.png)
.jpg)
Our Founders
Blake and Ace have a long and unique history. Years ago, Blake was actually Ace’s counselor when he went through residential treatment at Beit T’Shuvah in Los Angeles. While the relationship got off to a rocky start as Ace was resistant to the process, it was Blake’s blunt approach that got through to Ace and helped him embrace his journey in recovery. Years later, they are the closest of friends and Blake has gone on to work as a sober companion with clients all over the world for the past six years, while Ace ran a mentoring and companioning program for teens and young adults for the past six years. At the same time Ace was earning his Masters in Clinical Psychology and seeing adolescent clients as a therapist at The Maple Counseling Center & Beverly Hills High School. Ace is now pursuing his Doctorate (PsyD) in Clinical Psychology.
A Wealth Of Experience
We have worked together on cases ranging from teenagers struggling with substance abuse to high-profile adult clients who need travel companions while shooting movies to parents needing to document their sobriety in order to win back custody of their children, and everything in between. Our unique friendship and personal journeys in recovery allow us to understand the clients we support in a way that most others can’t.
As a father in recovery, Blake is uniquely qualified to help parents, having been on both sides of the fence. His passion for working as a sober companion for the past seven years makes him the perfect person to support our mentors and companions as they work with clients in the field.
As a clinician in recovery, Ace has worked with teens and young adults as both a therapist and a mentor for the past six years. Ace has worked with hundreds of families to support parents throughout this process, as well as built and trained countless mentors, and matched them with the clients they work with.
Both Ace and Blake have worked with top clinicians, including therapists, psychiatrists, MDs, nutritionists, and trainers all across Los Angeles. Their combined networks range from the South Bay up to Northern California, with connections all across the country.
Wherever a client may be (physically or emotionally), we know how to help. We are happy to support families and clients with our team or by making appropriate referrals for whatever a client or family may be struggling with.
.jpg)
Why Did We Call
ourselves Athena?
The word 'Mentor' was first used in Homer's, The Odyssey. Mentor was the name of Odysseus's friend who he left his son with when he went off to fight the Trojan War. Later in the story, Athena, the Goddess of Wisdom and War, disguised herself as Mentor and went to give Odysseus's son advice. She was known for helping young men in their quests throughout ancient Greek history.
Nowadays, mentor has come to mean a trusted, wise, companion who provides guidance to a younger individual, and who better to name our program after than the first known mentor in history, Athena. She is frequently depicted with an owl which represents wisdom and being the goddess of war, we combined her shield with the owl to represent our ethos.
Ace Speaking To Beverly Hills High Students
As part of being a therapist for the students at Beverly High, Ace was asked to share his personal journey in recovery to the student body. Having shared his stories at high schools all across the country while still at Beit T'Shuvah is actually what made Ace so passionate about working with teens. He discovered he was able to get a room full of hundreds of teenagers to listen, but wanted to find a way to work with them in a long-term capacity to create lasting change.
Ace Answering Questions For The Students
After hearing Ace's story about his journey in recovery, students submitted questions that Ace answered the following week.
Opportunities like these are just one way we keep our pulse on issues that our clients are struggling with and inform the strategies we use when designing programs and training our mentors to work with similar populations.
.png)