2024 Healthy GenerAsians Fireside Chats
Speakers & Moderators
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Heeseong Ha, LCPC, LCAC, NCTTP is a compassionate licensed clinical professional counselor (LCPC) and licensed clinical addiction counselor (LCAC) with a specialization in Depression, Anxiety, Trauma, Cultural issues, and Drug and Alcohol-related Addiction. With over 10 years of experience, she is dedicated to providing exceptional mental health and addiction counseling services to clients of all ages. Since 2014, she has worked in both outpatient and inpatient settings at hospitals. With a Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Acceptance Commitment Therapy (ACT) approach, she believes in collaborative and working relationships with her clients based on trust and transparent communication. She is also trained in EMDR approved by EMDRIA.
Heeseong is a native of South Korea and is fluent in Korean and English. Heeseong is married and a mother of two young adults and an active member of the local Korean and AAPI communities. She has been involved in Fountain of Life as a volunteer since early 2023. She has been instrumental in helping Fountain of Life get connected to the local Korean-American community as well develop a culturally and linguistically accessible mental health program. In addition to her behavioral health advisory role, she has also volunteered for our 2023 KCK Asian Community Healthy Seniors & Families Fair focused on reaching the Hmong-speaking community as well as serving as the event coordinator and cook for our 2023 Shabu Shabu senior social.
Linda Her, LMSW is a School-Based Outpatient Therapist in Southeast Kansas. Growing up in Kansas City, Kansas, she always had a passion for helping others. As a first-generation Hmong-American daughter and second eldest in her family, her refugee parents, grandparents, aunts, and uncle spoke and knew very little English. It was often Linda's responsibility to translate at the grocery stores, local social services agencies while her family members were renewing or inquiring about benefits, and even at the banks or post office as they were mailing and/or purchasing stamps.​
Linda is a lifelong learner and has been with the Southeast Kansas Mental Health Center (SEKMHC) for 14 years and counting. Her journey into the mental health field
allowed her to recognize barriers that have been there for generations. It allowed her to give a name to what she was going through in her own life experiences overcoming anxiety, depression, panic attacks, and generational trauma. This personal journey has deeply influenced her commitment to helping others navigate their own mental health challenges.
During her time at SEKMHC, Linda has held many positions - Southeast Kansas Achiever (SEKA) Staff, Adult Case Manager, Chemical and Substance Abuse Case Manager, Practicum Intern as a Crisis Liaison, Intern Therapist, School-Based Outpatient Therapist, and Crisis Attendant Care Staff. In 2022, she obtained a Masters in Social Work from Kansas State University. In 2024, she became a Licensed Master Level Social Worker (LMSW) in the state of Kansas. She is certified in both Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART). Through her passion for mental health, she believes in creating a safe, non-judgmental space where clients can explore their thoughts and feelings. Her approach is collaborative, empowering clients to take an active role in their own healing process.
Linda was introduced to Fountain of Life in early 2023 by a colleague in the mental health field. She immediately became involved and volunteered her time to help coordinate Fountain of Life's first health & resource fair targeting Hmong-speaking seniors living in Kansas City, KS. Soon, she joined Fountain of Life's staff as Hmong Community Outreach Specialist specifically helping to implement its KCK Asian Community Healthy Seniors and Families Initiative, a health equity initiative aimed to connect limited English proficient Hmong and Burmese-speaking families residing in Wyandotte County to health coverage and care, aging resources, and other wraparound supports in order to increase their quality of life.
Dr. Ciloue Cheng Stewart, PhD, MSE, LMFT has been a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) for more than 25 years. She is a native of Taiwan and is fluent in Mandarin and English. Dr. Stewart holds PhD in Family Social Science and Master of Education in Counseling Psychology. She retired from the Washington University in St. Louis in 2021, and is happily continuing her private practice. Dr. Stewart’s therapeutic approaches include Eclectic/Integrative Therapy. Her specialties include Anxiety and Panic Disorders, Depression, General Mental Health, General Relationship Challenges (family, friends, co-workers), and Parenting. Dr. Stewart has been in a cross-cultural marriage for more than 35 years and is the mother of a college graduate.
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Passionate about her clinical work, Dr. Stewart considers herself a mentor and partner in her client's journey towards greater sense of well being. She works with individuals, couples, children and families with a wide variety of emotional, relational and neurological concerns. Each client's challenges and needs are unique and important, as well as their strengths. Dr. Stewart's clinical expertise includes helping individuals develop stronger sense of self, and working with couples through challenging and normative relational issues. She also has extensive experience in addressing family dynamics and parenting concerns, including those compounded by single parenthood, divorce, and step-family. In addition, Dr. Stewart specializes in working with ADHD and Learning Differences. She served on the general board and advisory board of KS/MO branch of IDA (International Dyslexia Association) over 4 years, and has in depth knowledge of the multi-faceted challenges facing her clients and families. Dr. Stewart is an experienced instructor at undergraduate and graduate levels, and enjoys speaking on family related issues locally and regionally. She takes pride in incorporating her training in both Education and Psychotherapy to assess, teach and empower her clients in creating and maintaining meaningful relationships with "self" and others.
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​Dr. Stewart has been involved in Fountain of Life since early 2023 and has facilitated several psychosocial education seminars for Mandarin-speaking limited English proficient seniors covering topics including managing emotions, active listening skills, empathy, and conflict resolution.
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Thao Le, MSN, APRN, PMHNP-BC is a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner who specializes in the assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of mental health illnesses. She has been in practice for 2 years at Health Partnership Clinic in Olathe, Kansas where she uses a patient-centered approach and collaborates with the clinic’s behavioral health specialists to understand patients’ needs and then prescribe medications to help them manage or overcome their depression, anxiety, trauma or other disorders. Thao’s determination to move her patients forward was inspired by her parents, who immigrated from Vietnam in 1975 to make a better life for themselves and their family.
Thao was inspired to pursue a career in the field of mental health when one of her family members experienced a mental health crisis. She witnessed a missed opportunity for healthcare providers to educate her Vietnamese American family and to destigmatize their negative perceptions of mental illness. Thus, Thao set on the path toward eliminating racial mental health disparities by delivering culturally competent care to both patients and their families, breaking stigma within minority populations, and integrating resources within their communities to improve access to care.
Thao has been involved in Fountain of Life since early 2023. She delivered the session “Mental Health Stigma Among Asian-Americans” for our 2023 KC Asian American Health & Wellness Virtual Conference. Most recently, Thao helped to staff a health outreach table at our 2024 KC Asian American Health & Wellness Fair.
Maria Loconsolo, MA, LCPC is a Regional Behavioral Health Advisor for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Prior to her current role, Maria served as the Early Psychosis Intervention Care (EPIC) Team Leader and Family Support Therapist at Wyandot Behavioral Health Network, serving Wyandotte County with community-based mental health services and working with young adults, adolescents, and their families experiencing psychosis for the first time. Maria has worked as a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor since 2018, after graduating from the MidAmerica Nazarene University’s Master’s in Counseling program.
Maria previously lived for four years in Yongin and Seoul, South Korea as an English teacher and still loves to enjoy Korean food, culture, and practicing her Korean conversations skills. Her areas of professional interest include early psychosis, trauma, neurodiversity, health equity, and culturally competent care.
Maria has been involved with Fountain of Life as a volunteer since early 2023. Through her past and current professional roles, she has been able to support Fountain of Life in connecting with various health agencies in Wyandotte County, KS and pertinent resources offered by federal agencies including SAMHSA, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the AANHPI Ohana Center of Excellence.
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