As a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, Maureen's practice spans all ages and holds a focus in creative professionals, adoption and trauma work.  She earned her MA in Clinical Psychology with a Child Studies specialization from Antioch University in Los Angeles. She has also worked as a Counselor in both K-8 and high school settings and is finishing her third year as a Counselor at the Southern California Counseling Center working with individuals, families and couples. She completed the Family Training Program Certification there, and will hold both TRM and EMDR trauma certifications in July 2013. In addition, she is working with Jeanette Yoffe in a monthly adoption support group on the Westside, as part of her new non-profit, The Celia Foundation, dedicated to all members of the adoption constellation. Maureen also facilitates both parenting and adolescent groups at Dr. Bonnie Goldstein’s Center for Psychological Services on the Westside. 

Before joining the psychology field, Maureen's first love was the arts.  As a producer and studio exec, she was part of the Feature Animation team at Disney during the Renaissance years of The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin and Toy Story. Maureen subsequently had a production deal at Fox under which the animated feature Anastasia was released. Prior to moving to Los Angeles to join the Mermaid team, she was based in New York City.  While there, she was on the faculty at The Juilliard School (Drama Division), and was a visiting professional for the Yale School of Drama. Maureen worked on many theatrical productions as a stage manager including the Broadway production of The Glass Menagerie with Jessica Tandy, the Off-Broadway and Broadway productions of Pump Boys and Dinettes and the 1st and 2nd National Tours of Cats in Boston, Washington D.C., Philadelphia, Chicago and Los Angeles. She says, "being part of telling timeless tales was great preparation for helping people discover the true stories of their own lives."

Langka Treadwell is the mother to seven children adopted from all over the globe. She works and volunteers with organizations affiliated with adoption related issues.

Jeanette Yoffe earned her master's degree in Clinical Psychology, specializing in children, from Antioch University. She treats children with serious psychological problems secondary to histories of abuse, neglect, and or multiple placements. Jeanette's desire to become a child therapist with a special focus on adopted and foster care issues derived from her own experience of being adopted and moving through the foster care system. She runs a monthly support group called Adopt Salon for all members of the adoption triad in Los Angeles.

Beth Hall is an adoption educator who co-founded Pact, An Adoption Alliance, which is a multicultural adoption organization dedicated to addressing essential issues affecting adopted children of color. Pact offers lifelong support and placement services for birth and adoptive families with adopted kids of color. A national speaker, she is also the author of numerous articles and a book, Inside Transracial Adoption, which is filled with personal stories, practical suggestions, and theory, and delivers the message that race matters; racism is alive; and families built transracially can develop strong and binding ties. In 2010 she received the Outstanding Practitioner in Adoption Award, from the Adoption Initiative at St. John's University. She currently serves as a contributing author and advisory board member for “Adoption Clubhouse,” a project promoting positive identity in transracially adopted children for the Evan B. Donaldson Institute for Adoption and as an Advisory Board Member for the On Your Feet Foundation, dedicated to supporting birth mothers of adopted children.Commitment to family is a way of life for Beth. She is the white adoptive mom of two young adults: Sofia, a Latina, and James, an African American. Beth grew up a member of an adoptive family—her sister, Barbara, was adopted. She lives in Oakland, California, with her husband and sometimes her adult children, when they are home.

Guylaine has both personal and professional experience with open adoption, which gives her a very unique perspective on the topic. She and her husband are the parents of two children (young adults), whom they adopted as infants and have maintained an open adoption with their birthmother for over 20 years. Her children have the same birthmother, which is more common that one would think! This past year added to her realm of adoption experience, when her daughter gave birth to, and placed a baby for adoption. 

Guylaine was born and raised in California, and is the youngest of four siblings. She has always been the type of person to get involved and volunteer, from being a class officer in middle school and high school to serving on Boards of Directors for her children’s schools, her church, Resolve (an infertility and adoption educational organization) and other community organizations. When she is not working at her position as Southern California Branch Co-Director/Home Study Supervisor/Adoption Coordinator at the Independent Adoption Center (IAC) she enjoys spending time with friends and family, traveling, camping, playing golf,and dancing.

Jill W. Boyer, MSW was born in Detroit, Michigan. She earned a Bachelor of Social Work degree from Michigan State University in E. Lansing and a Master of Social Work Degree from Wayne State University in Detroit. Ms. Boyer has dedicated her 25-year professional life primarily to supportive services for children and youth.

Prior to coming to Vista Del Mar Child And Family Services in 2005, Ms. Boyer has directed two post-adoption projects at The Institute for Black Parenting in Los Angeles, served as the Director of the Emergency Shelter Care Facility at Children’s Institute International in Torrance, was Acting Director of the Upward Bound Program at Harbor College, and provided and coordinated therapeutic services to families in the CALworks program.

She feels a special connection to adoption and foster care. She brings her experience to the Foster, Foster-Adopt, Domestic Adoption and Intercountry Adoption Programs at Vista, as the Community Services Program Director.

Scout graduated from Penn State University in 1996. He then went on to exchange vows with his longtime partner, Bill Horn, on May 23, 2009. Scout's longtime friend Tori Spelling became an ordained minister to officiate his commitment ceremony to Bill Horn. Scout and Bill adopted a daughter, Simone Lynn Masterson-Horn. Simone was born in June 2010. Scout is a surrogate uncle to Tori Spelling's three children, Liam, Stella and Hattie. Scout and Bill have been featured on the hit series, Tori & Dean: Home Sweet Hollywood where they are known as "The Guncles".  

Dr. Jennifer Bliss has dedicated her career to adoption education and support. She specializes in providing clinical services for all members of the adoption triad, including adoption education/consultation and pre/post adoption relationship support. Throughout her career, Dr. Bliss has been passionate about educating the public on best practices in adoption and the psychology of open adoption. She is also the author of a new book on open adoption, Another Choice: A compassionate Guide to Placing a Child For Adoption.
Dr. Bliss received her BA in Psychology and BS in Education from University of Southern California. She went on to earn her MSW from UCLA and Doctorate in Clinical Psychology from Ryokan College. Dr. Bliss has supervised adoption counselors across the country and has spoken on the psychology behind open adoption at universities and statewide conferences. She has also appeared as the open adoption expert on radio programs, podcasts, television shows and was the primary adoption consultant and featured counselor on WEtv's 4-part documentary series, "Adoption Diaries.”

www.BlissAdoptionServices.com

Michael J. Bradley, EdD, award-winning author, has counseled adolescents and their parents for over 30 years and currently has a private practice in suburban Philadelphia. As a recognized specialist in adolescent behavior and parenting, Dr. Bradley is in demand as a speaker and facilitator for mental health professionals, educators, and parenting groups. He has appeared on over 400 radio and television shows, including CNN, The Today Show and Good Morning, America, and has been interviewed by numerous magazines and newspapers such as USA Today, The Philadelphia Inquirer, and Parents Magazine. His website forum is a great source of advice and encouragement to parents.

Stacy Earl broke onto the music scene with RCA and her self-titled album, STACY EARL. The album delivered three top ten singles, “Love Me All Up,” “Romeo & Juliet” and “Slowly.” The first single, “Love Me All Up,” jumped 27 points on the Billboard Hot 100 in its second week on the chart. The follow-up, “Romeo And Juliet” was the most added single in America – a first ever for a new female artist. In Japan, the record was second only to Michael Jackson. With a multi-octave voice that transcends the merely technical, with a heart-stopping blend of youthful innocence and worldly sophistication, Stacy brings an unmistakable signature to every song she sings. The New York Daily News compared Stacy to Bessie Smith and Dinah Washington in her “breathy, understated style that projects a subdued, yet driving sensual energy that is always classy and never crude.” Interview Magazine described Stacy’s demeanor as “blissing out on R&B ballads, pop, and bubble-funk”. It called the debut album “optimistic and seductive”, and added that “Stacy Earl runs on smile power.”

Rory is a wife, a blogger, and a transracial adoptive parent of an African American girl, who joined the family through domestic adoption in 2007 at a mere six days old. A self-described tomboy and computer geek, Rory had little knowledge regarding her own hair, not to mention no prior experience with the unique hair and skincare needs of children of African descent. Making it her mission to learn everything that she could, Rory started chronicling her experiences for other parents who have found find themselves in similar situations. Since the launch of her blog, Chocolate Hair / Vanilla Care in 2010, people from all over the world have been able to share in her journey as she demonstrates new hair styles, outlines step-by-step instructions, reviews products, and discusses the many aspects of what it means to be a transracial family in today's world. Rory hopes to continue exploring identity, respect, and empowerment, using hair as a common language.

Dan Pearce is the divorced father of four year old Noah, who came to him through adoption. Dan is also the author of The Real Dad Rules and Single Dad Laughing: The Complete Second Year, and his blog, Single Dad Laughing. When he started Single Dad Laughing in the summer of 2010, his then-wife had left his life almost as quickly as she’d come into it, and he was feeling about as valuable as a dollar-store sweater (and unraveling just as quickly). He started the blog because writing has always had the power to heal him in his darkest of moments. His goal is to spread worthwhile ways of looking at things. Before becoming a writer, Dan worked in retail, in the corporate world, and as an animal artist.