WYFS therapists believe in helping individuals and families connect to their innate wisdom and strength by providing a nurturing, compassionate, and judgment-free zone to share their stories.

We work from a strength-based, systemic perspective which focuses on human connection as a source of healing and growth and on identifying the resources we each have within ourselves to overcome many of life’s obstacles.

Sara Zaientz, LCSW, Executive Director and Therapist

“You fight for what’s right, you set that vision of where we could be—and then you go after it” Chandini Portteus 

Sara completed her Masters in Social Work at Boston University in 2002, where she trained as a clinician and as an advocate for our society’s most vulnerable individuals and groups. Prior to joining WYFS in 2017,  Sara worked as a clinician, supervisor, and administrator for programs including youth emergency mobile crisis, outpatient mental health, and home-based clinical programs.

Sara’s role as the Executive Director is to ensure that WYFS remains faithful to its mission of providing affordable and accessible mental health treatment and wellness programming to all of the unique members of our community’s diverse population. Sara also supports the dedicated clinicians, staff, and interns who comprise the WYFS team. She is proud of WYFS’s robust Masters level internship program and believes that it is the responsibility of experienced clinicians to guide and support the newest members of our profession. 

As a therapist, Sara is passionate about working with individuals and families who have been impacted by trauma. She has extensive training in using trauma focused interventions which include Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) and Trauma Informed Child-Parent Psychotherapy.

Vito Iallonardo, LCSW, Therapist

  • Parenting Support
  • Interpersonal Conflict Resolution
  • Relapse Prevention
  • Mindfulness and Relaxation
  • Anxiety and Depression

With over 25 years of experiences and a Master’s Degree in Social Work, Vito worked in both inpatient and outpatient settings, treating individuals with diverse backgrounds and life experiences. Vito’s approach to treatment is to develop a therapeutic rapport with his clients, by promoting a supportive, empowering, and client-directed recovery process. Vito incorporates several therapeutic methods in this process including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Solution Focused Therapy, relaxation skills, symptom management and conflict resolution.

Jill Bukowski, LMFT, Therapist

  • Grief and Loss
  • Older Adults
  • Parenting Support
  • Anxiety and Depression
  • Individuals
  • LGBTQIA+ Ally

With a Master’s degree in Marriage and Family Therapy from Central Connecticut State University, Jill works with clients of varying ages. She recognizes the importance of early intervention and parental support for her families For all her clients, she brings a playful energy, along with many imaginative and creative practices in her skill building techniques. Jill believes a non-judgmental space provides the best opportunity to support clients through various life stages and transitions. She carries a warm, compassionate presence in the room with her clients and meets them where they are to provide the best possible care. Jill uses a variety of therapeutic modalities to best compliment a client’s existing strengths, and is also trained in the Internal Family Systems model of therapy.

Athena Currey, LMSW, Therapist

  • Couples Therapy
  • Young Children
  • Grief and Loss
  • Parenting Support
  • Divorce and Co-Parenting
  • Depression and Anxiety
(She/Hers) The challenges of life are vast and vary from person to person and family to family. Athena believes all people have the ability to make the positive changes they seek. Her role as a clinician is to offer compassionate and non-judgmental support to assist you in reaching your goals. 
In addition to her background as an art therapist in medical settings, Athena graduated with a Master’s Degree In Clinical Social Work from Fordham University. She enjoys working with children as young as 5 years old, individuals, and couples. She utilizes interventions from various modalities such as Family System Theory, Play Therapy, and Mindfulness.

Kim Wood, LMFTA, Therapist

  • Family and Relationship Issues
  • Young Children
  • Parenting Support
  • Couples Therapy
  • Depression and Anxiety
  • Grief/Loss
  • Phase of Life Issues
  • Older Adults

Kim offers a compassionate, non-judgmental, and collaborative approach with clients.  Through communication and connection, Kim believes that all clients have an innate ability to heal through strengthening and rediscovering the connection to SELF and others. Kim believes that there are times in life when we need some encouragement and support to move through the discomfort and challenges of life.  

Kim brings thirty years of experience as an educator and special education teacher. In addition to a Master’s Degree in Marriage and Family Therapy from Central Connecticut State University,  Kim also has a Master’s Degree in Special Education. This background has provided insight into the unique challenges of parenting today and she can offer support and specific strategies to parents and caregivers.

Charles Tracy, LMSW

• Anxiety/Depression
• Grief/Loss
• Relapse Prevention/Mindfulness

Charles brings a passion for working with young people and for the healing power of natural environments. As a career landscape architect for the National Park Service, he designed parks and trails across the country, and specialized in participatory art projects that engaged diverse communities and young people with the national park experience. Along with master’s degrees in classics and landscape architecture, he recently completed a master’s in social work at the University of Connecticut, with a focus on adolescent recovery from substance use disorder. His practice interests include mindfulness, emphasizing client strengths, and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT).

Dave Morin, Intern

Dave is pursing a Master’s degree in Marriage and Family Therapy at Central Connecticut State University. He comes to us with a decade of experience working in residential and community-based mental health settings with children of all ages and their families. His clinical orientation incorporates attachment theory, mindfulness, family systems therapies, and experiential therapies such as Internal Family Systems therapy, which Dave received Level 1 training in. While Dave will continue to work with children and families at WYFS, he hopes to gain experience working with adults and couples as well. In his free time, Dave enjoys reading, running, playing video games, and cuddling with his cat.

Brenda Iaquessa, Intern

Brenda is an MSW student at Indiana Wesleyan University studying remotely. Brenda has over 25 years of experience working with intellectually disabled adults in residential settings. Brenda also has done case management and worked with the elderly population. Brenda is working hard to learn how to speak Spanish and is hoping to be conversational someday. Brenda’s passion is to help empower others and encourage them to advocate for themselves. She loves scrapbooking, hiking, camping, and spending time with family and friends and her two snuggly labradors. She also volunteers at her local historical society.

Kayla Tyska, Intern

Kayla is pursuing her Master’s degree in Marriage and Family Therapy (MFT) at Southern Connecticut State University where she also completed her Undergraduate degree in Psychology. Kayla is a yoga instructor and has a passion for helping others feel empowered. Kayla utilizes clinical modalities such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Narrative Therapy, and Gottman Method of Couples Therapy, which she will be level 1 trained in as of October 2023.  Kayla hopes to gain experience working with couples and families during her time at WYFS. In her free time, you will find Kayla outside in nature or at a yoga studio.

Alyssa Sullivan, Intern

Alyssa is an MSW student at the University of Connecticut. Her previous experience includes interning at a nonprofit organization in Hartford serving immigrant and refugee populations. In this role, she helped provide wrap-around case management services, connected clients with needed community resources, and assisted with agency programming. Prior to pursuing her degree in social work, she has worked in early childhood education and loved getting to work closely with young children and their families. Alyssa is excited to be interning at WYFS this year and looks forward to gaining experience working with people of all ages and backgrounds in a community mental health setting.

Mallory DePalermo, Program Coordinator

As the Program Coordinator, Mallory creates preventative and supportive programs at the agency, in the community, and within the schools. She aims to identify needs among youth and families to develop groups for like minded people to find support. On the Juvenile Review Board, Mallory diverts youth from the Criminal Justice System by helping provide community based interventions. Additionally, she strives to build collaborative relationships with the Shoreline towns to advocate for a culture promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion. With a Master’s degree in Human Services, she has experience working with elementary aged students and teaching at the college level. For more information about Mallory at work, please click here.

Cindy Pascale, Office Manager

Cindy joined WYFS in August, 2022 as the office administrator.  Her role allows her to support the wonderful work that the WYFS staff provides to the area communities.  Cindy earned a Master’s degree in Library Science and Information Technology many years ago at Southern CT State University.  Her education makes her naturally curious about everything, most especially those things that she has yet to master.  Cindy’s door is always open and she welcomes the opportunity to meet new people and get to know them.  As a Westbrook resident for the past 4 years, Cindy is excited and proud to be a part of the team.