AVANZAR WELLNESS
Moving First Responders forward through peer support and wellness.
Serving Arizona
Strengthen Your Spirit
Find the help you need to stay strong in your role. We're here for first responders in Arizona, providing the mental health support you deserve.
About Us
Avanzar Wellness was created to help first responders move forward through their career and retirement. We have a unique understanding of the challenges a career in public safety brings to an individual and their family. Finding a work/life balance between your career and personal life can be difficult based on the nature of the profession. Working with a team of culturally aware therapists is crucial in helping first responders be successful in their career, their personal life, and through retirement. Listed in the FBHA website. The providers listed in this directory are behavioral health professionals vetted by the Firefighter Behavioral Health Alliance (FBHA).
EMDR and a variety of treatment modalities are offered.
Our Services
Individual Therapy Sessions
Avanzar Wellness provides individual therapy to first responders and their family members in-person or via telehealth. Our therapists are skilled in a variety of treatment modalities to assist with trauma, stress and anxiety, grief and loss, marriage and relationship, retirement, substances and addictions, and work/life balance. Our services are private and confidential for the client, and we uphold the National Association of Social Workers Code of Ethics.
We accept most insurances and offer sliding scale billing. Please contact Gary or Stefanie for more information.
Peer Support Clinical Oversight
Avanzar Wellness will assist your agency in selection and development of peer support teams and provide clinical oversight and continuing education for team members. Our trainings meet Arizona Revised Statute 38-1111 on Peer Support Team. Clinical oversight allows team members to consult with a licensed therapist when providing peer support and assistance with finding appropriate resources for members.
Please contact Gary or Stefanie for more information.
Occupational Services
- Avanzar Wellness works with agencies to provide services to members under “The Craig Tiger Act”, ARS 38-673.
- Our licensed clinicians can work with your occupational doctor to provide fit for duty evaluations and treatment plans for members.
- Annual mental health screenings are available through our team of therapists that comply with NFPA 1580 standards.
- Our staff will collaborate with your occupational medical services and human resources to coordinate occupational services.
https://www.azleg.gov/ars/38/00673.htm
Please contact Gary or Stefanie for more information.
Our Team
Gary Watson, LMSW
Gary is a licensed master social worker in Arizona and co-founder of Avanzar Wellness. Following a thirty year career as a firefighter in Arizona and North Carolina, he enters his second career as a therapist focusing on first responders and their families. His lived experiences from a career in public safety allows him to understand the culture and traditions of the profession and give focused treatment for the individual first responder.
Gary received his Master of Social Work from Western New Mexico University. He is trained in EMDR for trauma therapy, and Struggle Well post traumatic growth. His approach to treatment is a strengths-based focus that draws on our individual strength, resiliency, and resources to grow beyond the traumatic events we all face. Gary uses multiple treatment modalities like CBT, DBT, and motivational interviewing to find our strength and learn the tools and resources needed to have a healthy work/life balance.
“Our profession provides us a rewarding career, I want to help first responders navigate the challenges us and our families face during that career so we can all enjoy a long and healthy retirement.”
Contact Gary at [email protected]
520-222-8766
Stefanie Lockery, MSW, LCSW
Stefanie Lockery is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in Arizona with over 30 years’ experience in behavioral health. Stefanie has a BA in Sociology from the University of Arizona and a master’s in social work from New Mexico State University. Stefanie was most recently the Director of Clinical Services at Cottonwood Tucson, a residential and outpatient provider of mental health and substance abuse services.
Prior to co-founding Avanzar Wellness, Stefanie was the Clinical Director at MHC Healthcare for over 7 years, overseeing behavioral health and integrated care services in Marana and three clinics in Pima County. In 2017, in collaboration with Gary Watson and Northwest Fire District (NWFD), she helped develop their first peer support team. Through a grant obtained from the Arizona Attorney General’s office, Stefanie developed the First Responder Program at MHC to meet the needs of agencies in Southern Arizona. Stefanie was able to develop a team of therapists that were culturally aware of the needs of this population and received training in the evidence-based treatment modalities for first responders. The MHC program expanded to include a regional approach to peer support and Stefanie managed contracts with seven agencies for clinical oversight of the Peer Support team and Craig Tiger Act administration. During covid, Stefanie partnered with the 100 club of Arizona to provide clinicalsupport to a statewide law enforcement spousal support group.
Contact Stefanie at [email protected]
520-222-6492