On the Move: Milestones and New Beginnings
Author: Mona Klausing
It has been a significant year of growth for Avani Counseling. We want to share some exciting milestones that illustrate the progress, commitment and dedication of our entire team.
Celebrating Our “Pod”
This year, we marked several anniversaries that speak to our stability, our passion for training emerging therapists, and our desire to help our clients live more satisfying and empowered lives.
- Eight Years Strong: We proudly celebrated our 8th anniversary as a therapy practice, and our 2nd year under the Avani brand.
- Five-Year Anniversaries: Congratulations to our incredible staff therapists—Candea Mosley, June Cabales, and Melda Baysal Walsh—who all celebrated their five-year anniversaries with the practice.
- Successful Licensure: We are delighted to share that Jenn Hourani and Jennifer Esquivel-Parker passed their clinical exam! After three years of training with us, they have both successfully achieved licensure as independent marriage & family therapists. Jenn has launched her own private practice and will continue to see in-person clients from our offices, and Jennifer has been promoted to a licensed staff therapist at Avani.
- Expanding our Supervision Team: Candea has now begun the journey of becoming an AAMFT Supervisor, an 18-month process. During this time, she will join Maureen and me on the Avani clinical supervision team overseeing the work of our associate therapists, while I continue to mentor new supervisors seeking the AAMFT Supervisor designation.
A Personal Transition
In August, I retired from my faculty position at San Diego State University where I taught undergraduate and graduate students in the Counseling & School Psychology department. While I thoroughly enjoyed my time serving as an educator and mentor to students in the helping professions over the past 11 years, stepping away from my university role affords me more time to grow our practice in ways that are creative and energizing for me in this stage of my career.
Our New Home in Old Town
September brought the most visible change for us: a move! We transitioned from our beautiful, shared space in South Park with Yellow Trellis Counseling to our own four-office suite in the historic community of Old Town. Our new space is warm, inviting, and, crucially, large enough for expansion. We are thrilled to be able to expand our team and services, including our monthly EXPLORE | Men’s and Women’s groups and a variety of wellness workshops. We also have an amazing on-site masseuse, Carmen Kessing, to support our clients’ physical wellbeing.
Looking Ahead
Later this year, we are excited to welcome three Master’s level Marriage & Family Therapy Associates who will begin their clinical training at Avani. Their fresh perspectives and unique, lived histories will further enrich our practice. Look for their bios on our Team page in the coming weeks.
With all of these transitions, we are certainly on the move towards new beginnings and are excited about the therapeutic offerings we are developing for 2026. We remain ever grateful to our clients, friends, families and community who continue to support our work.
Photo by Monique Laats on Pexels © 2025 Avani Counseling
