About our Trainers

Nicky Lock, Course Coordinator

Nicky has been working in the counselling field for over 20 years and manages a counselling centre on the Northern Beaches of Sydney. She first worked in tertiary education nearly 30 years ago as a university lecturer at Dar as Salaam Medical school in Tanzania, and has been involved in adult education as an adjunct to her counselling work ever since. Nicky co-developed the St Marks RTO courses in Christian Counselling in 2003 with Helen Miller, and has been involved in training and coordinating courses in Sydney, Darwin and the Central Coast. She says she is passionate about training counsellors who are personally integrated, and who are able to integrate knowledge and skills with their faith and personal experience in their pastoral and clinical work.
Quals BSc(Hons) Grad Dip EFT MAPC PACFA reg Cert IV WAAT

Zoe Broomhead, Trainer

Zoe is a clinically accredited counsellor who has spent 12 years working in community based counselling centres. Since 2006 Zoe has worked in her own practice as well as teaching counselling skills at tertiary level institutions. In 2004 Zoe initiated a series of workshops and groups called ‘Living life’ series www.livinglife.net.au promoting community education, providing support groups and educative short term workshops in the community. Zoe along with her business partner are currently bringing their long-term dreams together with the purchase and renovation of a property in Ringwood in the South Eastern suburbs of Melbourne to be opened in late 2009. This development shall see a professional faith based counselling practice within the local community.
Quals B.A. (Min) Counselling PACFA CMCCA

Margie Cohen, Trainer

Margie was a high school English and History teacher for 20 years before spending the last 12 years working as a counsellor, firstly as a family and adolescent counsellor with YFC and more recently as a relationships counsellor in private practice with Hills St Counselling and Psychology, Gosford. Her main areas of interest are families, young people and relationships. Margie also has an interest in training new counsellors and facilitating pathways for trainees into the workplace. Married to Adrian with three adult children and two grandchildren on the way, Margie relaxes by cycling or kayaking.
Quals BA Dip Ed; MA; BCouns Dip Rel Clling AARC(clin) Cert IV WAAT

Genevieve Cribb, Trainer

Genevieve’s original training was in social work and she has been working as a counsellor ever since graduating in 1995. She received further training in Christian Counselling at the Anglican Counselling Centre.

Her early work was with refugee survivors of torture in Western Sydney and she furthered her specialty in trauma counselling in the UK where she coordinated a residential treatment program for survivors of severe abuse. On returning to Sydney she has an ongoing commitment to survivors of sexual assault, as an after hours Sexual Assault Counsellor with Westmead Hospital.

Geneveive began working at The Cottage Counselling Centre in 2004 and in 2009 was appointed Director of the service. She has a passion for providing high quality professional Christian counselling to those who most need it and can least afford it and most of her clients are survivors of abuse. She also provides clinical supervision and training.

In addition to her counselling work in Sydney Genevieve has been to Rwanda where she was trained local church people in caring for survivors of the genocide. Genevieve has trained with St Marks since 2007 and loves to see curious people develop into capable and passionate Christian counsellors and pastoral workers.
Quals BSW MHA MMASW (Acc)

Ruth Dougall, Trainer

Ruth comes from a nursing background, a field in which she worked until emigrating from Scotland in 1985. After working in hospital chaplaincy, she decided to commence counsellor training. She gained a Diploma in Christian Couselling from Tanglewood Ministries and more recently undertook further study at UWS. She is drawn to working in an Emotionally Focused framework, and has been studying at the Institute for Emotionally Focused Therapy. Ruth has until recently worked in a counselling agency as an individual and couple counsellor. As part of her role there she presented marriage enrichment workshops. She also co-facilitates a support group run by the Suicide Support Network. She is currently training the Cert IV group at Sutherland.

Ruth has been married for 23yrs and has two teenagers, a dog and a cockateil! She is actively involved in her local church and has a passion for women's ministry.
Quals Dip C.C., Grad Dip Applied Counselling, MAPC.

Susan Taylor, Trainer

Susan Taylor first became interested in counselling through the Lifeline Telephone Counselling Training Course 15 years ago. Since then Susan has completed the Masters of Christian Counselling at Wesley Institute, and finds training with St Marks for the past three years at Kincumber a great way to keep her communication and counselling skills real. She considers passing these tools onto trainees and clients to have had a far-reaching impact on personal and family lives.

Susan has counselled youth in Sydney and the Central Coast in a variety of settings, including residential homes, semi-supported accommodation, churches, schools and youth centres. Susan's interests include (Holy) spirit-led, emotionally-focussed, family systems therapy and counselling in a cross-cultural context.

Bevan Walls, Trainer

Bevan has been working in the counselling field for the last 7 years and works at Hills St (Gosford) and the Cottage (Narrabeen) Christian Counselling Centres. He first worked as a Professional Engineer in the electricity industry in country NSW. About 30 years ago he became interested in counselling and ran emotional growth groups within in his local church using material from the Burlingame Christian Counselling Centre in California. More recently he has run groups based on the Boundaries and Recovery. As an Engineer he taught at TAFE and in-house courses for clients. He has taught at the St Mark’s course at both the Cert IV and Advanced Diploma level at the Central Coast over the last 15 months and has presented workshops on grief to other organizations. Bevan says he draws strongly on his own life experiences and therapy as well as his professional training and in training others. He is also passionate about the integration of his faith in counselling.
Quals ASTC B Couns (UNE) MAPC PACFA reg

Alicia Dobson, Trainer

Alicia has had a passion for counselling since she studied psychology in year 11 at school. Since then Alicia has completed a Certificate IV in Family Counselling, a Psychology Degree at Macquarie University, and a Masters of Counselling at Wesley Institute. Alicia specializes in working with Children and Adolescent clients and has worked out of schools, residential programs and in private practice.

Her interests include working with young children and adolescents experiencing change through grief, trauma, family breakdown and other difficulties. Alicia uses many play tools like sand, clay, paint, puppets, teddies and toys to help her young clients to communicate their difficulties. Alicia integrates her faith in her counselling and loves having the Holy Spirit as her guide. she is currently training the Certificate IV group at Kincumber and is finding it a great way to revise her basic communication and counselling skills, she also loves to watch the growth and change in her students lives as they progress through the course.

Kim Pow, Trainer

Kim comes from a nursing background and in more recent times, she has been working as a Christian counsellor with young men and women and has been thoroughly enjoying the experience. Kim completed the Certificate IV, Advanced Diploma and the Vocational Graduate Diploma of Relationship Counselling, all through St Mark's, and highly recommends the training offered. Kim is delighted to now be a trainer with St Mark's, and is in the process now of setting up private practice in Gosford. Kim is a wife, a mother of four and a grandmother of one gorgeous boy, and an avid reader who is also learning to quilt in her spare time.
Quals RN, CM, CFHN (Tres), IBCLC; Cert IV in Christian Clling & Comm Skills; Adv Dip Clling; Voc Grad Dip Rship Clling

Kim Taylor, Trainer

Kim is a counsellor and therapist in private practice at Gymea (Spirited Life). Her counselling training, through her work as an oncology and palliative care nurse and as a clinical nurse consultant and nurse educator, includes 20 years of supporting people in crisis, grief and bereavement, including supporting those diagnosed with cancer.

Kim’s counselling skills training continued with an Advanced Diploma of Christian Counselling and was followed by a Graduate Diploma of Counselling at the University of New England. She is currently furthering her studies with a Graduate Diploma of Emotionally Focused Counselling. Kim believes that all her clients have the strength and resilience to overcome their issues. She endeavours to help them to achieve their goals and live a spirited life, and to find their authentic self.

Kim is an educator and facilitator, having worked as an adult educator in Oncology and Palliative Care Nursing. She is a trained Life Force Facilitator and has run Door Of Hope for 4 years for survivors of sexual abuse. Kim is a trained facilitator for Focus on The Family in Drug Proof Your Kids, and also for Parenting Teenagers education courses, through her private practice.

Kim has a community focus and has networked in the community sector for over 6 years, receiving grants from Sutherland Shire Council to run counselling and courses for women and children affected by domestic violence. She is also active in the cancer care area and volunteers on the Sutherland Shire Relay For Life Committee, which she has done for the past 10 years. Kim also runs a private retreat, Waymount Farm, and has a vision to run healing retreats in the future.

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links updated: 27-sep-11