Mathew Apeseche
LICSW, Heartwood Founder/Director
Mat has over 15 years experience working with children, teens, and parents. After graduating from Bowdoin College in Maine with a major in sociology and a minor in teaching Mat moved out to California and Oregon to work with homeless youth living on the street. From there he became an after-school program director, and eventually transitioned to working with students in their homes and communities as a therapeutic mentor and in-home family therapist. After earning his Masters of Social Work from Boston College Mat worked as the clinical director of a therapeutic special education school in Chelsea and a clinical consultant with the Somerville school district in MA. Now he is the director of Heartwood Expeditions and operates his private therapy practice out of Williamsburg, MA.
Mat loves travel and adventure. He has driven cross-country 9 times by car, van, and motorcycle and has traveled to 16 foreign countries. His favorite past times include many physical/recreational activities: skiing, rock climbing, running, hiking, camping, basketball, and martial arts. Mat also loves both playing music and attending live music events. He lives in Goshen, MA with his wife, 2 children, and two dogs Lucy and George.
Lucy Mae Sunday,
Certified Mindfulness Teacher cMT-P, MA student Couple & Family Therapy
I am led by my spiritual experience of this world. I experience a connective, poetic and cerebral internal system loaded with deep compassion and deep emotion. Being a heart-led witness to the human experience in all of its nuance, grief, humor, hope and fear is my favorite part of this life. I am trained as a (eco) systemic therapist, examining how socio-cultural and environmental dynamics and inequities influence our relationships. I hold a masters degree in Couple & Family therapy from Antioch New England, and work full time with couples and relational constellations through The Northampton Center for Couples Therapy. In my work with couples, I utilize evidence-based and experiential models such as Gottman, Emotionally Focused Therapy (EFT), Parts work and solution-focused therapies. As a certified mindfulness teacher (c-MTP), I emphasize working in the present moment, focusing on the relationship between our mind and body as a source of healing and an invitation to return to an inherent fullness of experience. I use bottom-up approaches in working with trauma, focusing on nervous system regulation and stress resolution. I live in the Hilltowns of Western Massachusetts with my Husband Charlie, and our dog Juniper, influencing my active participation in this ecosystem. I am moved by our inherent impermanence and interdependence on a daily basis.
Sara Kunz
Certified Meditation and Yoga Teacher
& Primitive Survivalist
Sara (aka the Joyful Warrior) has been empowering people through movement and mindfulness for a decade. Starting with her background as a circus performer, Sara helps others develop confidence, courage, and communication skills by integrating mindfulness and wellness into physical activity. She has performed and taught internationally as a circus artist and opened a nonprofit for sexual assault survivors in 2020 as a way of giving back in her own healing journey. Along that journey she discovered the sense of peace and personal power that comes from practicing primitive survival, and has since gone on many survival adventures, one of which will be aired on the Discovery Channel this year.
She integrates evidence based tools with hollistic and experience-based approaches to happiness, resilience, and well being. You can learn more about Sara and her workshops, retreats, and digital content at sarakunz.com.
Paul Castagno
Founder/Director Revolution Martial Fitness
Paul has been helping people of all ages to become more confident, resilient, and compassionate for over 20 years. Bullied as a young kid, he was fortunate to discover the transformative power of martial arts at the age of 14. From that day forward he dedicated himself to his practice, which led to the first opportunity to teach martial arts. A few years later he opened his own school. Paul quickly realized the responsibility that he took on to be a positive role model to the people he taught, and made the commitment to turn his school into a positive force in the community. Since then, Paul has grown his school to be one of the most successful and respected schools in the country by combining modern martial arts training practices, life skills, youth mentoring, and community involvement. He’s taught thousands of students while initiating community house builds, nature clean ups, meal drives, and kindness initiatives. Using it all as a vehicle to teach about the importance of growing oneself and using that to better the community . Paul speaks about it all in his TED talk “The Power of Believing in Others”. You can also find out more about his school at www.revolutionmartialfitness.com
Erika Reimers
MSW, LICSW
Erika holds a LICSW with an MSW from Boston University and has been practicing social work since 2011 when they received their BSW from Eastern University. Erika has a passion for supporting children in their homes and communities in order to support healthier family dynamics. Their career has included services to diverse populations in underserved communities. Erika has been providing in-home therapy services with children and families since 2013 and has been providing clinical supervisor for in-home therapist since 2018. They have done extensive work in the areas of foster care, trauma and farm-based therapy. Erik retains certifications in the following areas: Psychological First Aid, Non-Abusive Psychological and Physical Intervention (NAPPI), Trauma, REACH Beyond Violence Advocacy, and CPR/First Aid.