ABOUT
us
Christie
Born and raised in Atlanta, GA, I grew up in a big family, attended church on Sundays, participated in competitive tennis and volleyball, achieved highly at school, and struggled with crippling social anxiety and low self-esteem. My strengths and challenges followed me to college at the University of South Carolina where I had my fair share of fun. After college, I taught English in Ambato, Ecuador before moving to Jacksonville, FL to join Teach For America where I was assigned to teach Honors Physics at Robert E Lee High School.
Around this time, my social anxiety evolved into excessive worry about ‘everything’, including work, relationships, the future, and an oppressive fear of failure. Negative thoughts became my constant, often taking my low self-esteem out on those around me. In my late 20’s, I developed a deeper understanding of God’s love and grace, which in turn allowed me to love myself for the first time in a very long time. Around this same time, I met Chad, who had recently celebrated 2 years of sobriety, further reinforcing God's timing and plan for our lives.
I attended graduate school at Nova Southeastern University, became a licensed Physician Assistant and moved to Rochester, MN for a job in inpatient psychiatry. While I LOVED my job (seriously loved), 2 cold winters and missing our family and friends, brought Chad and I back to the beach, where I now work in outpatient psychiatry at UF Health.
As an outpatient provider, I quickly realized that some teens need more than is currently available to them. In order to navigate today's world, some teens need a coach, a mentor, who will do life with them, free of judgement. Chad and I could not be more excited to partner with each one of you on your journey!
Chad
Growing up with two brothers and being the middle child, I was always competing. The three of us got into sports at an early age. I stayed busy playing baseball, basketball and golf throughout my youth.
During high school and college, sports and school became less of a priority and the “party scene” started to dictate my life. I started having consequences but was unable to see the warning signs. After being in college for four years, I begun working for a large brewery and moved to Jacksonville, FL. At this point in my life, I was making decent money and living the “bachelor’s lifestyle”. It seemed fun at first, but it quickly started taking control of my life. I came to a turning point with some advice from family and friends. I can still remember the conversation I had with a mentor of mine, he said to me, that I could continue going down this path and live a life of chaos and consequence or I could turn my life around.
I agreed to seek treatment and started to be honest with myself and others which was a change for me. Before, I always told people what I thought they wanted to hear and tried to fit in with whatever crowd I was around. I took a few months off to work on myself, and to figure out where I wanted to go in life. I started working for a treatment center where I mentored men and women who were struggling with drug and alcohol addictions. I did this for a couple years while finishing my bachelor’s degree online at Liberty University. During this point in my life, I was able to connect with people on a personal level and help them through difficult times in their lives.
The past 5 years have been the best years of my life. I have graduate college, got my real estate license, married a woman who is way out of my league, moved halfway across the country and back again, and started living a life of purpose and enjoyment. This is all because I had some people who were honest with me and helped through some challenging times.
Moose
I met my parents, and your future coaches, at 6 months old. Per mom, they found me on Craigslist for $150 and arranged to meet at a gas station. Let's just say, it was love at first sight. Now I live the good life. Daily naps, begging for treats, chasing squirrels, and part time neighborhood watch. I haven't quite earned my emotional support dog certification yet, I keep failing the aggressive bark test.
