Child, Adolescent, and Adult Psychiatrist

Dr. L. Read Sulik is a child, adolescent, and adult psychiatrist and pediatrician. Read is the Founder and CEO of Portages Health, andalso serves as the Chief Medical Officer for the entire team of Portages practitioners. For 25 years, Read has passionately and tirelessly pursued the vision, design, and development of innovations to improve mental health and wellbeing and integrate behavioral health into primary and specialty healthcare. At Portages Health, he continues the adventure, forging new paths needed to bring better access to better mental health and wellbeing care to individuals, organizations and communities. He is a passionate and compassionate leader, clinician, teacher, and mentor.

Read provides psychiatric care for children, adolescents, adults, elders, and employees of the the Bois Forte Band of Chippewa. He is leading the Portages Health team working together with the Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Council to complete the program design and development of the GLITC Adolescent Recovery and Wellness Center. He also serves patients from across Minnesota via telehealth through the Portages Health outpatient program.

He and his wife have three young adult children and live in the heart of Minneapolis. Read loves to travel the world and has regularly trained for the past ten years with a local hardstyle kettlebell community in Northeast Minneapolis.

Mental Health Therapist

Claire Kaehr is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, LMFT. She received her Master’s degree in Marriage and Family Therapy from Argosy University. Claire's ultimate goal within her therapeutic relationships is to walk alongside clients as they work to understand their story and continue their journey towards health and healing. Claire is also a Board Approved Supervisor for the Board of Marriage and Family Therapy in Minnesota.

Claire has a wide variety of experience but has extensive areas of experience and training in couples work, and trauma informed therapy from somatic and neurobiological lenses. Claire also recognizes and values the role of spirituality and cultural narratives in therapy and healing. She has extensive trauma training, including Sensorimotor Psychotherapy approaches for trauma and affect dysregulation, EMDR (Eye movement Desensitization and Reprocessing), and AIR (Adaptive Internal Relational) Network model therapy. Claire has also completed Level 2 training in Gottman Method Couples Therapy.

Claire serves individuals from across Minnesota in the Portages Health outpatient program via telehealth.

When she isn’t engaging in therapeutic work, Claire loves spending time with her husband and children. You can also find her immersed in another love of hers, the great outdoors. Warmer seasons include adventures in the family camper and colder seasons may include ice skating and skiing. All seasons include remaining active and chasing around her 3 boys and puppy.

Mental Health Therapist

Aaron Scott Bucci (he/him),,LICSW, MSW, Clinical Supervisor is a Trauma informed care specialist, and a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with extensive experience serving Native American youth and adults who will be serving members of the Bois Forte Band of Chippewa through the Vermilion Clinic.

Aaron is a lifelong resident of the Duluth community, a dedicated licensed mental health professional with over 10 years of professional mental health experience with a deep focus on Native American and Indigenous cultures. Aaron’s problem-solving skills are grounded in both his master carpenter work history as well as lived life experiences and studies in Lake Superior College (AAS), University Of Wisconsin Superior (BS), and the University of Minnesota Duluth (MSW).

Much of Aaron’s approach to mental health therapy surrounds the theoretical underpinnings of Behaviorism with a splash of Psychodynamics, with a specific focus on trauma. Crisis Intervention, CBT, DBT, TF-CBT, EMDR, Brain Spotting, Narrative, are among the modalities utilized. Some of the principals that drive his practice are non-maleficence, beneficence, and autonomy which have aided him in his extensive work with Co-Occurring Substance Use Disorders and Severe and Persistent Mental Illness. Aaron also provides board certified clinical supervision.

Aaron is a father, a brother, and friend with a deep connection to the great outdoors and all the majestic beauty. Aaron can often be found on the water fishing, hiking the forest looking for shed antlers, snowshoeing, or on two wheels with the wind in his face as he places a high priority on self-care.

“If you change your mind, you can change your life” – William James

Mental Health Therapist

Adrienne Lanz, LGSW is a licensed graduate social worker, working as a Mental Health Therapist for Portages Health. She has a Master’s degree in social work with a focus on Clinical Mental Health from the University of Minnesota. Before becoming a therapist, Adrienne worked as a special education teacher, and loved working with adolescents and families as they navigate the many complexities of school, identity, and young adulthood.

Adrienne loves being a therapist and enjoys working with people of all ages and backgrounds. She has experience helping individuals and families with anxiety, depression, self-worth, trauma, gender identity, and life transitions. She uses a warm, authentic approach to understand and honor clients’ experiences and identities, and practice with a strengths-based, non-pathologizing approach. Adrienne believes that therapy is a relationship built on trust, understanding, and hope between people and works together with clients to understand how their experiences with people, trauma, and the joys and hardships of life have shaped how you view yourself, others, and the stories that define your life and your relationships.

Adrienne has extensive training and experience in trauma and is certified in EMDR (Eye movement Desensitization and Reprocessing). Adrienne serves individuals from across Minnesota in the Portages Health outpatient program via telehealth.

When she’s not working, Adrienne enjoys reading, gardening, spending time in community with family and friends, and spending time with her dog in nature.

Mental Health Therapist

Hailey Chandler, LGSW, earned her Master of Social Work degree from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee. She is a School-Based Mental Health Therapist with Portages Health, serving students at Rock Ridge Elementary Schools. Hailey is passionate about supporting children and families, especially those who have experienced trauma, are navigating anxiety or depression, are working on recognizing their self-worth, and strengthening parent–child relationships.

Hailey uses motivational interviewing, cognitive behavioral therapy, and a strengths-based, trauma-informed approach. She believes that every client is the expert of their own life. She sees her role as being in the passenger seat, with the map, while the client takes the wheel. She hopes to empower them to guide their own journey toward growth and healing. She hopes to continue to grow her clinical knowledge as she works towards obtaining her LICSW.

Hailey grew up in the rural town of Culver, MN, and recently relocated to the Iron Range. Outside of work, Hailey enjoys spending time with her friends, family, and dog. Hailey's family is one of the most important parts of her life. She also loves being outdoors, biking, hiking, watching bad reality TV, and listening to audiobooks.

Mental Health Therapist

My English name is Shara’Lanee’ Staples and my Ojibwe Spirit name is Minogiizhigokwe. I began working on my Master of Social Work, clinical degree from College of St. Scholastica in Duluth, MN in the Fall of 2023. I am currently still working on finishing my coursework and clinical field placement prior to graduation in the Spring of 2027.

My current position is part-time (Wednesday-Friday). I am working as Mental Health Therapist In-Training through Portages Health, where my office is in the Hinckley Elementary School in Hinckley, MN. I will be at the Finlayson Elementary School on Wednesdays completing diagnostic assessments and therapy and Hinckley Elementary School Thursday and Friday.

I come from a lived experience background, where I want to provide a client initiated holistic and integrative approach. My approach combines traditional mental health practice along with practice based therapeutic interventions. My focus will be working with youth aged 5-12 along with their families to create a strength-based treatment plan based on individual goals. I bring a deep understanding of the diverse challenges individuals and their families face.

My goal is to provide care, which is compassionate, integrative and effective-helping clients not only manage their symptoms but thrive in their everyday lives.

Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner

Erica is a board-certified psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner. She received her Masters Degree in nursing from the University of North Dakota. Erica’s education also includes an Associates Degree in Nursing, and a Practical Nursing Diploma. Prior to becoming a nurse Erica worked as a Medical Assistant for many years, gaining an abundance of experience working with patients from birth to old age in a family practice clinic. Erica’s career as a Public Health Nurse brought awareness to the need for mental health providers and sparked her ambition to continue her education to become a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner. Erica’s experience in public health included working with pregnant and postpartum women, as well as mothers of young children.

Erica’s practice philosophy is to listen to her patients so that she is better able to help her patients identify their needs in their mental health journey and allows her to collaborate with her patients in creating a plan to improve their wellbeing. Everyone has their own unique challenges and care team, collaborating with all members of the team optimizes the quality of care every patient deserves.

Erica sees clients via telehealth who are referred from the iHealth Women’s Health Clinics and Stellis Health, as well as individuals referred to Portages Health from the broader Minnesota community.

Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner

Rhea Del Rosario is a board-certified psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner. She provides psychiatric care services to children, adolescents, adults, and elders of the Bois Forte Band of Chippewa in schools and clinics and remotely via telehealth.

Rhea is a board-certified psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner with 5 years of experience. She received her Masters Degree in Nursing from Walden University. She also has her Bachelors Degree in Nursing and worked as a RN for 10+ years. She has experience working with patients in assisted living and nursing homes as well as adolescents and adults in both inpatient and outpatient settings. She enjoys working with patients who struggle with anxiety, major depression, PTSD, and dementia. 

Rhea’s practice philosophy includes active listening, rapport building, and maintaining privacy and transparency in her work. She aims to take into consideration the concerns of all her patients and discuss a treatment plan that is safe and effective towards their goals. She strongly believes in team collaboration in where each team member works together with their patients towards mental health wellness.

Mental Health and Wellbeing Supervisor

Ben is a Mental Health and Wellbeing Coach for Portages Health

He received his degrees from Bemidji State University and Dakota County Technical College. He loves working with and helping individuals in the mental health care field and finds it incredibly rewarding.

He coaches and coordinates care for children, adolescents, and adults from across Minnesota remotely via telehealth.

He is also a professional wildlife photographer. His goal is to continue to work on conservation initiatives with his partners using photography. His hobbies include camping, backpacking, canoeing, photography, and creating other forms of art.

Mental Health and Wellbeing Coach

Maraya Leino is a Mental Health and Wellbeing Coach with Portages Health. She lives in Sturgeon Lake, Minnesota. Maraya comes with 6 years of experience in a public-school setting. She has experience as a grant program manager which has ensured mental health availability to students with economic hardship. She is well rounded in a school setting and understands that mental health plays a key role in students’ education.

She coaches and coordinates care for children and adolescents attending Hinkley Schools.

Maraya spent 10 years with the Minnesota Army National Guard and is now a military wife and mom to 3 kids. In her free time she enjoys camping with her family and friends; in the winter you will find her at a hockey rink, and in the summer, at a local dirt track cheering on her husband.

Mental Health and Wellbeing Coach

Cynthia Garza is a Mental Health and Wellbeing Coach with Portages health. She was born and raised in Texas and relocated to Minnesota with her family. She graduated from The University of Texas-Rio Grande Valley with a Bachelor’s of Science in Communication Sciences and Disorders in August 2006 and a Master’s Degree in Special Education in July 2022. She comes with an abundance of experience working with children and adolescents with speech and language disorders in an outpatient rehabilitative setting, as well as early childhood intervention as an Early Interventionist/Service Coordinator. Cynthia has obtained certifications in Infant Massage and is an Advanced Certified Autism Specialist.

Cynthia serves children and adolescents of the Bois Forte Band of Chippewa Community and American Indian and First Nations youth at International Falls Elementary and High Schools.

In her spare time, Cynthia enjoys spending time with her family and dogs, Penelope and Charlotte, exploring their new home state of Minnesota. She also loves running, CrossFit, cooking, reading, and watching True Crime documentaries.

Mental Health and Wellbeing Coach

Shelley Rintala is excited to join the Portages Health team of Bois Forte as a Mental Health Coach. She worked as an Activity Director at Waterview Woods for 21 years. She graduated from Eveleth-Gilbert High School and lived in Eveleth most of her life. She has 2 sons and a Black Lab dog. Shelley has always enjoyed helping people both personally and professionally. She worked hard to enrich the lives of her residents to make their days as meaningful as possible. Shelley enjoys being outdoors walking her dog, camping, fishing, boating, relaxing by a bonfire, and spending time with family and friends.

As a Portages Coach, Shelley will be guiding patients along their entire care journey from guided self-care using the Portages app to comprehensive Portages team-based clinical care. She looks forward to learning more and gaining more knowledge to help support patients through Portages Health.

Shelley serves children and adolescents, adults, and elders of the Bois Forte Band of Chippewa Community at the Vermillion Clinic and surrounding schools.

Mental Health and Wellbeing Coach

Joseph Laufeia is a mental health coach and has worked in mental health on the Iron Range for 10 years. He is starting his master's in social work in 2026 to become a therapist. In his personal time, he restores antique clocks and writes research pieces on human joy. 

Mental Health and Wellbeing Coach

Katie was born and raised on the Iron Range and has lived experience with mental health. She also has several years of working with adults and children in the mental health field. She has been a mental health practitioner since 2016 and has served in a variety of roles, including in programs such as ARMHS, housing, crisis stabilization, detox/treatment center, IRTS (Intensive Residential Treatment Services) facility, and with a crisis response team. She has also served in a supervisory role with crisis response, has been a presenter at the St. Louis County Health & Human Services conference on her topic “Schizophrenia and Schizoaffective Disorder: Breaking Down the Stigma” and a guest speaker for crisis intervention and law enforcement mental health classes. She has certifications in crisis intervention, Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST), and for being a safeTALK instructor. Katie currently serves on the St. Louis County Mental Health Local Advisory Council. She is also currently a student at Walden University to complete her Bachelor of Social Work and plans to continue on for her MSW. 

During her spare time, Katie enjoys being outdoors, hiking, fishing, and camping during the warmer months. She also loves spending time with her family, including her two dogs, two cats, and three birds. She loves self-care activities, such as reading, photography, writing songs, playing video games, karaoke, and performing with her band at local Pride events.  

Mental Health and Wellbeing Coach

Carrie is a Mental Health and Wellbeing Coach with Portages Health at the Hinckley Elementary School.  

She has worked in the field in various settings including residential treatment for adolescents and adults, child welfare, and juvenile detention.  Carrie graduated from the University of Minnesota, Duluth.  She lived and worked in the Duluth area until recently.  Carrie is from Hinckley, MN and recently moved back to the area.  

Carrie grew up in a large family and enjoys spending time with her close friends and her family.  In her free time, she enjoys the outdoors and loves exploring the Great Lakes.