LGBT Life Center has welcomed Stacey Fernandes back as its new Director of Mental Health, bringing a familiar face, more than a decade of counselling experience and a clear focus on trauma-informed, accessible support. Her return marks a thoughtful next step for the organisation and the LGBTQ+ communities it serves.

Essential Takeaways

  • A meaningful return: Fernandes first worked with the centre during her counselling residency in 2016.
  • Deep clinical experience: She’s a Virginia-licensed professional counsellor with more than ten years in individual and group therapy.
  • Specialist knowledge: Her work includes LGBTQ+ communities, complex trauma, minority stress and intersectional identities.
  • A broader goal: She wants to strengthen mental health provision while making care more equitable and welcoming.
  • A distinctly human touch: Outside work, she enjoys painting, baking, gardening, gaming and building LEGO.

Stacey Fernandes is returning with experience to share

Some professional moves feel like a fresh start. Stacey Fernandes’ appointment at LGBT Life Center feels more like coming home.

Fernandes previously worked with the organisation in 2016, when she provided individual therapy during her counselling residency. Now, after years of clinical practice, research and leadership, she’s back as Director of Mental Health. According to LGBT Life Center, the return gives her the chance to contribute to a place that helped shape her early career.

That history matters. People often understand a community organisation differently when they’ve seen it from the inside, grown alongside it and returned with a clearer sense of what it can become.

Her background spans counselling, research and specialist care

Fernandes has been a Licensed Professional Counsellor in Virginia since 2020 and has worked in mental health services for more than a decade. She completed both of her graduate programmes at Old Dominion University, earning a master’s degree in clinical mental health counselling and a doctorate in counsellor education and supervision.

Her training includes EMDR, a therapy approach often used in trauma treatment. Her professional interests also cover LGBTQ+ populations, complex trauma, minority stress and the ways different parts of a person’s identity can shape their experience of care, as outlined by LGBT Life Center’s wellness information.

Before returning, Fernandes worked at Hampton VA Medical Center. She led the southside Women’s Behavioural Health Interdisciplinary Program and served as LGBTQ+ Veteran Care Coordinator, combining clinical work with support for groups whose needs can easily be overlooked.

A trauma-informed approach could shape what comes next

Fernandes says her immediate focus is helping organise and strengthen the mental health programme. That doesn’t mean starting from scratch. Rather, it suggests building on the centre’s existing services while improving how people access support.

LGBT Life Center’s counselling and wellness services reflect a wider model of care, with mental health support sitting alongside other health and community programmes. That joined-up approach can be especially valuable for people dealing with isolation, stigma, financial pressure or the emotional effects of discrimination.

Her emphasis on trauma-informed and equitable care is significant, too. In practice, that means creating an environment where people feel listened to, respected and safe enough to discuss what’s really going on. It sounds simple, but anyone who’s struggled to find the right support will know it isn’t always guaranteed.

Why accessible LGBTQ+ mental health support matters

Mental health care works best when people don’t have to spend their first appointment explaining why they feel misunderstood. Specialist LGBTQ+ services can offer familiarity with issues such as minority stress, identity-based discrimination and the effects of social isolation.

LGBT Life Center’s wider services include counselling, wellness support and HIV-related care, giving the organisation a broad view of wellbeing rather than treating mental health as a separate concern. Its services page also points to a community-focused approach, which can make support feel less clinical and more connected to everyday life.

That connection is central to Fernandes’ outlook. She has spoken about the importance of caring for one another and building healthy relationships, particularly at a time when many people feel increasingly alone. It’s a warm, practical philosophy, and one that places community alongside therapy.

A personal story adds another layer to the role

Fernandes was born in Mumbai, formerly known as Bombay, and grew up mainly in the United States, particularly Virginia. Her extended family spans at least seven countries and four continents, giving her a personal connection to the complexity and richness of intersecting identities.

Away from the clinic, her interests are wonderfully varied. She enjoys drawing and painting, baking, video games, gardening and LEGO, while her cultural favourites range from MUNA and Kacey Musgraves to Madonna. Her favourite film is Howl’s Moving Castle, which feels like a suitably imaginative choice for someone helping shape a new chapter in community care.

For LGBT Life Center, her appointment brings clinical knowledge, organisational familiarity and a distinctly human perspective. For the people it supports, the hope is simple: better access to care that feels informed, respectful and genuinely welcoming.

A familiar face with fresh ideas could be exactly what this next chapter needs.

Source Reference Map

Story idea inspired by: [1]

Sources by paragraph: