Helping people heal has been Luke’s passion for over twenty years. He recognizes the close relationships between our physical, mental, spiritual, and emotional health. He credits his own counselor as a teenager with inspiring him to help others through a counseling role. He understands first hand the challenges of chronic illness, mental health issues, addiction, and painful circumstances. And, he also understands how to powerfully utilize tools and strategies to come through healthier, humbler, and wiser. Luke brilliantly helps clients bring clarity to their own goals, clearly see their strengths, and find the courage and resources to move forward. Luke is strength-based, and trauma-informed. He utilizes cognitive behavioral therapy, motivational interviewing, and dialectical behavioral strategies. He says about his work at Foothills Counseling, “This isn’t just a job for me. It’s a calling.

In his free time Luke enjoys painting, biking, and weight training.

Rebecca brings years of experience working with people at all stages of life and all ages. She has witnessed that therapy can be a transformative experience and realizes it takes courage to seek help and make changes. She aims to work with people at their pace and help them see through a new perspective so they can find ways of letting go of whatever may be getting in their way of feeling better and can acquire new skills to cope and move forward. 

Rebecca’s approach to therapy is trauma informed and influenced by Attachment Theory, Systems Theory, Psychodynamic Therapy, psychoeducation, and Motivational Interviewing (MI). She uses a mixture of evidence based therapies and focuses on finding the best fit for each individual, some of these include; Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Trauma Focused-CBT (TF-CBT), Grief and Bereavement, Narrative Therapy, Play Therapy, Strength Based, Solution Focused, Structural Family Therapy, and Gottman Method. Rebecca also loves understanding neuro-anatomy and how the physical functioning of the brain affects our behaviors and mental health. She loves spending time with her kids and husband and some of her favorite hobbies are trying out different natural hot spring mineral pools and participating in a good board-game night.

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Hailey Thompson is a dedicated counselor, always bringing compassion and innovation to her work with clients. She sees herself as being a tool to help guide clients in these times to realize their own innate strengths, as well as helps teach them practical tools they can use to help cope. 
She has been working with adolescents and their families in the school-based population in Eastern Oregon for the past 10 years. She uses an array of clinical modalities including mindfulness practices, cognitive behavioral therapy, experiential therapies, solution focused strength-based therapies, among other clinical interventions when working with children and their families.
Hailey prides herself on always listening with a non-judgmental ear to allow others to share while holding space for them in an empathetic and confidential manner.  She strongly believes that every person and their journey is uniquely their own, and that the client is the master of their own path. Hailey helps others to hone their authentic self by building a trusting therapeutic relationship and utilizing strength-based approaches to help clients attain inner healing and realize their own unique strengths.  
In her free time, you will find her in the kitchen cooking new meals, spending time with her family and friends, and enjoying time in the saddle with her two horses. She also enjoys traveling and exploring new places and cultures whenever she gets the chance. 

Eileen Salsig is devoted to delivering compassionate care that truly makes a difference.  She moved to La Grande in 2017 to provide mental health services for the youth at the OYA Camp Riverbend facility in Hilgard. Eileen counsels part-time so that she
can continue to foster OYA youth who are learning independent living skills while living in her home.
Eileen has experience helping individuals successfully work through everyday problems as well as depression, anxiety, trauma, bipolar disorder, PTSD, and other mental health problems. She listens without judgement and provides caring support for individuals going through difficult times and struggling with mental illness. Her approach to therapy incorporates a Christian worldview with cognitive methods (exploring one’s thoughts and beliefs) and an object relations theoretical orientation (exploring links between current and past relationships of significance to clients.) While Christian values are an inherent aspect of her therapy, out of care and respect, she will not impose her beliefs on her clients.
Eileen  views counseling as a collaborative effort between counselor and client. Her goal as therapist is to help clients identify personal needs, understand conflicts, discover new options, and make informed choices. Regardless of past or present circumstances, clients can be assured that Eileen will treat them with kindness and respect.

Elijah O’Lear is deeply passionate about helping individuals heal both within themselves and in their relationships. He believes that true healing often requires first looking back before moving forward. All of us carry emotional wounds, trauma, unrealized expectations, unforgiveness and unresolved grief that shape our personalities and influence the way we show up in relationships—sometimes for better, sometimes for worse.
Elijah’s goal is to guide you in understanding your own story and your unique upbringing, and help you integrate it into the person you are today. Through this process, he encourages you to embrace both the good and the challenging parts of your journey, ultimately seeing your life as an integrated whole and how it fits into the bigger picture. There’s a quote that claims, “if our pain is not transformed, then it is transferred”. Elijah seeks to help individuals recognize that while our traumas, grief, and emotional wounds may feel like the most shameful, frightening, and painful aspects of our stories, they are also the parts that make us most human. When properly attended to, these parts of our stories are the wellsprings of healing in our life that leads to internal integration, relational restoration, and ultimately the beauty and healing we can offer to the world.
Elijah uses an integrative approach to counseling, blending techniques from Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Strengths Based, Solutions-Focused, Narrative Therapy, Person-Centered Therapy, Attachment Theory, Internal Family Systems (IFS), and Psychodynamic Therapy. With experience in working with both individuals and couples (ages 12-65), Elijah is committed to providing a compassionate and tailored approach to healing for each person he works with. He is also very interested in neurotheology, which explores the intersection of interpersonal neurobiology (how relationships impact our brain and understanding of ourselves, others, and the world) and theology (what we believe about God).

Even as a student intern, Kim Bolen brings an abundance of knowledge and experience to her clients. 
Kim is deeply passionate about helping individuals and families navigate life's challenges. Her extensive experience working with children and families has honed her ability to understand the unique dynamics and challenges faced by these groups. She strives to create tailored therapeutic strategies that empower clients to overcome obstacles and achieve their goals. Her approach is collaborative and empathetic, ensuring each client feels supported and understood in a safe and non-judgmental space.
Kim has a Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, solution-focused, and strength-based approach to working with clients. This approach helps clients identify and modify negative thought patterns and behaviors and highlights clients' strengths and resources, fostering resilience and positive change. By focusing on practical solutions and achievable goals, she strives to equip clients with the tools they need to lead fulfilling and balanced lives.
Providing a safe and welcoming environment is at the heart of her therapeutic approach. She believes that trust and mutual respect are essential for effective therapy. Kim’s commitment is to offer a space where clients can freely express their thoughts and feelings, knowing they will be met with empathy and understanding, collaboratively working towards healing, growth, and lasting positive change.
In her free time, Kim enjoys spending time with her family. She enjoys hiking, camping, paddle boarding, playing games, and is always up for an adventure!

Rachel cares deeply for people, and meets each client in their unique situation with curiosity and compassion. She recognizes that people’s cultural backgrounds, worldviews, biology, and experiences all shape the way in which they approach their healing and growth, and she is ready to jump in and learn and grow with each client. Rachel loves seeing her clients discover and experience their own strengths as they work toward their mental health goals.

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Rachel enjoys all ages and stages of life development. Knowing that relationships foster growth and healing, Rachel encourages clients to identify how relationships are affecting their quality of life and wellbeing. She also uses choice theory, dialect behavioral theory, cognitive behavioral theory and postmodern theories to support the client in achieving their goals.

Rachel grew up in La Grande and loves the beautiful valley and the outdoor activities this rural community provides. She also lived in Minnesota for 14 years and cherishes the cultural experiences in the land of 10,000 lakes, monarch butterflies and tornados. She enjoys spending time with her family, hiking, running, and observing nature. 

​Becca says, "I work with such an incredible and supportive team, who I really enjoy connecting with, and the clients really are amazing.  It's become like a family in many ways and I enjoy talking to people from all walks of life, whether they are in a good place or going through challenges."
Becca provides exceptional customer care in the front office at Foothills Counseling. She is the friendly and efficient presence that keeps enrollment, scheduling, and billing all running smoothly. She also facilitates premarital and marital workshops, and has her eye on a Masters Degree in counseling in the near future.  She holds a Bachelors Degree in psychology from Washington State University and is a wife and mother of two kids.  After spending seven years as an elementary teacher, she has enjoyed jumping into the world of mental health. She likes the outdoors, traveling, good coffee, and spending time with her family. 

Karen is passionate about providing the best customer care for the people that come
into Foothills Counseling. Karen has years of experience of working with people in addiction and
walking through step programs. She has worked at several camp environments serving youth
and adults through some of their most pivotal times of life. Raising four kids, each of them with
their own health challenges, her passion and compassion comes through for families navigating
grief and the challenges that health can have on a family unit. She has spent many years
volunteering, speaking, and working from her own personal and professional experience with
domestic abuse, sexual abuse, substance abuse, and grief.
Karen’s hobbies and loves are her first grandchild, backpacking, living off grid, and
raising animals. Karen is also an experienced chef who loves to bake and cook in her off time!

Jamie co-founded Foothills Counseling with her husband, Luke, and currently manages the business. She holds a Sociology degree from George Fox University. She sees Foothills as a platform where the mental health needs of the community can be met by excellent providers. It is her privilege to facilitate clinicians finding satisfaction in providing excellent care, while clients are served well and lives are changed. Jamie oversees the general flow of the practice. She takes care of the marketing, insurance contracting and billing, and business administration tasks.
Jamie grew up in La Grande, and was happy to return to raise their family and serve the community. She loves northeastern Oregon! She keeps busy homeschooling her three sons and living life as one big learning adventure! She enjoys getting outside and exploring, camping, and gardening.