My Story
My story starts right here in the great city of Minneapolis, Minnesota. I attended Minneapolis South High School before going on to Hampton University, Hampton, VA, where I ultimately majored in Chemical Engineering. After earning my Bachelor's degree, I began working as a product development engineer at 3M before pausing my technical career to serve as the business manager in two nonprofits I co-founded with my husband, IMPACT International and Resurrecting Faith World Ministries. During that period, I also started Pink Purse, Inc., a nonprofit organization dedicated to serving women throughout the community.
Working with people for over 25 years in corporate and church settings, I have always desired to learn more about how to help people navigate relationship problems, communication, and various mental illnesses. That desire has led me to accomplish some personal milestones, including:
- In 2015, I returned to school to pursue a master's in Marriage and Family Counseling Therapy at Capella University.
- I began working in private practice in 2017, serving individuals, couples, and families.
- I continued my studies in the Capella Counselor Education and Supervision program, earning a Ph.D in November 2021.
- My 2022 ASERVIC Research Award-Winning doctoral dissertation was entitled Counselor Educators’ Experiences Teaching Students to Integrate Faith and Spirituality Into Clinical Work.
- I am licensed as an MFT and LPCC in Minnesota and Wisconsin.
Over the past few decades, I feel like I’ve found my niche working with individuals, couples, and families of color to help them heal and improve their relationships and overall wellness. I also am eager to help aspiring therapists obtain the knowledge they need to thrive, so I offer supervision for pre-licensed clinicians while being credentialed with the MN BMFT and MN BBHT, along with being an AAMFT MNBBHT, and MNMFT-approved Supervisor.
As part of my passion for helping others, I am always accepting new supervisees and interns and will be accepting new therapy clients starting in April 2024 for virtual and in-person sessions. My business also trains counseling professionals in cultural competence and professional identity development. In addition to private practice, I am an adjunct instructor in the MACP program at Yorkville University, Liberty University and Spring Arbor University's Master of Arts Counseling program. My goal is to strengthen cultural competence and professional identity by training counselors to integrate faith and spirituality into clinical work while helping them become confident and culturally responsive to clients’ needs.
At the end of the day, I am passionate about research related to faith and spirituality in clinical practice. In addition to working at Yorkville and in private practice, I am a member of several professional associations, including the American Association for Marriage and Family Counseling Therapy (AAMFT), the American Counseling Association (ACA), the Association for Counselor Education and Supervision (ACES), the Minnesota Association of Marriage and Family Therapy (MAMFT), the American Association for Christian Counselors (AACC), and the Midwest Association of Christian Counselors (MACC).
I am proud to say I’ve been married to Pastor Connell F. Lewis, Sr., for 30 years, and we have six adult children and three grandchildren. In addition to serving as the women's ministry leader at our church, I also enjoy gardening, movies, and spectator sports.