-based approach in which she works to create a safe place for others to process, believes that people have unique skills and capacities to create change in their lives, and collaborates with them to do so. Through this approach, she incorporates animal-assisted, trauma-informed, cognitive-behaviour, and narrative therapy.

Janine Kristensen, M.Ed., Provisional Psychologist

Kaeley Kereliuk, M.A, Provisional Psychologist

Jenn Epp, M.P.S, Psychotherapist

Janine

Janine holds a Master of Education with a Specialization in School and Clinical Child Psychology and a Bachelor of Science with Honors in Psychology.
Animals have always had a special place in Janine’s heart. She has fostered dogs with Paws for Life and volunteered with Little Bits Therapeutic Riding Association at the Whitemud Equine Learning Centre for several years. Volunteering at Little Bits opened her eyes to the beneficial impact horses can have on people with mental health diagnoses and physical disabilities. These experiences started her on a journey to discover how she could integrate animals into therapy, which has excitingly culminated in working as a therapist at Dreamcatcher.
Janine has worked with children, youth and adults for over 11 years in group home care, working in different areas such as Addictions, Intervention, Family Support and High Risk programs. She has worked with people with various mental health disorders with the desire to support each person in their journey. Janine provides psychological assessments and therapeutic interventions with her main theoretical framework rooted in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy. She also offers Play Therapy interventions and is learning how to integrate Animal Assisted Therapy into her therapeutic approach as well.
In her spare time, Janine loves climbing and mountaineering in the gloriously beautiful Rocky
Mountains year round.

Kaeley

In 2013 Kaeley obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Child and Youth Care, and a Masters of Counselling Degree in 2016 through the City University of Seattle. She has recently pursued her Provisional Registration as a Psychologist in Alberta. Her previous experience is in group homes, community, and school settings working with children and youth ages 5-18 with complex needs. Kaeley completed her internship in 2015/2016 at The Be Brave Ranch (Little Warriors) where she was able to see how integrating different therapeutic approaches to therapy was valuable. Her love for nature and animals brought Kaeley to Dreamcatcher™ in early 2020 as one of our student therapists.
She incorporates animal assisted, nature-assisted, music, art and play interventions into her therapy practice. Kaeley works most often from a trauma focused, strength based, and narrative lens. Kaeley admires the bravery it takes to come forward and work through personal challenges and believe it is an honor to be able to walk alongside those in their healing journey.
In her spare time she loves to spend time with her family at the lake, going on hikes, doing yoga, art and music.

JENN

Jenn grew up on a small hobby farm. As a highly sensitive person she often felt lonely and misunderstood. By spending time in nature and with her dogs and cats she often experienced a comfort that she could not find anywhere else and nature was a place in which she could feel a deep grounding within her self.
Jenn graduated with a Bachelor of Community Rehabilitation from the University of Calgary and a Masters in Psychotherapy and Spirituality in 2019 from St. Stephen’s College at the University of Alberta. For the past 15 years she has worked extensively in the area of disability and understands the power that the nonverbal language of animals can offer to support individuals who struggle with language processing and social communication.
Jenn is particularly passionate about supporting individuals who present with issues of grief and loss of family, identity and community. Her strengths are working with adults and young teens. Through a trauma-informed lens she utilizes cognitive behavioural, narrative and animal assisted therapeutic strategies to support individual’s to address their challenges.
Jenn’s quiet, warm and empathic demeanor provides a holding space for individuals to journey towards healing and to experience the hope and joy that life has to offer.

Mary Meyer, M.P.S-AT, Psychotherapist

Mary

Mary holds a Master of Psychotherapy and Spirituality-Art Therapy Emphasis degree from St. Stephen’s College in Edmonton. She has always been passionate about art, animals and nature and has come to realize their healing power in people. Mary works at Dreamcatcher as a Nature-Based Art Therapist to support clients’ growth and healing by integrating art, animals and nature in her therapeutic practice.
Mary has experience in: (a) Individual art therapy with children ages 5-12 who suffered from abuse, anxiety, attachment issues, and loss and grief; (b) Group art therapy for sexual assault survivors ages 8-18; (c) Open group art therapy with seniors; and (d) Group art therapy for family members of individuals with eating disorders.
Her areas of professional interests are diverse but rooted in social justice principles for populations of all ages, specifically for survivors of abuse and vulnerable populations including the LGBTQ2S+ community. Mary’s art therapy practice is nature-based, trauma-informed, and gender affirmed.
While Mary works with people of all ages in her therapeutic practice, she has a warm spot for children, youth, teens and young adults.
Mary combines art and nature in her art therapy practice to assist clients who are experiencing stress, anxiety, grief or loss, to move towards emotional, physical, social and spiritual health. She believes artmaking works well in a therapeutic setting because it is a non-verbal way of communicating: Experiences that might be too difficult to talk about can be expressed and released through artmaking. Additionally, clients do not have to be skilled in art to express themselves artistically; therefore, anyone can benefit from art therapy.
Nature is therapeutic because it holds mysteries, wonders, enchantments and endless possibilities of discoveries. Spending time in nature helps us to begin to understand it and supports us in feeling a part of nature. Mary believes the sensory experiences in nature and in art making enhances clients’ connections to nature and brings them to a deeper understanding of themselves, others, non-human life and the relationships among them. The process of personalizing experiences in nature by making tangible objects (art pieces) could be transformational for clients as they free their thoughts and feelings by externalizing what was inside of them without the need to verbalize it.
Additionally, Mary uses her nature-based art therapy practice to help create communities where all humans and non-humans share space with equity, diversity and sustainability.

Allison Hay BSW, Registered Social Worker

Allison

Allison is a Registered Social Worker in Alberta. She has over 25 years of experience working with adults and adolescents with a variety of behavioural, emotional, legal and mental health challenges.
Allison has worked in a variety of settings including adult and youth correctional facilities, hospital and community mental health services.
Allison has been working at Dreamcatcher™ since August 2017. She has a joy for learning about and interacting with animals and has a deep respect for the healing that can come through these relationships and in being in nature. Combining nature, animals, and in particular, horses, in assisting people toward health is an opportunity that she regards with excitement and is one that she believes can be of benefit to all. Allison is in the process of becoming certified through Equine Facilitated Wellness – Canada as a Mental Health Professional and as an Equine Learning Professional.

Behaviour Interventionists

Kaytlyn Morris BSW, Registered Social Worker

Kristina Koncz BSW, Registered Social Worker

Kaytlyn

Since 2015, Kaytlyn has been a Registered Social Worker in Alberta. She started her journey with Dreamcatcher™ as a practicum student and quickly learned that she needed to stay involved with the Animal-Assisted and Nature-Assisted Therapy world. She has helped out at Dreamcatcher™ as a volunteer, animal handler and co-facilitator of groups. Growing up out in the country, she understands the importance of connecting with the outdoors and the unconditional love of animals. Being a part of the Dreamcatcher™ team, Kaytlyn is able to combine her passion of helping others with her love of animals.
Kaytlyn has experience working with an intensive addiction and mental health outreach team, supporting the inner city’s most vulnerable forensic and homeless population with concurrent disorders. She is competent in providing crisis intervention, safety planning and harm reduction strategies. She has also worked collaboratively with Child and Family Services, supporting children and their families through issues of domestic violence, gang affiliation, mental health, addictions, exploitation and parenting. She supports individuals to explore and connect to Indigenous culture and ceremonies. She is an advocate for families and their children, empowering them to overcome systemic barriers in order to nurture their basic needs. She also understands the importance of children and teens developing skills in regards to emotional regulation, relationship building, communication, stress tolerance and mindfulness. Kaytlyn works from a place of non-judgmental, client-centered, strength based and recovery-focused support.
In Kaytlyn’s free time, she enjoys spending time with family and friends, sharing the mutual love of horses and the outdoors. She can also be found hiking and camping in the mountains. She has two special kitties at home, Frank and Barb, who she hopes to introduce into the Animal-Assisted role in the future.

kristina

Kristina has been a Registered Social Worker since 2015. While working on her degree, she volunteered with Victims Services in Lethbridge, working alongside first responders to support victims and their families immediately after experiencing trauma. She has also worked collaboratively with Child and Family Services, supporting children and their families through a variety of issues including domestic violence, mental health, addictions and parenting. When Kristina started working in a school setting, she found her passion working one-on-one and in groups with children to build skills, such as emotional regulation, self-esteem, coping with big/difficult feelings and social skills, as well as providing a safe place for kids to share their thoughts and feelings without judgment. She has also worked with parents on how to better understand their children’s behavior and how they can help set their children up for success. Kristina learned that for most kids, sitting down and talking about their problems wasn’t the most effective way to reach them and so she obtained a play therapy certificate through Rocky Mountain Play Therapy Institute that has allowed her to therapeutically incorporate toys and games in to her work.
Kristina has always had a deep love for animals, but after attending an open house at Dreamcatcher, Kristina immediately saw the value of working with animals and nature in this field and fell in love with Dreamcatcher. She has since combined her passion of working with children and families in an engaging and fun way, with her love and respect for animals. Kristina works from a strength-based approach, meeting kids and adults where they are and continually supporting them in seeing the value and importance of everything that they are.
When not working, Kristina can be found spending time with her family and their dog June, whom they rescued a year and a half ago and who has become a special member of the family.

Support Staff

Jess Mayhew B.H.Sc., Office Admin

Patricia Rojek, Rejuvenation Program and Evening Admin

Emily Chalifoux, Volunteer Coordinator

Jess

Jess graduated with her Bachelor's Degree in Addictions Counselling in 2009. She grew up in the Okanagan, with such a passion for children and animals that she knew she had to find some capacity to work with them together. She has a great love and respect for all species of animals from horses to salamanders, fish to hedgehogs. She has a particular fondness for reptiles of all sorts, especially snakes.
Jess loves working with kids of all ages and especially enjoys the opportunity to teach them all sorts of things about animals, like how reptiles are ectothermic or chickens typically take 21 days to hatch. In her downtime, Jess enjoys fire spinning, drawing haida artwork, playing video games, gardening, and caring for her son, husband, and guinea pigs: Sour Krowse and Bacon. She loves to travel and hopes to visit Iceland and Ireland in the upcoming years.
You can usually catch Jess giving a belly rub to Rain the horse, checking up on the chickens, or napping with Emma the sheep!

Patricia

Patricia is graduating from her Bachelor of Arts degree at MacEwan University in April 2021 and is majoring in Psychology with the intent of completing a graduate degree in counselling in the future, ideally incorporating art therapy into her practice one day.
She joined the team at Dreamcatcher™ in December 2020 because of her love for animals and her desire to learn about the therapeutic benefits that they can have on their human friends. She has always been aware of the healing energy that animal companions possess and is excited to be working in an environment that fosters that energy in order to help individuals heal and live fulfilling lives. All animals have a place in her heart, with a special place reserved for wolves and horses which she finds that she is very drawn to spiritually.
In her spare time, Patricia enjoys drawing portraits of her friends' and family's pets as well as various wildlife. Her most recent hobby includes learning to shuffle dance, which goes hand in hand with her love of electronic dance music. She also has a long list of places that she intends to travel to; the one she has her eyes set on next is Nepal to complete the Everest Base Camp Trek or to go skiing in the Swiss Alps!

Emily

Emily started volunteering at Dreamcatcher™ in 2017 to help satisfy her love for animals. At the time, she was just graduating high school and had her head set on going to school to become a veterinarian technician. However, as she spent more and more time at Dreamcatcher™, she quickly changed her mind to psychology; specifically Animal Assisted Therapy. The idea of working with both people and animals in such a beautiful environment is the best of both worlds. As the Volunteer Coordinator, Emily is thrilled to be so involved in the volunteer community. Now, at the age of 21, Emily is beginning her studies at Concordia University to earn her Bachelor of Arts degree majoring in Psychology. Dreamcatcher™ has brought out a love for chickens that she didn’t know she had! If you’re ever looking for Emily, she is probably in the chicken coop cuddling with chickens!