To say that psychologist and business owner Drew Miller is passionate about helping people find healing and wholeness is an understatement. But how he got there is quite a story. Drew is living proof that sometimes God’s direction comes in unexpected ways. And sometimes, those ways include Grace.
A Passion to Play
In high school, Drew loved soccer. As he looked forward to college, Drew didn’t have a career path in mind. All he knew for sure was that he wanted to keep playing the game he loved. Drew began his collegiate soccer career at Grace college with a bang–he started in his first three games as a Lancer! And then an unexpected stress fracture in his femur put him out for the rest of the season. “It was at this time that I began to think more seriously about a career beyond soccer. This injury would change the course of my life, and God began to change my heart and desires for my future,” said Drew.
A Change of Plans
The summer after his freshman year, Drew was preparing to leave campus for summer break when his friend called and asked him to serve as a counselor at Camp Ray Bird that summer. Four hours later, Drew was on his way to camp, completely unaware of how God would use it to guide him. “That summer, my faith was strengthened, and I was afforded the opportunity to sit with people in the mess of life. I began seriously thinking about a career in counseling,” Drew reflected. Drew returned to Grace college after his summer at Camp Ray Bird as a declared Psychology and Sociology double major, but his love for the field of counseling did not stop after his graduation in 2000.
Another Degree to Pursue
Drew’s desire to be a licensed counselor drove him to stay at Grace and pursue his CACREP Accredited M.A. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling. His time in the master’s program prepared him for his career and equipped him to approach counseling with a Christian worldview. Drew graduated with new skills and a heightened sense of confidence in the counseling field.
After completing his graduate program, Drew decided to work at Grace as a grad assistant for the master’s program and therapist in the Health & Counseling Center. During this time, Drew remembers fostering influential relationships with faculty. “I spent more time with Dr. Tom Edgington, Dr. Tammy Schultz, and Dr. Kevin Roberts. This year was invaluable. I don’t know if they know how important this time in my life was, but it was in this year I solidified my decision to pursue a doctorate.”
A Mission of Healing and Wholeness
Drew went on to get his doctorate and started a private practice called the Aberdeen Group in Fort Wayne, IN where he works as a licensed psychologist. “We are not a large practice,” said Drew, “but my business partner, Dr. Tom Dettmer, and I, take pride in offering quality counseling to our clients and making a meaningful difference in the lives of those individuals we get to serve, which includes our incredible staff.”
Drew continues to walk down the path that began at Camp Ray Bird, the summer of his freshman year. “God has used a number of incredible people and experiences to shape my career path. Many of those experiences did not always seem to make sense at the time, but God has always been faithful,” Drew reflected. He is making a meaningful difference in the lives of people and offering quality counseling to those who need it. This is the way of Grace.
Are you in the field of counseling and looking to take the next step and get an online master’s degree? Maybe your “Camp Ray Bird” experience is reading this blog. Learn more at online.grace.edu/programs/master-of-arts-in-clinical-mental-health-counseling/.
