President's Message by Nazila Amighi, LMFT, President

Happy New Year!

Friends and Colleagues,

"Someone is sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago" (Warren Buffett). As I begin my first year as Chapter President, I acknowledge and appreciate all the people who have worked hard to create our amazing Chapter. I would also like to express gratitude to all of our members who have shown their commitment to our Chapter, to our profession, and to each other by showing up early on Sunday mornings for our network meetings.

I am stepping into this important role with excitement and enthusiasm. My vision is to build many exciting opportunities, creating positive changes, and to further grow our connections with one another. As those who know me can tell you, I strive for deep connections and strongly believe in collaborating with others to seek positive resolutions.

During 2017, as the president-elect of our chapter, I was delighted by the connections I made, the support and kindness I witnessed and received from the members of our chapters and the board members. I especially want to thank Barbara Calvi and Ariel Cohen for their confidence in me, preparing me for this role, and supporting me in every way. I am proud that this is the hallmark of our chapter.

As we begin the New Year, I hope to continue to uphold the existing high standard of our chapter, as well as bring some new ideas to increase the number of our members, and increase the resources available to our community. My goal is to enhance and develop more partnerships with other organizations and to participate in joined events to create opportunities for our members.

I wish this New Year brings you, your families, and your profession all the happiness and success that you want and desire. I look forward to seeing each and every one of you becoming more involved in our chapter and to be an integral part of our community. I invite you to consider SFVCAMFT as a resource to help you achieve your professional goals. Metaphorically, let's plant trees together. I hope to see you soon!

Nazila Amighi is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist practicing in Sherman Oaks. She applies her skills in Narrative Therapy, Encounter-centered Couples Therapy, Trauma Resiliency Model, Attachment theory, a certified premarital counselor through Prepare/Enrich, and Clinical Aggression Replacement Training. She also Co-facilitated court-referred anger management groups. Her expertise is working with couples, premarital counseling, and the problems that is common with cultural differences in relationships. Nazila came to the United States 36 years ago from Iran. That experience gives her unique insight into her client's challenges as they assimilate in terms of both language and culture. She is fluent in English and Farsi and provides clinical consultation to other therapists navigating cross-cultural issues. Learn more about Nazila Amighi by visiting her website at www.nazilaamighi.com. She can be reached at 310.927.0194 or email her at nazilaamighi@gmail.com.