Leadership
The lean team behind the scenes.
Ocean Therapists
The lean team behind the scenes.
The development, the therapy, the research and the sessions are all possible through the leadership of…
Haley Falzon
Lead Ocean Therapist
Haley was born and raised in the South Bay and is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT). After graduating from USC, it was serendipity that brought her back to Hermosa Beach to train under Kevin Sousa. She has a passion for strengthening our South Bay community’s mental health. Haley has a private practice in Hermosa Beach where she supports clients of varying needs with a special interest in trauma, anxiety/OCD, and depression. Whether it was swimming at 2nd street Hermosa every day after school or sunset walks in the sand, Haley has appreciated the ocean from a young age. She is always encouraging others to take care of themselves and spend time with the healing benefits of nature. For fun, Haley finds joy exploring new places, spending time with family and friends, and snowboarding all winter long!
Kat Rhodes
Ocean Therapist
Kat Rhodes, MA CFT, started her journey with the Jimmy Miller Memorial Foundation as a volunteer, at Kevin Sousa’s urging. In the intervening years, Kat earned her master’s degree in Couple and Family Therapy from Antioch University and became one of the Ocean Therapists with JMMF. Kat loves Ocean Therapy and seeing the immediate positive impact each session has on the athletes, the volunteers, and the staff. Kat’s emphasis on safety and support encourages an atmosphere of openness and trust where participants can feel safe enough to be brave. Kat’s been a beginning surfer for about 10 years and recognizes the value of meeting folks right where they’re at. When she’s not doing Ocean Therapy with JMMF, Kat enjoys working with individuals and couples utilizing tools and principles from a wide range of approaches including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Mindfulness-based Therapy, Polyvagal Theory, Buddhist Psychology, and Adventure Therapy. Kat commutes between northern and southern California for work and play and enjoys cycling, backpacking, surfing, bingeworthy tv, and hot springs.
Zachary Ruff
Ocean Therapist
Zachary is a native of Los Angeles who enjoys surfing, snowboarding, and baseball! Zach graduated from California State University of Long Beach with a Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology and a Master degree in the Science of Psychology. Zach has completed internships at Didi Hirsch and The Beacon House where he learned strategic interventions to help men and women who struggle with a variety of mental health diagnoses. Currently Zach works in private practice and enjoys free time spent with his wife Brittany and daughter Summer.
Brendan O’Reilly
Ocean Therapist
As a South Bay native, Brendan feels blessed to have grown up in this community. He enjoyed Junior LifeGuards, all day on the beach, skating, snowboarding, Mira Costa High School, and the local music scene with the greatest group of friends which provided him with love, support and community. Brendan still lives right here with his wife and dogs and has two masters degrees from Pepperdine University in General and Clinical Psychology. He is passionate about supporting our community as an associate Psychotherapist mentored and supervised by Kevin Sousa and Dr. Michael Collins. Brendan has amazing memories of growing up at the Miller house with Jeff and Jimmy and looking up to Jimmy as another big brother. Brendan is proud to be a part of the JMMF foundation to be able to continue to share Jimmy’s legacy and Stoke for the ocean!
Dr. Anna Cho
Ocean Therapist
Anna is a Southern California native who was raised bi-culturally in the US and South Korea. She obtained her Master in Arts in Psychology with a dual degree in Art Therapy and Marriage and Family Therapy at Phillips Graduate Institute, and her Doctorate in Applied Clinical Psychology at The Chicago School of Professional Psychology. Upon completing her fellowship at Reiss Davis Child Study Center, she opened her private practice and works with individuals, couples and families with a culturally-sensitive and trauma-informed lens.
She has guided clinically appropriate clients towards healing through the ocean and specializes in the neuro-diverse population, trauma, and integrated holistic practices. She loves marital arts, golf, and all things surf with her son.
Geoff LaPointe
Ocean Therapist
Geoff is a local of the South Bay, having grown up in Hermosa Beach and graduated from Mira Costa in 2011. He enjoys surfing, swimming, snowboarding, hiking, soccer, and NFL football! Geoff graduated from Loyola Marymount University with a BA in Sociology and Antioch University with a MA in Clinical Psychology. Geoff has worked in local treatment centers supporting clients in partial hospitalization and intensive outpatient programs, while running his own private practice in Hermosa Beach. Geoff has extensive experience working in education prior to his career as a psychotherapist, advocating for psychology education for young adults and teenagers. Currently, Geoff works primarily in private practice, with the Jimmy Miller Memorial Foundation, and enjoys his free time with his community of family, friends, colleagues, and puppy named Nala.
Laurel Salmon
Ocean Therapist
Laurel was born and raised in Los Angeles and is an Associate Marriage and Family Therapist. She is passionate about helping people and believes that therapy is for everyone. Growing up in Southern California has hugely shaped Laurel and her approach to health. Staying active, fit, and healthy is not just a lifestyle, it’s a way of being – both in the body and in the mind. Laurel has found countless ways in which the mind-body connection can be utilized to increase an overall sense of health and happiness. Using nature, food, and movement as medicine, her holistic approach shows time and time again that where the mind goes, the body flows, and vice versa. Her approach to treatment combines evidence-based models like CBT and psychodynamic therapy with holistic interventions such as mindfulness and ocean therapy to create a well-rounded, balanced, effective state of healing. She loves traveling, spending time outdoors, and especially loves being at the beach.
Jonathan Rodil
Ocean Therapist
Brianna Morgan
Ocean Therapist
Dr. Brianna Morgan is a California licensed clinical psychologist (Psy.D.) with extensive experience delivering culturally competent evidence-based care in a variety of settings including integrated healthcare, university counseling centers, community mental health, and private practice. Dr. Morgan specializes in treating mood disorders, trauma, and interpersonal functioning in adult populations and is dedicated to serving marginalized and underserved communities. She currently works in an outpatient community mental health clinic and serves as a consultant for PsychPrep where she provides client-focused recommendations and services geared toward improving efficiency and effectiveness. Dr. Morgan is also a former Division I collegiate and professional tennis player and grew up training at El Porto Beach. She is excited about combining her mental health and athletic background to serve the community through JMMF.
Hilary Malloy
Ocean Therapist
Hilary Malloy has a Masters in Clinical Social Work, and is currently working as an Associate Psychotherapist at a private practice located in Silver Lake. She comes from a large family in Los Angeles, where she attended Marlborough High School. Following that she obtained her B.A. from UCLA where she played on the Women’s Volleyball team. Hilary is an avid athlete, having surfed and played beach volleyball since she was a child up and down the coast, primarily in Santa Monica. In her earlier career Hilary worked in the surf industry, helping with her family’s music and documentary production companies. Later she received her training as a school therapist in South Central Los Angeles, and continues to have a passion for counseling at risk youth. She is certified in mindfulness meditation and yoga and focuses primarily on chronic and acute trauma/PTSD, mood disorders, anxiety, depression, substance use, ADHD and OCD. In her free time, she likes to adventure travel, and to find new places to surf and play pickleball.
Dr. Lea Juarez
Ocean Therapist
Dr. Lea is a PhD in Psychology graduate from Capella University, May 2024. Lea specializes in Neurodiversity and Autism for the last 25 years serving her clients in the Los Angeles area. Lea has worked with USC as a clinical research associate focusing on patient engagement and behavioral change for healing and with her clients from Mychal’s Learning Place and Mychal’s Café in the South Bay. She is committed to supporting the South Bay’s mental and psychological health of our community members. When not working, Dr. Lea enjoys spending time at the beach with her two teenagers and enjoying the music scene in the South Bay area.
