Meet our Counselors

Karen DeGraaf

M.A., Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor

English, French

Karen spent 11 years in SIL Cote d’Ivoire, West Africa as a linguist/translator before “retooling” to become a mental health counselor. In 2006 she received her MA in Counseling from Western Seminary in Portland, OR, and went on to provide counseling and trauma-healing training to global workers while based with her family in Waxhaw, NC. She is now the Counseling Coordinator for SIL Africa Area and spent nearly 10 years living and working in Yaoundé, Cameroon. She has just relocated to work remotely from Washington State. She and David have been married since 1989 and have three adult children. Karen’s areas of specialization include depression, anxiety, trauma recovery, stress/burnout, relationships, transitions, grief and loss. She is a facilitator for Strengthening Your Interpersonal Skills workshops, Trauma Healing workshops, has training as a Coach, and is certified in Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy. She works with adults, couples and adolescents of all nationalities, and enjoys helping organizational leadership develop ways to care for their staff AND themselves. Karen loves to help people find meaning and purpose in life, and is always looking for ways to use humor in counseling.

James Covey

PhD., Licensed Professional Counselor - Supervisor

English

James is a Licensed Professional Counselor-Supervisor from Texas and has been with SIL since 2011. He holds a PhD in Counseling and Psychological Studies from Regent University with a concentration in global mental health and an MA in Marriage and Family Therapy. During his time with SIL, he served at Tumaini Counseling Center in Nairobi, Kenya, and currently works with the SIL EurAsia Area as a counselor, Wellbeing Services team leader, and associate counselor with Sentwell in Malaga, Spain. He is trained in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, EMDR, Polyvagal Theory, various debriefing modalities, and serves as a Master Facilitator for the Trauma Healing Institute. He is a co-author of the curriculum "Healing the Wounds of Teen Trauma” and specializes in working with families and teens. His counseling expertise includes trauma, children and adolescents, marriage and family therapy, stress management, burnout, anxiety, and depression. He also hosts a podcast on health and wellbeing for cross-cultural workers at jamesecovey.org.

Shalom Alaichamy

Psy.D., Licensed Psychologist

English

Shalom serves as Counselor for South and Islands Asia, and is Strategy Leader for Mental Health for SIL International. As a member of SIL since 2001, he worked in Asia first as linguist/translator until 2008, then as regional coordinator until 2015. In 2019 he earned his doctorate in clinical psychology, with a concentration in organizational consultation, from Azusa Pacific University in California, USA. He completed his doctoral internship at CSU Fullerton where he received specialized training in treating intimate partner violence and sexual assault, and his postdoctoral fellowship at The Claremont Colleges. Shalom works with individuals and couples. His passion is to come alongside staff as they face various challenges, providing a compassionate presence and guidance toward emotional and spiritual healing. While his areas of specialization include relationship conflict, trauma, and depression, Shalom is trained to address a wide range of concerns. He and his wife, Felise, are based in Southern California, where he also teaches psychology at Azusa Pacific University.

Rebecca Hirt

M.A., Licensed Professional Counselor - Supervisor

English

Rebecca has been a member since 2007 and has lived and served in Brazil, Honduras, Mexico, and Thailand. She earned her M.A. in Counseling from Grand Rapids Theological Seminary in 2006. Rebecca and her husband have been married since 2002 and have three children. After serving in Thailand for 14 years, they are now based in the United States.

Rebecca specializes in depression, anxiety, trauma, stress, marriage, life transitions, parenting, and group therapy. She has experience counseling children and adolescents and incorporates play therapy into her work. She especially enjoys supporting SIL leaders as they navigate mental health challenges within their teams. Rebecca is a certified Level II Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapist and serves as a counseling supervisor. Rebecca also provides workshops and seminars on mental health, with a focus on education, skill-building, and prevention.

Anette Schubert

M.Th. (UNISA), Licensed Professional Counselor

German, English

Anette has been a member of Wycliffe since September 1993. She is married and has two adult children. She came into counseling with a nursing background and 13 years of cross cultural experience with SIL in Tanzania – first in a language project, then as Language Programs Manager. For the past ten years she has worked with Wycliffe Germany as a counselor primarily serving cross-cultural workers. As of 2017, Anette has taken on an additional role as SIL Counselor for Eurasia Area. She offers counseling, debriefing, coaching and personality development through lifestyle analysis. She facilitates debriefing retreats using the Le Rucher model. Special areas of interest for Anette include cross-cultural issues, stress management, work-life balance, burnout, identity, team building, mediation and conflict resolution. She loves to work with individuals and teams.

Diane Tehan

M.A., Licensed Professional Counselor

English

Diane Tehan and her husband Tom moved to Thailand in 1991 with four of their five children, and their youngest was born in Thailand in 1994. Tom passed away unexpectedly in January 2019 in Chiang Mai. Diane has five married children and seven grandchildren. Diane received her M.A. in Clinical Psychology from Wheaton College in 2002 and is licensed in N. Carolina and Michigan. She is on staff at Cornerstone Counseling Foundation in Chiang Mai, Thailand. The counseling topics closest to Diane’s heart include grief and loss, trauma, ADD/ADHD, relationship improvement, and emotional and body awareness and integration.

Megan Reeder

M.A., Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist

English

Megan grew up in Southernmost Illinois in the United States. She spent a year in Germany and seven years in Bangladesh before completing a graduate degree in Marriage and Family Therapy. After her clinical internship and graduation, she spent two years counseling locals and expats in the Philippines, then one year counseling cross-cultural workers temporarily based in the United States. Megan moved to Chiang Mai in April 2018 and is enjoying her time learning from colleagues and serving cross-cultural workers in Asia. She continues to make occasional trips to Bangladesh to counsel and train expats and locals there. Megan loves getting to walk alongside families, couples, and individuals on their journeys with the Lord through life's ups and downs. Seeing people move toward a deeper understanding of Him, themselves, and one another is what motivates her.

Kathy Petersen

M.A., Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor

English, French

Kathy serves at the SIL Global Counseling Coordinator. She grew up as a TCK, worked with her husband, Dan, for 18 years in linguistics, Bible translation, and church planting in rural Burkina Faso. In 2004, Kathy received her M.A. in Counseling from Lincoln Christian Seminary. Dan and Kathy joined Wycliffe/SIL in 2014 to work in member care and counseling for French-speaking Africa, based in Yaoundé Cameroon. Kathy and Dan currently live in central Illinois.

Rich Ernst

DO Psychiatrist

English

Rich graduated from medical school in 2010 and completed his residency in Psychiatry and his subspecialty fellowship in Child & Adolescent Psychiatry at Walter Reed. After his training, he and his wife lived in Korea for two years where he was the chief of a military mental health clinic. Rich has also worked in rural community mental health settings, substance abuse programs, and as a telehealth psychiatrist. In 2020, he and his family moved to Chiang Mai where he provides care for cross-cultural workers from all over Asia at Cornerstone Counseling Foundation in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

Alisha Sneed

M.A. Licensed Professional Counselor

English, Spanish

Alisha serves as a Counselor and TC&E Mental Health Consultant primarily for the Americas region. Most recently, Alisha served in Greece, equipping and supporting refugees through personal challenges and spiritual formation for 4 years. She previously partnered with a church plant in Brazil to disciple youth and women.

She has an M.A. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Wheaton College and has a heart to support others through trials and facilitate space for them to experience healing from God. After her training, Alisha worked in community mental health and with faith-based counseling organizations in north Texas for 5 years. Alisha loves using play therapy to support children and help them process big changes and challenges. Alisha’s specialties include family dynamics, cross-cultural adjustment, team health, transition and trauma. She is available to provide counseling for adults, teens and children in English and Spanish. She and her husband love to go on outdoor adventures, cook and make music.

Gloria Abrego

Spanish

Actualmente se desempeña como consejera en SIL-AMA. Está casada con René Abrego, reside en Guatemala y es madre de cuatro hijos adultos y abuela de dos nietas. Es cristiana evangélica y sirvió durante cuatro años en España como misionera junto a su esposo.

Su formación como maestra de primaria le ha brindado una amplia experiencia en la enseñanza infantil. Posteriormente, su especialización como profesora de educación especial la ha llevado a evaluar y desarrollar programas dirigidos a padres de niños con discapacidad, dificultades de aprendizaje, diversos síndromes y autismo, con un enfoque basado en los derechos de las personas con discapacidad y el modelo de inclusión.

En los últimos años, su formación como psicóloga clínica le ha permitido acompañar procesos terapéuticos con personas de distintas edades. Asimismo, realiza evaluaciones psicológicas de candidatos a misioneros a través de la agencia FAMGUA.

Rene Abrego

M.A.

Spanish

Actualmente René es consejero de SIL, Psicólogo desde 1992, graduado en la Universidad estatal de San Carlos de Guatemala. Con una Licenciatura en Psicología Clínica y un Máster en Adicciones en la Universidad Veracruzana de México. Docente universitario durante 30 años. Actualmente se encuentra jubilado y se dedica a servir al Señor en SIL AMA desde 2024. Conoció al Señor Jesús como su Salvador en 1978. Casado con su esposa Gloria, tienen 4 hijos (dos mujeres, dos hombres y dos nietas). René es miembro de la Iglesia Centro Bíblico El Camino desde año 2000. Trabaja con población de adultos y Adolescentes. Su especialidad son los problemas de adicción. Estuvo como misionero en España durante 4 años atendiendo jóvenes adictos en el centro EL BUEN SAMARITANO. Además, atiende problemas de pareja, salud mental, entre otros.

Lorae Brignall

M.A. Couples and Family Therapist

English, Solomon Islands Pijin

Lorae grew up on a farm in Canada loving the deep connection she felt to the land and the animals she cared for. As an adult, people became her passion. Graduating with a Bachelors in Nursing in 2008, Lorae began caring for critically ill patients in an ICU, and later, supporting birthing mothers during their deliveries. In 2018, Lorae and her husband moved to the Solomon Islands, working with SIL to support a language ministry in the rural Solomon Islands. Lorae went back to school in 2020 to take her Masters in Counselling with the goal of supporting other SIL workers. Lorae graduated graduated in 2025 with her Masters in Counselling and joined the Canadian Association of Couples and Family Therapists, She looks forward to using her years of experience in healthcare and cross-cultural living to inform her counseling practice. She is passionate about holistic wellness and how cultural and relational aspects influence wellbeing. Lorae offers person-centered, trauma-informed, culturally aware therapy in English and Pijin (Solomon Islands Pijin), and loves working with individuals, couples and families on a variety of issues. She continues to expand her learning on different therapy modalities and works to include different options as applicable.

Eva Horton

MNCPS (Accred)

English, Slovak, Czech

Eva is an accredited integrative counsellor and psychotherapist. Her early studies focused on environmental themes. She spent over 17 years working with SIL as a linguistic cartographer, in Southeast Asia and remotely from the UK, before retraining as a therapist. Eva has provided counselling and psychotherapy in both charity and university settings, supporting adults and students from a wide range of backgrounds. Originally from central Europe, she has lived, studied, and worked in several countries, and has called England home since marrying her husband. These experiences have shaped her understanding of identity, change, and what it means to find a sense of place in the world. Her work is rooted in a deep interest in life transitions, cross-cultural experiences, bereavement, and the search for belonging and renewed hope. She sees each person as shaped by the many threads of their life - culture, identity, and experience - and offers a space where these can be met with care, respect, and openness. Eva enjoys the outdoors, time with friends, baking bread and exploring both familiar and new places.

Amy

English

Amy holds a Master’s degree in Social Work and brings over a decade of experience to her practice. Early in her career, she worked in Boston as a case manager for a community non-profit. She later specialized in supporting teens and young adults navigating complex life transitions, including pregnancy and early parenting. Amy moved internationally a few years ago with her husband to serve cross-culturally with SIL. She is passionate about walking alongside clients as they face the joys and challenges of life, as well as unique stressors of cross-cultural living and working. Her approach is compassionate and client-centered, offering a safe space for individuals to process life's hurdles and build resilience. Outside of work, Amy enjoys exploring new places, reading at the beach, and sharing a warm cup of tea with friends.

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