Individual, Group, & Family Counseling
Dedicated to helping people live the best life possible, we believe individuals and families can resolve their own problems, make healthy choices, and build a good life if they have the appropriate tools and skills. At Family & Youth Institute, LLC, our mission is to provide those tools and skills through an eclectic counseling approach. We utilize psycho-education, individual counseling, group counseling, family therapy, and play therapy. Ask about our in-home and in-office services.

Adolescent & Youth Counseling
Using a systems approach to counseling, adolescents and youth work with their families to find creative solutions for mastering challenges they encounter in daily living. Families with children acting out behaviorally often find that everyone in the family must support them in their efforts to change. We believe no child wants to fail, feel sad, or disappoint others. We help children find keys that unlock doors to success and happiness.

Who We Are

Denise Sartori-Garcia, M.A., LMFT-A
Co-founder of FYI, Denise Sartori-Garcia is a marriage and family therapist associate. As both a private counselor and therapist on staff for a mental health hospital, Mrs. Sartori-Garcia has experience working with adults, adolescents, children, and families in crisis. Working with chemically dependent hospital patients and private clients struggling with alcohol and drug abuse is a major component of her practice.

Mary Ann Hunt-Sartori, Ed.D., M.A., LPC
Dr. Hunt-Sartori, founder of Family & Youth Institute is a licensed professional counselor and holds a doctorate in educational leadership. Her experiences include counseling couples with marital problems, individuals who are dealing with depression, anxiety, anger, bipolar disorder, and substance abuse. As both a school counselor and a professional counselor, she has extensive experience working with adolescents and their families. Attention deficit disorder (ADD), oppositional defiance disorder (ODD), and general behavioral concerns represent a major focus of her practice. Dr. Hunt-Sartori and all the FYI counselors have extensive experience working with difficult youth and out-of-control teens. As an educator with 23 years of experience teaching children in Grades K – 12 and working with schools as a teacher and counselor, she helps clients work with schools to maximize their child’s school success. In addition, she is a certified instructor for parenting classes and works with both parents whose children are in the juvenile justice system and those who want to prevent an escalation in misbehavior. She teaches parents how to write ironclad, loophole-free behavior contracts while strengthening the relationship they have with their children.

Patty Eskew, B.S.
Co-founder of FYI, Patty Eskew has 23 years experience in education as a certified teacher for students in Grades K – 12 and librarian. As youth director for her church, she has spent over 30 years working with youth and adolescents in various settings. In addition, she is a certified instructor for parenting classes and works with both parents whose children are in the juvenile justice system and those who want to prevent an escalation in misbehavior. She teaches parents how to write ironclad, loophole-free behavior contracts while strengthening the relationship they have with their children.
Because children experiencing emotional and behavioral concerns, often struggle in their academic setting as well, Ms Eskew provides individualized academic instruction in the form of tutorials to those students and helps parents coordinate academic services with schools.

History of Mary Ann Sartori, Owner
Eleven years ago, Mary Ann Sartori left her home in Louisiana and moved to Texas following a divorce. She brought her athletically active and academically successful children with her. Within 6 months of arriving in Texas, they began to struggle behaviorally and academically. Efforts to find help from schools, counseling agencies, and churches were unsuccessful. Because Mary couldn’t give up, she went back to school and became a counselor so she could help them. Ultimately, she saw that what she experienced as a parent and learned in school could be valuable to other families needing help with her children. From there grew her passion to do what she could to ensure no family would have to “walk the walk” her family walked.

Contact us for information about our family counseling center.