About

Leah Malone

CEO

Leah was raised in an Irish subset of South Chicago, Illinois. Leah and her sisters were raised in an environment where drug and alcohol abuse was the norm. The impact the environment had on Leah and her sisters was profound.  Drinking and drug use were also prevalent in Leah’s neighborhood, and while she tried to steer her life in a better direction, Leah began drinking at the age of 12. 

Leah began to watch her sister Becca, and “brother” Matt, fall into hard core drugs. Due to the severity of Becca and Matt’s addictions, Leah was able to fly under the radar with her party lifestyle.  Becca and Matt were both shuffled through several state-funded treatment programs, and it was through this sequence of experiences, God sparked a desire in Leah to dedicate her life to helping support families battle and break free from all addiction.  

In 2013, Matt lost his battle with addiction and was laid to rest. In 2015, Becca found her way to sobriety and moved to Austin, TX for aftercare. As Becca and Leah rebuilt their sisterhood Leah began to learn how individuals obtained sobriety. As her understanding of substance abuse increased, her passion to support and help families began to grow.  In 2017, Leah founded Grace Recovery ATX and immersed herself in assisting women and their families in the process of reclaiming their lives from the disease of addiction. 

After experiencing a series of adverse events as an adult and mother of four, Leah found herself in treatment for her own addiction. Going through the process of achieving sobriety enabled her to recognize the need for God, a Higher Power working in and through her, and that the God of her understanding will gift her with ways to make meaningful connections with others and share unconditional love.

Leah is the Founder of Grace Recovery ATX, Austin’s premier transitional living for women, and Co-founder of Emerge Recovery TX. She is a visionary for women’s treatment. She is able to strategically place individuals in programs based on their individual needs in order to maximize their treatment experience. Leah is an LCDC and brings clinical experience to the Business Development arena.  

Laurel Tracy

DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS

Laurel joined Grace Recovery as a co-owner in 2020 in their mission to support women in achieving long-term sobriety. Laurel was born and raised in Houston, Texas, and attended the United States Air Force Academy and St. Edward’s University.

After injuries and surgeries that ended her college soccer career, Laurel spiraled into her addiction, which led to years of drinking and drug use. In 2012, she entered treatment in Austin, Texas. Laurel has 7+ years of working in the recovery industry and has dedicated her career to helping individuals to regain peace and find purpose in their lives.

Laurel is an experienced operations manager who specializes in project management, administration, and customer service initiatives aligned with performance objectives. She is known for her analytical approach in streamlining and optimizing efficiencies within an organization. She provides a resourceful approach while collaborating with cross-functional teams to develop client-centric solutions. She holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology and will complete her Master’s of Business Administration in 2021.

Ally Fleming

DIRECTOR OF ADMISSIONS

Ally is a born and raised Austinite and found herself in the midst of addiction at a young age, entering her first treatment center at the age of 17. Feeling like she never got the “handbook” to life, she struggled to endure and cope with early life events. Subsequently, her teenage years
and nearly all of her twenties were spent in the frightening spiral of drug addiction and alcoholism, which provided her comfort to deal with unresolved obstacles that had accumulated over time.

Ally got sober in October of 2019 through an inpatient treatment center. This coupled with dedication and commitment to work the 12 steps, Ally began gaining traction in her sobriety.

She found joy in working with others and sharing the message of her personal experience with other women that were attempting to regain their lives over the disease of addiction.

Ally received an undergraduate degree in Business Administration from St. Edwards in 2016 with a concentration in Marketing, and 4+ years of experience in the entertainment industry in Austin, TX. Her strengths in the workplace include client relationship management, creative problem solving, and diligent organization and communication.

Today, Ally lives a sober, happy, joyous life, free from the constraints that she knew before. She has many interests including spending time with her Great Dane named Lilly, music, collage, jewelry fabrication, fashion and design, and taking care of her physical, emotional and mental health through physical movement.

Joe Roller, LPC, LCDC

CLINICAL DIRECTOR

Joe was raised in a small city in Louisiana and was born into an environment with its fair share of violence, substance abuse and isolation. He experienced a lot throughout his childhood and as a young adulthood. For years, anger is how he dealt with these experiences. He acted out in school through anger, which got him expelled several times and ultimately lead to him being punished through the criminal justice system. The penalty for such resulted in him becoming a ward of the State for the remainder of his adolescence, and unfortunately, it did not stop there.

These experiences continued to affect him long into adulthood and followed him like a shadow. Eventually, he had to look at the hard truth that “the constant” in every problematic scenario was him. With that realization, he worked on himself, found peace, and moved beyond his problems. Because of these experiences, he has always wanted to be in a position to help struggling trauma survivors and people battling with substance abuse.

Joe’s passion is to join and work alongside clients to support them in facing some of the most challenging experiences of their lives. Based on personal, professional and academic experiences, when he works with clients, he focuses on four concepts: perception, thought process, emotion, and behavior. These four concepts affect so much in life, and making healthy adjustments to these in the wake of devastation is possible. Perception plays a significant role not only in how we understand varying circumstances, but also in how we view ourselves, others, and the world. Trauma affects our thought processes significantly, and thought processes are how we reason, problem solve and make decisions. As a result, thought processes affect our emotions which in turn affects our behavior.

Through CBT (Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy) techniques and interventions, these four concepts are transformed. The use of these techniques results in positive cognitive and behavioral changes which in turn results in improved functioning. Due to the nature of trauma and addiction, clients need to be motivated for growth and healing. His therapeutic approach is both compassionate and challenging. Clients report an increase in life fulfillment, self-esteem, healthy relationships, confidence, and overcoming some very negative belief systems following their completion of therapy.

Generally speaking, every experience has an impact, but sometimes these experiences can be destructive and long-lasting. Fortunately, these experiences don’t have to continue being destructive. We can use the energy from these experiences to grow and change, taking our lives to the next level. That journey takes some work and when individuals decide they are ready for change and want to move past the destruction, Joe is here to support and guide them through their journey!

Annetta Warren, LPC, LCDC

Licensed Therapist

My name is Annetta, a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) and a Licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor (LCDC). I was raised in Tennessee and now reside in central Texas. I have had the privilege of gaining awareness of counseling clients that ranged from recovery and addiction facilities, military families/children, women in the prison system, and an acute behavioral hospital setting.

Before pursuing higher education and therapeutic credentials, I gained world knowledge via the United States Army as a soldier. Viewing the world through the lens of a soldier gave me a unique perspective. My life experiences have aided my evolution into a practitioner that provides a unique yet unconventional style of therapy. I work with everyday people struggling with addiction, anxiety, depression, feelings of being stuck, grief, and life transitions. My goal is to encourage and empower to ensure you develop the ability to grow through life’s challenges. 

Nichole Haynes, LMSW

Licensed Therapist

Nichole is a compassionate and solution-oriented professional with 10-plus years of experience in mental health advocacy and drug and alcohol rehabilitation experience, in both inpatient and outpatient facilities.  Nichole has also worked with other various populations to include veterans, family and children, and couples. 
Nichole offers a proficient understanding of crisis interventions, family conferences, and developing care plans to fit the needs of each individual client. Nichole has worked with high-risk client’s living with various disorders including Bipolar Disorder, Borderline Personality Disorder, addiction and more. 
Nichole’s commitment to this field is ongoing which is evident, with her pursuing an LCSW, as well as volunteering with different organizations based on the services needed for various populations. Nichole loves what she does and continues to be inspired by clients to continue the work that she does. Nichole will continue aligning herself with organizations that are client focused and work to meet the needs of the client. 

Sara Salem, LMSW

Licensed Therapist

LMSW
Supervised by Dr. Christine Norton, LCSW-S
Sara is a licensed social worker who graduated from Texas State University with her master’s degree in
social work. She enjoys working with adolescents and adults one on one, as well as working with family
members together to improve communication and increase understanding. She has worked in a wide
variety of care settings, including an acute care inpatient treatment facility, intensive outpatient
programs, and private practice. Sara’s background includes both individual therapy sessions and group
therapy sessions with clients living with depression, anxiety, and trauma.

Sara uses a combination of evidence-based practices dependent on the client’s needs, including but not
limited to EMDR, dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), and
solution-focused therapy. Her approach with clients is strengths-based as she works with people to build
resilience, promote self-determination, and learn effective coping skills.

Kaytee Hernandez

Yoga Therapist/ Yoga Teacher

Kaytee Hernandez is a Latinx Yoga Therapist (C-IAYT) and Yoga Teacher (E-RYT 500, CRYT). She was born and raised in Brownsville, Texas.

Yoga has helped Kaytee heal from childhood trauma, grief and loss. Her personal practice and faith infuse her life with meaning and joy.

Kaytee hopes to share the therapeutic benefits of Yoga with others. She believes everyone has an inner healer and empowers her students to look within themselves. She utilizes trauma informed practices, mantra, breath work, meditation, mudras, and yoga postures in her work.

Kaytee has a Bachelors degree in Graphic Media Design from the University of the Arts London. She is currently a Master’s student of Ayurveda and Integrative Health at Maharishi International University.