Leadership Team

Robert R. Detore has been Chief Executive Officer of Turning Point, Inc. since 2015. Turning Point, Inc. is a nationally accredited and state licensed inpatient and outpatient addiction treatment organization located in Paterson, NJ. He was the founder and CEO of Correctional Health Services, Inc. (CHS). CHS was the major provider of healthcare services to county juvenile and adult correctional facilities and private correctional facilities in New Jersey. CHS was acquired by Prison Health Services, Inc., based in Nashville, Tennessee.

He was a former Board member of Community Education Centers, LLC., Mellon Bank FSB, Cathedral Healthcare Services, Inc., East Orange General Hospital, Wynoma M. Lipman Child Advocacy Center, and since 2011, the President of the Board of Trustees of The Robert Treat Academy Charter School, operating on two campuses with 699 students in Newark, New Jersey.  

In December 2022, Governor Phil Murphy appointed him to the Opioid Recovery and Remediation Advisory Council. This Council will provide recommendations for use of the funds that the State of New Jersey is receiving as a result of nationwide settlement agreements with several opioid manufacturers and distributors. The State of New Jersey and eligible counties and municipalities will receive over $600 million in settlement funds over the next two decades.

He is a graduate of The George Washington University and holds masters degrees from New York University and Seton Hall University. He served twenty years in elective office, most recently as the Mayor of Verona Township.

Thomas J. Brady, MA, MBA, LCADC;?is an accomplished executive with over thirty years senior leadership experience in healthcare, in both the Private & Public sectors of Behavior Health and Community Corrections. Tom has been recognized as an expert in the field of addictions and specialized in working with difficult populations and their families. Tom also is an experienced trainer in Continuous Quality Improvement and has participated in JCAHO and ACA accreditation. Tom’s Business, Clinical and Operations experience has allowed him to engage in Contract/Grant Procurement, Program & Network Development, Budget Management and building strong employee, customer and community relations. Because of his diverse skill set, Tom has participated in the coordination of numerous Correctional Re-Entry Programs and Addiction & Mental Health Program activations throughout the country. 

Robert C. Parkinson, Chief Financial Officer, is responsible for the overall financial leadership of the agency including financial planning and analysis, budgeting, revenue and cost management, and accounting. Prior to joining Turning Point, Robert worked in senior financial (CFO), operations (COO), business development, and strategic planning roles in two other large non-profit drug treatment agencies and worked for 10-years as a Management Consultant leading major change programs for global corporations. He serves on the Board of Hyacinth AIDS Foundation and holds an MBA from Penn State University and a BS from Ithaca College. 

Colette Charles-Davenport is Turning Point's Director of Human Resources. Colette has more than 20 years of experience in human resources and workplace compliance across a diverse set of industries. Colette serves on the leadership team and is responsible for implementing key initiatives consistent with Turning Point's strategic goals. Colette is a dynamic practitioner with leadership and operational experience. She previously served as Vice President of Human Resources & Administration for Boys & Girls Harbor Inc., a nonprofit education management organization based in New York City. Over her career, Colette has held senior leadership roles serving as subject matter expert on operational and strategic HR practices. She is experienced in labor relations and mediation and is credited with guiding the development and implementation of change initiatives, developing Human Resource teams, cultures of collaboration and capacity building to effectively support business growth. 

Colette holds a Juris Doctorate from Georgetown University Law School and a bachelor’s degree from Spelman College. She has served on professional boards during her career. 

Heather is responsible for providing administrative oversight for the facility and ensuring that services are consistent with the organization’s mission. 

Heather is a licensed psychotherapist and addiction professional with clinical and administrative experience in mental health and substance abuse programs. She has been in the public sector since 2003 and has wide-ranging experience with program development, quality improvement, licensure and grant procurement on the state, county and federal level. 

Heather has a comprehensive understanding of psychiatric illness and practices for community behavioral health services, and a strong knowledge of the interplay between mental illness and the criminal justice system. She has extensive experience working with diverse groups of patients with biological and psychological addictions and proficiency in the coordination and planning of complex treatment interventions for co-occurring patients overcoming acute and chronic difficulties. 

Heather holds an MBA (2022), a MA in Applied Clinical and Counseling Psychology (2004) and Certificate in Non-Profit Management (2017) from William Paterson University. She earned her BA in Psychology from Cornell University (2000). 

Christian Castano, MS, LPC, LCADC, NCC, joined our team at Turning Point in 2014 as an Operations Technician. He was quickly promoted to an Outpatient Counselor position, with his credentials as a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC), Licensed Clinical Alcohol and Drug Counselor (LCADC), and National Certified Counselor (NCC) highly recommending him for the position. After transitioning to the admissions department, Christian was promoted to Director of Admissions in 2017. 

Prior to his tenure at Turning Point, Christian had experience working with outpatient rehab groups and individual rehab patients as a counselor. As a facilitator of male-focused meetings, he gained specific insights into the needs of this population. We are lucky to have this specific expertise to bolster our programs. Before pivoting his focus to addiction medicine, Christian worked with traumatized children who were victimized by domestic violence. His experiences with abused children inform his approach to dual diagnosis/co-occurring disorder treatment. 

Christian received a BA in Psychology from New Jersey City University and an MS in Mental Health Counseling from Monmouth University. 

Stephen DellaValle started his career at Turning Point, Inc. as a volunteer in the late 90’s and later joined the Board of Directors in 2001. He served as President of the Board of Directors at Turning Point in 2005 through 2012. Stephen was an instrumental figure in the restructuring of Turning Point’s management in 2015. He has been a manager within the Admissions Department since 2015, assisting with Turning Point’s mission to provide treatment for each individual with compassion. Stephen is the author of the critically acclaimed self-help book ‘Rising Above The Influence” and celebrates over 30 years of sobriety. 

Heidi was promoted to Director of Nursing in October, 2022. She has worked with Turning Point since 2016 and has served as charge nurse for the overnight shift since 2018. Heidi brings more than twenty years of experience as a nurse and administrator and is also an experienced Director of Nursing with expertise in substance use disorder treatment.

The role of the Director of Nursing at Turning Point is a critical one and most importantly focuses on client care. The role has an impact in most operations within Turning Point and directly collaborates with our department directors, medical team, medical consultants and manages a large medical staff operating in the Paterson facility. As the designated health and safety official, the Director of Nursing is actively engaged in health education initiatives, staff development, medical protocols as well as enterprise-wide management of Covid-19 and infectious disease prevention.

Dawn Knill brings over 30 years of experience in the non-profit sector with skills in administration, program development, finance and budgeting, customer/member services, stewardship and relationship building, special events, volunteer recruitment and management, as well as public relations and marketing. She has been a certified fundraising executive (CFRE) since June, 2008. 

Dawn is also a faculty member at County College of Morris as an adjunct instructor teaching Creating Donor Centric Communications and Creating Special Events That Raise Funds and Friends. For several years, she shared her grant writing experience with the students attending the grant writing certificate program and then progressed to this position. She loves sharing her experience and knowledge with the students. 

Volunteer service is a passion of Dawn’s and she enjoys sharing her knowledge of marketing and fundraising. She is faculty for the Association of Fundraising Professional’s Fundamentals in Fundraising and the CFRE Review Course. She is a former executive board member of the New Jersey Chapter’s Association of Fundraising Professionals and additionally has held multiple positions within the chapter which include secretary of the board, resource development chair, chairperson for the Conference on Philanthropy, chairperson for the Awards in Excellence Dinner as well as involvement with the Youth in Philanthropy program. She has also served on the Vestry of her church and was instrumental in helping raise $2M for their capital campaign as well as increasing the number of families pledging to the annual stewardship campaign. Most recently she started a healing blanket ministry at her church where she was able to recruit over 25 volunteers to knit and crochet healing blankets for those who are ill or experiencing difficulties. 

Dawn lives in Basking Ridge, New Jersey with her husband, Chuck, where they raised their six children. In her spare time Dawn enjoys spoiling her 5 grandchildren, cooking, canning, gardening, raising chickens, and crocheting. 

Helen is a licensed Professional Counselor (LPC), a Licensed Clinical Alcohol and Drug Counselor (LCADC), an Approved Clinical Supervisor (ACS), a National Certified Counselor (NCC) and a Certified Social Worker. Helen graduated from Fairleigh Dickinson University in 2002 with a Master’s degree in Clinical Counseling with a specialization in Addictions Counseling. Helen began working with the developmentally disabled in 1973 at the Hunterdon Developmental Center in Clinton NJ and worked there until 1979 when she moved to Oregon. In Oregon she worked as a head start teachers aid while she volunteered for Dunn House the local battered women’s shelter. Helen attended her first year of college in 1985 at Southern Oregon University as an Art Major and began working with emotionally disturbed children as a work study job. Although she loved Art, she knew her heart was in social work and counseling. Helen moved back to New Jersey in 1986 and shortly thereafter began working with clients with co-occurring mental health and substance abuse issues) at the Warren County Easter Seals Program. She was there for 7½ years until she realized that in order to advance in her career she would have to go back to school. So, at 40, Helen enrolled at Warren County Community College getting her associates in liberal arts within two years and followed that with a three year combined Bachelor’s/Master’s program at Fairleigh Dickinson University. In 2001 Helen took a position as a residential aide and then as a counselor at Anderson House, a Halfway house program for Women in Recovery in Hunterdon County. A year later she was offered the position of Clinical Director at Anderson House. Helen facilitates the Family Counseling Program at Anderson House and created the Family Education program there as well. Helen has been the Clinical Director at Anderson House since 2001.

Helen is a client centered relational therapist using Motivational Interviewing and Cognitive Behavioral therapies as well as trauma informed therapy to help her clients towards change. Helen strives to help her client’s understand the beliefs and coping skills they have developed in order to negotiate their relationships and family systems. Helen helps her clients to understand the relationship they created with the drug or behavior of their choice and how this affects all of their relationships, with themselves, their families their co-workers, friends and larger community. She works with her clients to develop more effective life affirming coping skills and healthy alternatives to their addictive behaviors.

Helen is an avid organic gardener and promoted the creation of an organic garden at Anderson House. Helen continues to tinker in artistic endeavors, plays guitar, sings and loves to work on her house, read practically everything and dote on her three grandsons every chance she gets.

Claribel Ortega, MA, LPC, LCADC, CCS, DVS 

Director of Outpatient Programs 

Claribel Ortega, a bilingual clinician, is licensed in both Clinical Substance Use Disorder and as a Licensed Professional Counselor. Over the years she has become a Clinical Certified Supervisor; Domestic Violence Specialist; Disaster Response Crisis Certified and Anger Management Certified. 

Claribel has been working in the field of substance use disorder and Domestic Violence since 2010.  She works closely with people struggling with substance use disorder, domestic violence, mental health, and emotional pain. She has a deep understanding that people use unhealthy ways of coping due to their suffering from emotional pain, usually caused by psychological trauma. She helps clients identify the cause of their suffering, and together, finds healthier ways to cope and start feeling better.  Claribel enjoys sharing her expertise and experiences outside of the workplace as a motivational speaker. 

Abigail Powell, LCADC, CCS, is our Director of Clinical Services and has served Turning Point in various clinical capacities. In 2005, she began her career as an intern at Turning Point. From there, she started a full-time position at Turning Point, working with clients suffering from co-occurring disorders at the short-term residential units. Abigail was promoted to Coordinator of Outpatient programs, and in 2011, she facilitated the creation of the Paterson Intensive Outpatient and Outpatient Programs. Shortly after, Abigail was given an opportunity to return as the Director of Residential Programs, assisting the clinical team in the transition to a new managed care environment. In November 2018, Abigail was given the opportunity to join the leadership team as Director of Clinical Services. 

She is a graduate of Montclair State University, where she obtained a master’s degree in counseling and completed an Advanced Certificate Program. Abigail was also honored to be recognized by her alma mater for Outstanding Professional Achievement in Addiction Counseling. 

David Thomas has an Associate’s Degree from Essex County and is a certified drug and alcohol counselor (CADC) with more than twenty years’ experience working in the behavioral health profession with co-occurring and substance use disorder individuals.  

David’s experience includes working in several levels of care including outpatient, intensive outpatient, partial care and residential care. David began his career working as a primary counselor; he also worked as a clinical team leader, aftercare coordinator and Director of Operations for over ten years.  

In 2004 he was awarded, The Denis Mansmann Award by Addiction Treatment Providers, Inc of New Jersey for his hard work and dedication in the field of substance abuse treatment 

Elisa Warren has dedicated her entire career to working exclusively with adolescents and their families. Her unparalleled commitment to helping teens find their voice while discovering their self-worth has made her a provider of choice for nearly 20 years. Her approach to treatment is that of compassion and understanding, that the teenage years are often the most turbulent as teens experience feelings on a much deeper level. She understands that they often act on how they feel, not what they think, thus teens struggle with foreseeing negative consequences. 

Part of the successful growth of her program is her deep-seated belief that everyone is special and has the ability to change and grow. Elisa often uses humor while instilling a desire in each client that motivates them to want to change. She is a firm believer that treating the whole family is a vital part of sustaining long-term recovery and change. Her gift is being able to read people and understand what is being said, without it being said. Her natural insight into adolescents has proven her highly regarded as a choice provider. Elisa is always available to parents in need, staff members, and referral sources. This open line of communication further punctuates the difference when parents and professionals are choosing programs. 

Todd M. Wilding, M.D., ABAM is the Medical Director at Turning Point, where he uses his 20+ years of experience in addiction medicine to tend to the unique and personal needs of individuals struggling with alcohol and drug addiction at our facility in New Jersey. A board-certified addiction medicine specialist, Todd has a long history of providing quality detoxification care to patients experiencing withdrawal symptoms and has operated his own private practice in New Jersey since 2003. He also continues to work at the Physicians Assistance Program of New Jersey, where he specifically treats impaired physicians. Prior to his appointment as Medical Director, Todd served as Medical Director of another rehab facility for 18 years, Morris County Correctional Facility, a 300-inmate jail, and was a medical acupuncture provider at the Center for Natural Health and Rehabilitation. 

Todd received his education from the Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn, New York, as well as postgraduate training at UCLA School of Medicine, St. Vincent’s Hospital, and Beth Israel Medical Center.