Counseling
Building Resilience, Empowering You
JFCS’ Counseling program provides compassionate, person-centered, trauma-informed mental-health services to adults, children, teens, couples and families facing life’s challenges. Our priority is to provide support based on trust, empathy and understanding to ensure that our clients feel safe, empowered and able to make progress toward their goals.
Our Counseling team is currently accepting new clients and accepts major insurance plans, including Medicare, OHP, Regence, Providence and Moda. We also offer sliding-scale options for uninsured or underinsured clients.
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Our Counseling team and program:
- Includes licensed and master’s level providers (MSWs and LCSWs)
- Provides culturally competent, confidential and effective services
- Offers our clients as many treatment options as possible
- Accepts private pay, sliding scale, Medicare and secondary insurance, as well as commercial insurance according to plan provision
- Meets clients where they are:
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- Our clinicians work with clients in the physical space that works best for them and also in their most comfortable emotional space. It has to do with a person’s right to self-determination that we always honor.
- We see clients by appointment-only at our downtown offices and in our space at the Eastside Jewish Commons (EJC); in their home when warranted; and online thanks to the advantages of telehealth.
JFCS offers counseling services that focus on wellness and the development of coping strategies via a strengths-based approach for a variety of mental health issues.
“At JFCS we operate from a person-centered perspective, identifying and reinforcing inherent resilience while validating the struggles we face during the most vulnerable periods of our lives.” – Douglass Ruth, LCSW, Clinical Supervisor
Our counseling services include:
- Psychotherapy for adults across the lifespan
- Counseling for children, teens and families
- Short-term solution-focused therapy
- Processing and support groups
For more information, click here to contact the Counseling department.
Meet Our Counseling Team

Douglass Ruth, LCSW
Clinical Supervisor
Specialties: Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), and Solution Focused Therapy (SFBT)
In collaboration with his clients, Doug helps them: identify and tap into their core values and goals; gain a deeper understanding of their motivations and symptoms; and engage in reflection and behavior change.
Doug accepts Medicare, OHP, Moda, Providence and Regence. He also offers a sliding-scale option for uninsured or underinsured clients.
Learn more about Doug here.
Chaviva Greenberg, MSW, CSWA
Mental Health Clinician
Specialties: Behavioral and mental health, including for those with disabilities
Chaviva helps parents and children tackle mental-health issues like anxiety by reducing accommodation behaviors. She has training in evidence-based solution-oriented therapy for youth and social-skills interventions. She also integrates CBT and mindfulness techniques to support pain management and women’s health.
Chaviva accepts OHP, Moda, Providence and Regence, and offers a sliding scale option for clients.
Learn more about Chaviva here. Click here to schedule an appointment with Chaviva.
Nicole Walters, MSW, CSWA
Mental Health Clinician
Specialties: Adults across the lifespan, grief, loss, anxiety, depression, life transitions
Nicole works with adults across the lifespan, supporting clients through issues related to depression, anxiety, grief, loss, and life transitions, including aging-related challenges. She approaches this work through a person-centered, trauma-informed (PCTI) lens.
Nicole accepts OHP, Moda, Providence and Regence, and offers a sliding scale option for clients.
Learn more about Nicole here.
Sima Borsuk, MSW, CSWA
Aging and Adult Services Clinician
Specialties: Older adults, including Holocaust Survivors and others who have experienced trauma
Sima’s focus on a person-centered trauma-informed (PCTI) approach helps clients manage aging-related challenges, and she brings a vast network of necessary services to which to connect those in need.
Sima is available to see clients on a sliding scale.
Learn more about Sima here.
2025 CALENDAR
April
Friday, April 25 6pm
Senior Social Hour – Shabbat Dinner at MJCC
Community members 60+: Join us for April’s Senior Social Hour on April 25 at 6pm at MJCC. We’ll join with other community members in attendance at MJCC’s monthly Shabbat Dinner for music, dinner and being together in community.
Watch this short video above featuring JFCS’ clinicians discussing community need and their role in supporting clients’ mental health.
Learn more about our Counseling program:
JFCS: the community’s go-to agency for mental health services
Learn more about our mental health services and PCTI approach to care
Click here for a list of Behavioral Health Community Resources
Welcome to JFCS’ Counseling program! Here are a few easy steps to follow to receive mental-health support:
Contact our Intake Manager by:
- calling (503) 226-7079, ext. 650; or
- sending an email; or
- filling out our online intake form
We will help determine the best clinician with whom to meet. Please contact the selected therapist to schedule an initial visit.
We look forward to meeting and working with you!

Click the video above to watch a Legal and Financial planning presentation with Elder-law expert Michael Rose and learn about important concepts that are relevant to you and your loved ones.