Pastoral Counseling

Pastoral Counseling is available for all persons and draws on the rich traditions of both psychology and, if desired, spiritually, working from an interfaith perspective, respecting everyone's journey as they face difficult life experiences

Center Description

The Assabet Valley Pastoral Counseling Center (AVPCC) provides quality therapeutic services (child, adolescent, adult, couple, family and group psychotherapy, testing and assessment, and preventative education programs) to the greater Central Massachusetts area (clients came from 60 communities this past year). AVPCC is unique in that its therapists are doubly trained in the behavioral sciences and religion. As such, our mission for 27 years has been providing counseling to individuals, couples, children, adolescents, families and groups utilizing each person’s own faith perspective in their healing and growth — a view that has recently captured the interest of the scientific community.

In the past few years the Assabet Valley Pastoral Counseling Center has recruited a new executive director, six new therapists (including two child therapists) and office manager, expanded the board of directors, doubled the number of counseling hours, tripled the number of intakes, secured 12 HMO insurance contracts and several Employee Assistance Programs, began to provide clergy psychological evaluations, developed a satellite site, updated software and hardware, provided preventative education presentations to hundreds of persons, and participated regularly with the Westborough and Marlborough Interfaith Clergy Associations and the Westborough Human Service Alliance.

The clinical staff of the pastoral counseling center includes a Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker (LISCW); a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist & Licensed Mental Health Counselor; A Licensed Mental Health Counselor (Ph.D.); a Licensed Psychologist, a Certified Spiritual Director and a Certified Social Worker. Four of the staff have taught or are teaching undergraduate and graduate courses in Psychology and Pastoral Counseling.

A fundamental aspect of AVPCC's mission is to provide therapy to anyone regardless of one’s ability to pay for counseling. Many persons that come to AVPCC have medical insurance that is very limited in mental health coverage, many persons do not have insurance, and many persons are not employed. Therefore, the Center maintains an Assistance Fund that provides the difference in what a person may be able to afford and the minimum cost of providing counseling. The Center relies on donations from the community to provide this relief.

Simply put, the pastoral counseling center is growing! More accurately, more and more persons are finding the level of clinical expertise combined with the compassion and redemption of the pastoral perspective as found here at AVPCC are the qualities most likely to affect their healing and growth.