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Meet Our Team of Intervention Counselors

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Addiction Experts

A Team Who’s Experienced It First Hand

Unlike most intervention companies, Family First Intervention has a full staff, including several experienced professional interventionists. Our team comes from many different backgrounds, and together we have a firm grasp on how various forms of drug and alcohol abuse impact the family dynamic.

We believe that not every client will be a perfect match for each intervention counselor. Therefore, we do our homework early on to understand your family better and then assign you an intervention counselor whose strengths and background best relate to your family’s situation. Our intervention counselors operate in all 50 states, and our group has been going strong since 2008.

The leading staff members and intervention counselors who make up Family First Intervention are as follows:

Mike Loverde

President & Founder

Mike Loverde’s Personal Take

Is an addiction intervention counselor necessary when the family thinks they can do the intervention themselves? As the president and founder of Family First Intervention, Inc., I went to 19 treatment centers willingly because my family did their own intervention and established several rules on which they never followed through.

Every time I went to treatment, I never went for myself, and it never had to work. Frustrated, my family found an addiction intervention specialist. Not only did the intervention counselor obtain my willingness to accept help, he also changed our family system to make me accountable and responsible, allowing me to own the addiction for the first time in my life.

Because of this, I have been clean and sober, and I now perform the same type of intervention that saved my life and my family’s sanity. Families can often talk their loved one into a treatment center. However, rarely do they get them to stay in treatment and remain sober.

Bringing in an addiction intervention counselor greatly increases the long-term likelihood of your loved one remaining sober, as well as the family healing and getting better, too. When families try to do the intervention themselves, they are missing the entire first part of what an intervention is about: changing the family system that has been broken down by the loved one’s addiction.


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Lisa Loverde, CADC
CFO & Compliance Officer

Treatment, Insurance & Intervention Coordinator
Member, National Association of Addiction Treatment Providers (NAATP)
Member, Association for Addiction Professionals (NAADAC)

I am a Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor (CADC) through the Illinois Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Professional Certification Association. I earned an Associate’s degree in Addiction Science at Moraine Valley Community College, graduating in the top of my class. As a member of Phi Theta Kappa, the National Honor Society, I have committed my time and efforts to aiding the local community. My long-term goals include completing a Bachelor’s degree at Grand Canyon University, followed by a Master’s degree with an LCPC (Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor).

My passion is to educate, empower, and inspire families to implement the behavioral changes essential to breaking the cycle of addiction and codependency.

As a practicing para-professional in the field of Substance Abuse and Mental Health since 2007, I have specialized in family systems. I received expert training from the top intervention professionals in the nation.

I completed the Accelerated Program for Behavioral Health Professionals program at The Bridge to Recovery where I was trained in Family of Origin issues, Trauma, Co-dependency, Guilt, and Shame. #ItsNotMyShame!

An active member of Al-Anon and Adult Children of Alcoholics and Dysfunctional Families (ACA, formerly ACOA), I am also an advocate mentor for young women with Family of Origin issues struggling with eating disorders.

I was raised in a dysfunctional alcoholic environment of neglect. In the absence of adults, I became the primary caretaker in the home throughout my tender years. Forced to function as a mini-adult essentially robbed me of my childhood. As a result, I began self-medicating my very painful and different lifestyle with food. By age 22, I suffered from a dangerous eating disorder combination of Anorexia and occasional Bulimia. I received treatment at Hazelden and have been in remission ever since.

My story is typical of children raised in an alcoholic or dysfunctional environment. Addiction, when combined with a dysfunctional family system, is an illness where all members suffer directly or indirectly and, sadly, the dysfunction passes to the next generation if left untreated.

Today, I gratefully continue my journey of recovery and live transparently without shame, guilt, or regret. I believe we all have a choice, whether to harbor our pains and injustices from the past by nursing resentments or to seek help and begin the healing process. ALL family members can recover if they are honest with themselves, open to change, and willing to do the work.

I view my past experiences as a tremendous gift that transformed my life in ways unexpected beyond my wildest hopes or dreams. My healing process inspired a rewarding career path of significant purpose. However, I did not consciously choose it: it chose me through divine intervention.

“Suffering and joy teach us, if we allow them, how to make the leap of empathy, which transports us into the soul and heart of another person. In those transparent moments, we know other people’s joys and sorrows, and we care about their concerns as if they were our own.”
— FRITZ WILLIAMS

Andrew Engbring
CEO & Director of Operations

Andrew Engbring began his career in the addiction field managing a sober living home in Encinitas, California. Through the years, he has shown a tremendous and ongoing commitment to improve upon processes, believing that client experience and family relationships are at the core of healing. in his opportunities of service. Andrew has displayed an ability to be a “man of many hats” and has held various positions in: sober living homes, student recovery programs, advocacy groups for young people in recovery, addiction and mental health treatment, admissions, marketing, and business development. He credits his early days in the industry to a great mentor who urged him to challenge what we think we know about addiction treatment and also to strive for perfection. Andrew demonstrates his calling on a daily basis, never forgetting that every person he encounters in his work is a life at stake. He fully believes that with the right guidance, recovery is possible for every client as well as his or her family.

Like many others with this calling, Andrew is in long-term recovery. For him, physical sobriety is but the necessary first step. True recovery is about what we do with the gift of sobriety. He strives to spread a message of hope, compassion, and service.

Andrew has studied psychology and music at Yavapai College and Mira Costa College. Beyond helping others, he spends his free time in the outdoors where, with his wife and two dogs, he enjoys camping, hiking, traveling, and 4-wheeling.

Amy Cooper, CAC, IC&RC-ADC, NCRC
Family & Post Intervention Support Specialist

Amy’s roller-coaster journey in this beautiful “life” allows her to provide you and those around you the guidance to work through addiction, unhealthy behaviors, unresolved trauma, and family
dynamics. She truly believes that we are “ALL WORTHY” of healing.

In her personal recovery, Amy strives daily to embrace humility, an attitude of gratitude, and honesty. With self-first and an emphasis on being both mentally and physically healthy, she also
clings to her faith in a higher power.

Dr. Gabor Mate says it best: “Addictions always originate in pain, whether felt openly or hidden in the unconscious. They are emotional anesthetics.”

Being here for you is her honor and privilege.

In addition to being a Family & Post Intervention Support Specialist at Family First Intervention, Amy is a Board Certified Drug and Alcohol Counselor accredited by the International
Certification & Reciprocity Board (IC & RC). She also received a National Certification in Advanced Clinical Intervention (NCACIP), and she is an International Master’s Addictions
Coach (IMAC) that envelopes Recovery, Food, and Gambling addiction along with Anger Management and Family Coaching. Additionally, Amy is a SHE RECOVERS® Coach.

Regina Greene, MS, NLP
Family & Post Intervention Support Specialist

Regina started her career as a volunteer crisis counselor, dealing with victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. Before returning to school at Grand Canyon University to train as an addiction counselor, her experience and education in early childhood studies at Wilmington Harbor College allowed her to work in social services with children and families as a Court-Appointed Special Advocate (CASA).

Regina has been involved in the counseling field for well over 18 years, working both inpatient and outpatient in drug treatment centers and psychiatric facilities. Regina is a trained Neurolinguistics Practitioner and Clinical Hypnotherapist with an educational background in trauma and addiction from Grand Canyon University. She is currently preparing a doctoral degree in Clinical Psychology at the University of Arizona.

Regina has worked primarily with individuals and families struggling with the co-morbidity of mental illness and addiction for the last 12 years, developing and facilitating psycho-educational recovery groups along with responsibility for continuing staff development and education.

Adam Faulkner
Family & Post Intervention Support Specialist

Adam Faulkner is originally from Jeffersonville, Ohio, a small Midwestern town. After several years of active alcoholism and drug addiction, Adam found himself facing a 5th DUI charge and potentially looking at years in prison. As a result of his entire family’s commitment, he started his road to recovery in April 2017 with Family First Intervention, an effort initiated by his sister-in-law.

Following a successful intervention, Mr. Faulkner boarded a plane accompanied by the intervention specialist and took a flight to Phoenix where he entered detox and then an inpatient treatment program. As a result of the professional guidance received during the intervention planning process, Adam went on to graduate from a long-term treatment facility. While residing in a sober living home after graduation, he received notice that his 5th DUI case would be treated as his first offense, giving him the freedom to remain in Arizona and continue his recovery.

Adam Faulkner is actively involved in the recovery community and enjoys being of service as outlined in a 12-step program. He has a passion for assisting others throughout their journey in treatment as well as their transition back into society. Adam has worked in the field of recovery for 5 years, assisting families and clients in gaining insight about recovery, healthy communication, and boundaries. What once was a life filled with mind-altering substances, alcohol, chaos, and destruction has been transformed into a life full of hope, faith, gratitude, and growth. When Adam is not assisting others in seeking a solution in recovery, he spends time playing golf, visiting family, and connecting with friends.

“Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don’t matter, and those who matter don’t mind.”― Bernard M. Baruch

Ashley Drake, MA
Intervention Coordinator

Ashley’s passion is to aid in the recovery process of those suffering from addiction as well as their loved ones caught in the vicious cycle.

Her motivation to help others is rooted in her own recovery. In 2010, Ashley entered treatment for polysubstance use and began her recovery journey. She has been in recovery for 13 years and continues to work a 12-step program. She is dedicated to giving back to addicts, families, and communities what she has been given.

Ashley earned an MA in Ministry at Carolina University, magna cum laude; a BS in Psychology at Bethel University, summa cum laude; and an Associate’s degree in Sociology at Nashville State Community College, summa cum laude. She is a member of Sigma Alpha Pi, the National Honor Society of Leadership and Success.

Ashely loves spending time with her husband and two beautiful girls. She enjoys being at the beach and attending church.

Shahar Engbring
Intervention Coordinator

Shahar Engbring was raised in Arad, a small town in the south of Israel. She served in the Israeli armed forces as a front-line officer and, following a promotion, was able to pursue her passion for social work in the Magav, a border guard unit. In this position, her responsibilities included caring for the psychological and social needs of soldiers and their families. Inspired by this work, Shahar continued her education in the United States. She then spent several years in the jewelry industry before returning to her passion for helping others. Shahar has seen the consequences of substance use within her family, which provided her with the experience and the knowledge to help families navigate the difficult journey of recovery.

Shahar loves to spend her free time with her husband and their two dogs. She enjoys the outdoors, camping, hiking, traveling, and working out.

Chip Winfrey
Intervention Coordinator

After an extensive professional career in other industries, I transitioned into the field of substance abuse treatment and professional intervention after being blessed with my own recovery from addiction in 2011. As the child of an alcoholic parent and grandparents, my own struggle with this illness emerged in my teens and grew significantly worse over the ensuing years. My chance at a new life finally began when my closest family members removed the support system around me that had unintentionally enabled my addiction.

From a bitter existence as a reclusive, entirely dysfunctional alcoholic to the fulfilling and rewarding life of a world traveler, vocal artist and author, I have experienced for myself the gift of recovery that I am so eager to share with others. Decades of struggle have been repurposed into enormous assets to me in my role as an intervention coordinator, helping families to better understand not only the true nature of the illness of addiction, but the family dynamic around the addicted loved one, including how to effect permanent, positive change for both.

Makayla Zubal
Administrative Assistant