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Marit Appeldoorn, MSW, LICSW, RPT-S

Marit Appeldoorn, MSW, LICSW, RPT-S is a psychotherapist, supervisor, and consultant in Minneapolis, Minnesota. She holds a bachelor’s degree from Earlham College and a master’s degree in clinical social work from Smith College, and has over 25 years of experience providing mental health care to children, families, and adults. She also provides clinical social work and play therapy supervision, and has a particular interest in burnout healing and prevention for helping professionals. She loves teaching, training, and consultation, and specializes in a reflective and integrative approach to both therapy and supervision.  Marit is a TraumaPlay Certified Therapist and a Registered Play Therapist/Supervisor.  She is also a co-owner of Safe Haven.

When not at work, Marit enjoys good coffee, yoga, cooking projects, travel, and spending time with her family.

Lisa Harper, LPCC, RPT (ASL)

Lisa (she/her) is a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor (LPCC), and a Registered Play Therapist (RPT). Her Master’s degree is in Counseling and Psychological Services from Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota, Twin Cities.  Lisa is fluent in English and ASL. She has been working in her 2nd career as an LPCC/RPT for over 7 years after 20+ years as a sign language interpreter in education, medical, and mental health settings.

Lisa provides clinical services to children, adolescents, young adults, and their families. She is particularly interested in working with D(d)eaf, hard of hearing, and LGBTQ+ youth and families.  Lisa works collaboratively with clients and families integrating various therapeutic approaches to support the unique needs of each client. Her integrative, trauma-informed, attachment based approach includes interventions from person-centered therapy, child centered play therapy, Motivational Interviewing, CBT, TFCBT, Theraplay, and expressive therapies such as art, movement, narrative, and sand tray.

Lisa believes that through a safe, non-judgmental, therapeutic relationship, change and healing can occur. In her spare time, she loves to go hiking, read, crochet, and binge-watch Netflix shows with her daughter.

Sara Ranssi, LICSW, RPT-S, SEP (ASL)

Sara Ranssi is a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker with almost 20 years of experience working in the deaf community. Sara is also a Registered Play Therapist and Supervisor (RPT-S) and a Somatic Experiencing Practitioner (SEP). She specializes in providing culturally and language specific mental health services for deaf, deaf/blind and hard of hearing individuals of all ages. Sara received her undergraduate degree in Psychology from the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh. She then earned a MA in Deafness Rehabilitation Counseling from Northern Illinois University, working in adult mental health, before going on to get her MSW from the University of Minnesota and finding great enjoyment working with children and adolescents. In addition to her therapy work, Sara provides clinical social work and play therapy supervision. She is a co-owner of Hope and Healing Family Counseling, LLC and founding member of Safe Haven (https://safehavenmn.com/). Sara presents nationally on understanding and treating trauma in children and adolescents with hearing loss.

More information about Sara’s work can be found at https://safehavenmn.com/sara-ranssi/

Sara played basketball in college and still enjoys playing today. Sara’s other interests include yoga, running, restoring old furniture, and hiking in the mountains.

Patricia Sandkamp, MA, LMFT

Patricia Sandkamp (also known as Patty or Ms. Patty) has a passion for working with children and their caregivers in service of the well-being and development during the early childhood and elementary aged years.  Patricia has a Masters of Arts in Family Life Education (MA) from Concordia University in Minnesota, and completed a post-graduate Licensure Only Track for Marriage and Family Therapy through Adler Graduate School, in Minnesota.  Patricia is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) who is in process of attaining the Registered Play Therapist (RPT) designation.  Patricia has experience in working with family systems and children facing challenges related to anxiety, trauma, foster care or pre-adoption, self-esteem, ADHD, Autism, grief /loss, family life changes including a child’s adjustment to those planned and unplanned life changes.

Patricia applies play techniques from a child directive and/or therapist lead perspective, dependent on the approach needed for each child/family. Patricia believes a child’s success in therapeutic work is best supported through a perspective of partnering with the child’s primary caregivers in service of the child’s therapeutic growth.  Being a caregiver/parent is the hardest and most important job in the world!  From a system’s perspective, when one aspect of a system is challenged or stuck, the whole system feels it, so shifting just one part of a family system (i.e. a child), will affect the whole of the family; but is not the only solution as leaders within a family group will also have the opportunity for growth and renewal through the progress of the child client. 

Alexis Greeves, LPCC, RPT-S (ASL)

Alexis is a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor (LPCC), a Registered Play Therapist and Supervisor (RPT-S), and a Theraplay® practitioner and trainer. Alexis has been providing psychotherapy services to children, adolescents, adults and families for over 20 years. Alexis is trained in EMDR, Sensorimotor Psychotherapy, Co-Active Coaching, and a great variety of play therapy modalities. Teaching and training is a great joy for Alexis as she enjoys raising up the next generation of therapists to carry on this healing work. Alexis has taught Intro to Play Therapy courses at the graduate level in Washington, DC and in the Twin Cities. She is a co-owner of Hope and Healing Family Counseling, LLC and founding member of Safe Haven (https://safehavenmn.com/). Alexis presents nationally on understanding and treating trauma in deaf and hard of hearing children and adolescents. Alexis completed her undergraduate work at Wesleyan University in Connecticut and her MA in Counseling at Gallaudet University in Washington, DC.  

She specializes in providing culturally and language-specific mental health services for deaf and hard of hearing individuals of all ages and is fluent in American Sign Language (ASL). 

Alexis enjoys playing running charades, singing karaoke at top volume (sometimes well, sometimes not), traveling the world to visit friends and family and then plopping down on the couch to watch TV with her family.  

More information on Alexis can be found at: https://safehavenmn.com/alexis-greeves/

Mikaela Dunn, MSW, LICSW

Mikaela Dunn (she/her) is a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker (LICSW) with over 9 years of experience working as a therapist.  She has provided therapy to kids, teens, adults, and families in multiple different settings, including crisis stabilization, intensive in home, school based, and outpatient therapy. Prior to becoming a therapist, Mikaela worked with teens as a youth care worker at a residential treatment center in Chicago.  Mikaela received her undergraduate degree from The College of St. Benedict, and her MSW from St. Catherine University/The University of St. Thomas.  She is also a Board Approved clinical supervisor.

Mikaela specializes in working with adults in the areas of anxiety, perfectionism, trauma (including pre-verbal trauma, developmental trauma, and single incident trauma), self doubt, life transitions, and neurodivergence.  Mikaela is a certified EMDR therapist.  Her approach is integrative in nature, incorporating trauma and attachment focused therapies, cognitive strategies, polyvagal theory, and expressive therapies (such as sand tray) into her work with clients.  

Mikaela enjoys trying out new restaurants, spending time outdoors by one of Minnesota’s beautiful lakes, and taking in new podcasts, books, and shows. 



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