Our Staff

Paula D. Hopper

Executive Director
Betsy Walker

Administrative Assistant
Dr. Mark Lutrell

Medical Director
Veronica Goff

Financial Director
Karin Schmidt

Assistant Financial Director
Clayton Pattat

Admissions
Frances Oliver

Admissions
Lenoria Davis

Nurse
John McCoy

Clinical Psychologist
Thurmon Denton

Alcohol and Drug Counselor
Danien Elmore

Alcohol and Drug Counselor
Brenda Malone

Alcohol and Drug Counselor
Adolphus Gillespie

Alcohol and Drug Counselor
Marsha Martin

Alcohol and Drug Counselor
Sylvaneous Sanvee

Clinical Assistant
Andria Eskridge

SWAT
Lawanda English

Women's Counselor
Debbye Miller

Women's Treatment Coordinator
Patricia Talbert

Women's Outpatient Alcohol and Drug Counselor
Dana Bond

HIV Educator
Selekia Leigh

Dietician
Ernestine Simmons

Cook
Gerald Coleman

Safety
Gary Reese

Health and Safety Manager

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Paula D. Hopper

Executive Director

Paula Harper

Paula D. Hopper

B.A., M.S., LADAC

“Seeing the devastation of alcoholism and addiction in my own family encourages me to make sure that Serenity is a refuge. Serenity allows me to share hope and love to others.”

Paula Hopper holds a B.A. in psychology and sociology from Middle Tennessee State University and an M.S. in Counseling from the University of Memphis. She is a Licensed Alcohol and Drug Abuse Counselor (LADAC) and has worked in counseling for over 20 years. She also works in private practice with Christian Counseling and Consulting and as an adjunct faculty member with Mid South Community College, teaching courses in the program of Addictions Studies. Paula is a surveyor with the Commission on Accreditation for Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) and has participated in the Central East Addiction Technology Transfer Center Leadership Institute.

“Just as I have loved you, you are also to love one another.” John 13: 34-35

Betsy Walker

Administrative Assistant

Betsy Walker “I get to see clients walk in the front door when they first arrive, and then I witness their lives transformed when they leave.”

Betsy is the usually the first face our clients see when they walk in the front door. She fields all the calls from the front desk, educates callers on Serenity and assists wherever she is needed. She has been with Serenity since 2003. Betsy began working in the field of recovery in 1988. She says her background has taught her a lot about the program.

Dr. Mark Lutrell

Medical Director

Veronica Goff

Financial Director

Veronica Goff “You name it, I do it.”

“Ronnie,” as she is known at Serenity Recovery Centers, Inc., serves as the financial director. She has been with Serenity since 1995. She manages accounts payable, accounts receivable, payroll, employee benefits, insurance and other general accounting tasks. She also writes grants and provides the financial reporting for the Board of Directors, CARF, auditors and banks. Ronnie is responsible for program compliance for state and local licenses and serves as the vendor contact for the facility. She is also a notary public.

Karin Schmidt

Assistant Financial Director

Karin Schwartz “The secret of change is to focus all your energy, not on fighting the old, but on building the new” – Socrates

Karin joined Serenity with over 15 years of Administrative/Operations, Human Resources, & Benefits/Insurance experience working for various corporations. Karin has been with Serenity since May 2014.

Karin enjoys spending time with family & her 4 beautiful grandchildren. She also, is an advocate of recovery in the community.

Clayton Pattat

Admissions

Clayton Pattat

B.B.A., M.S.

“I enjoy working with people and it gives me great pleasure to see those in need of help getting a second chance in life.”

Clayton has been with Serenity since 2003. He works with clients from their initial contact through the admission process. Clayton works in the Tipton County Court system and with local attorneys in placing individuals with DUI’s in treatment. He also helps manage the medical records at the agency. He received his B.B.A. from Lambuth University and his M.S. in Chemical Dependency Counseling from Madison University.

Frances Oliver

Admissions

Frances Oliver

B.A., M.S.

“I really enjoy being a servant in our community.”

Frances has been with Serenity since 2010. She assesses clients and works with them through the admission process. Before transitioning to admissions, she worked as a monitor in the women’s residential program. She received a B.A. from LeMoyne Owens in Social Work and a M.S. in Healthcare Administration from Strayer University.

Lenoria Davis

Nurse

Lenora Davis

Lenoria Davis

L.P.N

“Recovery is my passion.”

Lenoria has worked in the recovery field for the past twenty-two years and has been at Serenity Recovery Centers since 2010. Lenoria assists the M.D. and facilitates groups and classes.

John McCoy

Clinical Psychologist

John McCoy

M.S., PhD

Dr. McCoy has 35 years of experience as a clinical psychologist. He has seen more than 2,000 alcoholics and addicts over the years. Originally from Oklahoma, he completed his internship at the University of Tennessee Medical School in Memphis in 1975 and has remained in Memphis ever since. In addition to his work at Serenity, he is in private practice, specializing in substance dependency. At Serenity, he evaluates clients referred by their counselors to determine if they have a psychiatric diagnosis as well as a substance dependency diagnosis, which is true for 65% of addicts and alcoholics.

Thurmon Denton

Alcohol and Drug Counselor

Thurmon Denton

B.A.

“My life is all about helping people change their lives.”

Thurmon has been with Serenity Recovery Centers since 2001. He has a B.A. in Criminology and is a liasion with the Fayette County Court system and the federal and state probations. Thurmon collaborates with the University of Memphis Athletic Program conducting assessments and drug screens.

Danien Elmore

Alcohol and Drug Counselor

Brenda Malone

Alcohol and Drug Counselor

Brenda Malone

Adolphus Gillespie

Alcohol and Drug Counselor

Adolphus Gillespie

B.S., LADC, CSAC

“We are blessed by helping others. Helping even one individual provides a full sense of gratitude.”

Adolphus is an Internationally Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor. His specialty is Cognitive Intervention and Behavior Modification. He has a strong and diverse, 15 year background in the field of alcohol and drug counseling. Adophus has been with Serenity since April, 2005 when he moved here from Wisconsin. He has worked as a counselor in the Racine County Jail (2 CI) for five years, and with the Gateway Foundation in Illinois.

Marsha Martin

Alcohol and Drug Counselor

Sylvaneous Sanvee

Clinical Assistant

Andria Eskridge

SWAT

Andria Eskridge

Lawanda English

Women's Counselor

Lawanda joined the agency in December 2014. Lawanda has received her B.A. from The University of Mississippi in Criminal Justice. Lawanda also has a Masters degree in Education from Strayer University. Lawanda has spent many years working with children and families providing mental health services.

Debbye Miller

Women's Treatment Coordinator

Debbye Miller

B.S., LADC

“My heart is in working with women to guide their broken spirits in order to regain hope in themselves and their lives through working the twelve step program. Miracles do happen for those who are willing to believe, accept help, and do the necessary inner work to change behaviors.”

Debbye has been with Serenity Recovery Centers since 2000. Her responsibilities include supervising the clinical and support staff, conducting group and individual counseling sessions and providing educational lectures. Debbye has more than 24 years experience in alcohol and drug counseling. She is an Internationally Certified Advanced Alcohol and Drug Counselor and a Certified Clinical Supervisor and is licensed in both Arkansas and Tennessee. She has a B.S. in social work and alcohol and drug counseling from the University of Memphis.

Patricia Talbert

Women's Outpatient Alcohol and Drug Counselor

“For 33 years my primary purpose has been to help other women walk into recovery and become whole.”

Pat has been with Serenity since March, 2012. She moved to Memphis from Houston, TX to be close to her daughter, son-in-law, and 6 year old grandson. She has been in the addiction treatment field since 1984. Pat was a Licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor in Houston, TX. She was the director of an inpatient treatment center, the coordinator of a women’s outpatient program, and was lead counselor for the family program. Her last job was with Memorial Hermann Prevention and Recovery Center where she supervised patient care assistants. She currently works with the Shelby County Drug Court clients while enrolled in the intensive outpatient services at Serenity. Pat works with the ladies Pat is passionate about helping women with addictions, and has devoted her life to this. She attended Mississippi University for Women and Delta State University.

Dana Bond

HIV Educator

Dana Poyner

Dana Bond

B.S.W., M.P.A.

Dana joined Serenity in May, 2013. Raised in Memphis, she graduated from East High School before attending the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and University of Memphis, where she earned her Bachelor’s degree in Social Work. Dana received a Master’s degree in Public Administration from Strayer University. She has worked 7 years in the field of HIV with agencies such as Friends for Life Corporation and Case Management Incorporated.

Selekia Leigh

Dietician

Selekia Leigh

Ernestine Simmons

Cook

Earnestine Caldwell

Gerald Coleman

Safety

Gerald Coleman

Gary Reese

Health and Safety Manager

“Safety and repair is first and foremost. As a truck driver of 20 years and the father of two sets of twins, I know the importance of safety. I am inspired to do my best after seeing the dramatic changes in our clients.”

Gary joined Serenity in March, 2013. He is responsible for licensure and accreditation compliances regarding health and safety at the agency. He earned an A.T.A. degree as a heavy equipment operator while living in Seattle, Washington.

Our Staff

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