Meet our team at Summit Malibu in beautiful Malibu, California where we have experience in treating drug and alcohol addictions, with great success. We’re with you every step in the process from before and after treatment. Get to know our team below.
Owners
William Oswald, Chief Executive Officer, and Founder
Summit Malibu was founded by William Oswald, who has over 40 years of experience in the field of substance use, addiction treatment, and mental health recovery.
As a hands-on owner in recovery himself, William has handcrafted the Summit Malibu treatment program by drawing upon his extensive experience with proven methods for long-term success. Read More
Steve Booth, Chief Financial Officer, and Founder
Steven earned his B.A. from the University of California, Santa Barbara in Economics. Before helping to co-found Summit Malibu Steven worked in both private and public accounting. Like many others, Steven has seen first hand the destruction that addiction can inflict on family and friends. He has also witnessed the extraordinary changes that can be made when addicts receive the necessary treatment.
Medical Team
Lisa Benya, D.O.
Dr. Lisa Benya, D.O., is a 1995 graduate of the Ohio University College of Osteopathic Medicine. She is an internal medicine doctor that has served the Malibu community for over the past 10 years.
Her caring and compassionate approach combines both eastern and western medicine and has earned her a great reputation and a lot of respect in the local community. Read More
William Stanley, M.D.
Dr. William D. Stanley, M.D., received his Doctorate of Medicine degree from UMDNJ – Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in Piscataway, NJ.
Dr. Stanley completed his Boards for ASAM (American Society of Addiction Medicine) in 2000, and later for ABAM (American Board of Addiction Medicine) in 2010. Read More
Shahla Modir, M.D.
Dr. Shahla Modir, M.D., has over 20 years of experience in addiction, psychiatry, and integrative medicine.
Dr. Modir is dual board-certified in Addiction and Psychiatry, serving as a diplomate of the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology and its Addiction Psychiatry certification. Read More
Directors
Kristin Robert, Executive Director
Hailing from a background in business administration and customer service, Kristin Robert joined the team at Summit Malibu in January 2014.
As Executive Director, she oversees the clinical and support staff, as well as all aspects of our dual diagnosis addiction treatment program. Read More
Greg Rigali, Director of Operations
Greg Rigali has been working in the field of substance use disorders and mental health treatment since 2015, and is currently the Director of Operations of Summit Malibu.
He has been instrumental in managing previous addiction treatment and support teams of nearly 100 staff members and up to 70 clients at a time. Read More
Joseph Neely, Admissions Director
Joseph Neely, better known as JoJo, is originally from Kentucky and is the Admissions Director of Summit Malibu.
For all prospective clients considering addiction treatment at Summit Malibu, chances are good that JoJo will be the first person you talk to about our program. Read More
Clinical Team
Julia Alperovich, LMFT, Clinical Supervisor
Julia Alperovich is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (CA LMFT#104657) with over 12 years of experience in addiction treatment. She has a Master’s of Science in Marriage and Family Therapy from Seton Hall University with a specialization in the neurophysiology of addiction. She is also a Certified Sex Addiction Therapist and a Certified Clinical Partner Specialist with extensive experience in working with sexual dysfunctions and betrayal trauma. Julia is certified in numerous trauma-focused treatment modalities and consults for numerous addiction treatment programs throughout the Los Angeles area. She regularly provides direct clinical contact to clients, in-service clinical training and continuing education for clinical teams, and educational lectures and publications for other professionals in the field.
Having worked in various clinical settings including private practice, inpatient and community mental health, Julia brings a wealth of expertise and versatility to her hands-on approach to treating addiction. She has a warm and direct demeanor, and her collaborative style of treatment is invaluable to a comprehensive program such as Summit Malibu’s.
When Julia is not working, she enjoys her downtime with a good book, her fur-baby Agnes, or exploring new foodie spots in Los Angeles with her husband.
Beth Farar is a California State Licensed Marriage, Family and Child Psychotherapist who has been treating people for the last 22 years. Beth graduated from Cal State Northridge in 1992 as a Radio TV Film Major and then went on to get her Masters in Psychotherapy from Philip’s Graduate Institute in Encino, Ca. Beth specializes in individuals, couples, children, adolescents and family therapy. Beth is also trained in Rapid Resolution Therapy by the creator and pioneer Dr. John Connelley.
As a California Native, Beth has worked in Addiction Treatment for the past 10 years and understands the challenges, hopes, and fears that clients experience when seeking recovery from Addiction. Additionally, Beth has worked in private practice and various public schools counseling children, adolescents, and their families.
As an experiential therapist, Beth often uses the beach to do Grief and Loss Exercises for clients who are suffering from the loss of a loved one through death, divorce, emotional cut-off or a loss of self. Beth helps clients identify their desires and empowers them to make positive changes in their lives. Her approach is compassionate, direct and nonjudgmental while helping clients feel safe in their recovery journey.
Lindsey is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with a strong background in addiction and mental health recovery work. She has extensive experience working with adolescents, adults, families and couples as they navigate the road to change. She utilizes a combination of modalities tailored to fit client’s unique needs, which may include psychodynamic therapy, structural family therapy, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), and mindfulness.
Her specialties include the treatment of anxiety and depression, substance abuse, and trauma. Lindsey has worked as an administrator and a therapist in both in-patient and outpatient treatment settings, and she is currently in private practice.
Amanda Feinberg is a graduate of University of Southern California, Los Angeles where she earned her BA in psychology and fine art. She received her MA in Marital and Family Therapy with a specialty in Art Therapy from Loyola Marymount University. Amanda is a licensed marriage and family therapist. She has worked in a variety of clinical settings from treatment centers to private practice. community mental health to private practice. In addition she is EMDRIA trained in attached-focused EMDR.
Cyndle is passionate and devoted to empowering others and creating positive awareness within the mind, body and spirit. As a therapist, she helps clients find inspiration and motivation in a life of healing and hope, and helping create a life worth living.
Cyndle works work with children, teenagers, adolescence, adults, individuals and groups. She utilizes a strength- based approach in essence to focus on health and well-being and to aid recovery and empowerment. Cyndle also uses a Cognitive Behavioral Therapeutic approach to help focus on challenging and changing unhelpful behaviors, improving emotional regulation, and the development of personal coping strategies to help in solving current problems.
Gabriel has shared his knowledge and has touched the lives of many at Summit Malibu over the last 2 years. After going through a dark episode of depression in his late teens, he was led to his first yoga class at the age of 17, which is what began his journey of healing and transformation.
Having grown up with two PhD psychologists as his parents, he saw the benefits of regular psychotherapy but also felt something was lacking in his life. This is where he realized how important it is to take the time to get outdoors, do breathwork, meditate and cultivate a spiritual connection in oneself. This is where his love of breathwork, yoga/chigong, meditation and sound therapy came in.
Over the years, he has been privileged to have trained with many spiritual teachers, musicians and life coaches.
As an Equine-Assisted Therapist, I facilitate therapeutic group and private sessions for clients navigating a myriad of life challenges including PTS, anxiety, depression, and addiction. I act as a bridge between the individual client, or group, and my therapy horses; incorporating several healing modalities into my practice such as somatic experiencing, constellation family systems, yoga and meditation. The horse becomes a guide and mirror for what is happening within the psyche of each participant, and this experience creates opportunities for trauma release, nervous system regulation, and an embodied sense of self.
After a successful career in film & tv production, Terry felt it was time to give back. He has been blessed in his life with many gifts and felt it was time to be of service to others. Terry’s mission statement is “I co-create a world of connection and discovery through supporting, facilitating, and loving myself and others.” He graduated from the UCLA Extension Addiction Studies Program In 2018. Terry then became a Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor. He is also a certified SMART Recovery Facilitator.
Support Staff
Joanna Medina, Medication Room Supervisor
Joanna earned her Bachelor’s Degree from California Lutheran University. Once she graduated, she began working in treatment. Joanna’s personal experience with addiction is what motivated her to work in treatment, where she can provide support, compassion, and hope. Joanna has found it very rewarding being able to witness the transformations that have been made here at Summit.
Joanna hopes to return to school to pursue her degree as a Marriage and Family Therapist. Joanna loves sunsets, hiking, spending time with family and friends, attending and being of service in the fellowship of Narcotics Anonymous.
Born and raised in Seattle, Washington, Don moved to the Los Angeles area in the early ’70s with his wife Pam. Following 40+ years in the concert touring industry (representing both Artists and Promoters alike) he & Pam recently semi-retired in the city of Moorpark. Don brings with him a wealth of professional and personal life experiences. For the past 6 years, Don has enjoyed working in the treatment field both in the Thousand Oaks area and now Malibu.
Don draws from his own personal experience in recovery sharing with clients offering compassion and encouragement during their time in treatment and beyond. He very much enjoys giving back to a program that has given so much to him.
When not at Summit Malibu you’ll find Don at family functions near Moorpark including his grandkids sporting & school event and if not there, crawling under some car fixing something or other (smile)
Scott is a graduate of UCLA and has been working at Summit Malibu since its inception. His experience in recovery has been both challenging and rewarding. The challenge has lied in helping people through the throes of addiction by being supportive. The reward from witnessing people heal through Summit’s therapeutic process and rekindle their fire for life. His passion for learning has helped him realize the importance of helping people and the value of sobriety.
Benjamin Hess, Clinician Assistant
Ben is an LA native, growing up on the hard streets of Chatsworth. He is currently working and is almost finished with his Bachelor’s degree in Psychology at CSUN. He finds joy in helping out others which he carries out with his work at Summit in hopes of furthering his career in the field
Jeffrey Moreno, Clinician Assistant
Jeffrey is coming up on three years of sobriety in July. He has replaced his old addictions with new ones: exercise and healthy eating. However, he still indulges in his favorite past time, which is a delicious in n out burger. He enjoys helping others who suffer from addiction to find new freedom away from drugs and alcohol.
Rosalia Sandoval, Facility Manager
Rosalia has been a member of the Summit Team from day 1. She is a hard working individual, who vastly exceeds our clients’ expectations from facility cleanliness to client care. Rosalia enjoys interacting with our clients and staff, and is present every day, welcoming Summit Malibu with a fresh breakfast and a warm smile. Her immense gratitude for her own family and life shows through her energy and dedication to the Summit Team. She inspires the team to always do their best work, and has left a long lasting impression on each and every client that comes through Summit.
