A journey of self-discovery, courage,
relationship, and service.

Finding mentors. Discovering practice.

In 2006, Kirk met Dr. Emmanuel Hernani through a family connection — an introduction that became one of the most influential mentoring relationships in his professional life. Through Dr. Hernani, Kirk was exposed to psychological profiling, interviewing, and work with persons rescued from human trafficking. These experiences revealed a side of psychology that could not be fully learned in a classroom.

Through Dr. Hernani's referral, Kirk was introduced to the Facilitator's Circle, where he met its founder and director, Dr. Glenn Glarino. Kirk became part of the 14th Circle — a challenging and rewarding training that introduced him to experiential learning, Gestalt-oriented approaches, and a community of people who would become lifelong colleagues and collaborators.

In 2010, Kirk became involved in founding the Association for the Advancement of Humanistic Psychology (AAHP) with Thaddeau "Thadz" Engaling II, Dr. Emmanuel Hernani, and others from the Facilitator's Circle community. Kirk served as the organization's first corporate secretary. AAHP eventually evolved into the Facilitators' Guild — a community whose members would later become central to GWI's training and professional network.

From the classroom to clinical practice.

After the Facilitator's Circle, Dr. Hernani helped connect Kirk to part-time teaching at the Philippine Paramedical and Technical School, while Dr. Glarino referred him to Matilda L. Bradford Christian School, where Kirk served as guidance counselor for approximately four years — working with students from preschool through high school.

Those years profoundly shaped his understanding of what young people need. Children needed help. Families needed help. There had to be a space where they could be heard — where someone could sit with them in their difficulty. It was during this period that Kirk began recognizing something familiar in his work: he sometimes saw, in the children he worked with, a familiar child — the child within himself who had once tried to reach out and find help.

Work with Behavioral Dynamics, Inc. (BDI) in Manila deepened his expertise in psychometrics and assessment. He subsequently joined Britech College as Guidance Counselor and HR Officer from 2011, mentored by Engr. Nicolas Baguio and Zamyra Baguio, before fully transitioning to GWI in 2013.

From a vision to a practice — 15 square meters at a time.

On March 16, 2012, Gestalt Wellness Institute was founded in Talisay City, Cebu — at first a sole proprietorship. The first clinic occupied approximately 15 square meters. The testing room, counseling room, and office were essentially the same space. Yet the limitations of the physical space did not limit the vision. The vision had been shaped, in part, by Kirk's mentor Dr. Simon Maurice "Bud" Feder — conversations that pointed toward something neither had quite seen built yet: a genuinely holistic, multidisciplinary mental health institute. Dr. Feder passed in 2018, but those conversations have never stopped shaping GWI. Kirk admired and deeply appreciated Bud — a strong influence on his journey into Gestalt therapy and on coming to know himself.

GWI initially focused primarily on psychological assessment and training, working with organizations and corporations. One of the earliest organizations that helped GWI establish a foothold was Alpha Diagnostic Center. Kirk remains grateful to Teejay Ledesma of Alpha Diagnostic Center for the opportunity and trust extended to GWI during those formative years. GWI's earlier relationship with BDI also helped with access to assessment instruments, and a partnership with Hogrefe UK followed.

That same year, GWI provided psychosocial aid to survivors of Typhoon Yolanda — made possible in part by individual members of AAGT who gave directly to support the response. Even as a young institution, GWI showed up when it mattered.

From sole proprietorship to institution.

GWI was incorporated in 2013 as Gestalt Wellness Institute Southeast Asia, Inc. From 2012 to 2015, Kirk served as GWI Director, evolving into Executive Director from 2015 — focused on defining GWI's vision, mission, direction, and institutional development.

Relationships with government agencies, NGOs, schools, and corporations expanded significantly. Kirk is grateful to Gilbert Carredo, whose assistance opened opportunities with DSWD and DOLE — including assessments for adoption, VAWC, child abuse, and other vulnerable population cases. GWI also developed a relationship with the Talisay City CSWDO and French NGOs including Passerelles Numériques Philippines, Children of Asia Philippines (Enfants D’ Asie), Little Bamboo Foundation, Inc., and Enfants du Mekong Philippines, providing counseling and psychosocial support for scholars and communities.

These experiences reinforced a realization: mental health cannot be separated from the social realities surrounding people. Poverty matters. Family matters. Trauma matters. Community matters. Psychological care has to consider the whole person and the context in which that person lives.

The person who helped GWI become a clinical center.

In 2009, Kirk met Ma'am Juliet Abordo, a child and clinical psychologist. In 2014, she joined GWI as its first psychologist. Her arrival marked an important development in GWI's clinical evolution — she specialized in working with children and became instrumental in developing GWI's clinical programs and interventions for young people.

She was not simply a professional colleague. She was someone Kirk trusted, learned from, and worked alongside through years of GWI's growth. Juliet also became GWI's first coordinator for continuing professional development initiatives — contributing directly to GWI's recognition as a PRC CPD-accredited provider in 2018.

She remained part of GWI from 2014 until her passing in 2025. For Kirk, her death was deeply personal. Her contribution cannot be measured simply by the years she spent at GWI — she helped shape the kind of organization GWI became. Her legacy continues through the people she mentored, the programs she helped establish, and the clinical values she brought into the organization. Juliet is part of GWI's DNA.

GWI becomes part of Cebu's mental health ecosystem.

2018 was one of the most significant years in GWI's history. GWI became a PRC CPD-accredited provider — formalizing its role in the professional development of mental health practitioners. On July 30, 2018, the Wellbeing Cluster launched its first pilot in Cebu — a multi-sector MHPSS platform built through years of groundwork. GWI stepped in as a founding partner. Kirk expresses particular gratitude to Hitendra Solanki of Simply Mindful for allowing GWI to become an integral part of the Wellbeing Cluster, and to Lenbi Laborte and CenVisNet for their advocacy and collaboration in MHPSS and psychosocial support.

When the Naga City landslide struck in September 2018, GWI volunteers were part of the psychosocial response — demonstrating that GWI's commitment to showing up in crisis extended beyond the clinic walls.

The drive to reach people before crisis finds them also shaped the iCare Mental Health Expo — co-founded with Renyvonne Fae Ledesma — bringing together DOH, DSWD, other clinics, rehabilitation facilities, and wellness workers. The Expo has run annually since, including online editions during the pandemic. GWI also partnered with FARM Recovery Center, and Cebu Team Building — led by Thaddeau "Thadz" Engaling II, an alumni facilitator — became a partner training arm for GWI's organizational work.

From founder-led practice to shared institution.

By 2019, Kirk recognized that GWI needed to grow beyond being dependent on a single founder — more perspectives, more professionals, more people who could participate in its future. Philipp Chen R. Tan and Renyvonne Fae V. Ladesma joined GWI as shareholders, investors, and practitioners. Dr. Lynn Rocelle P. Indolos was also invited to join the shareholder group.

GWI's clinical network expanded: partnerships with Safe Havens Recovery Village and 180 Degree Rehabilitation Center (2019–2021) strengthened GWI's capacity for psychological assessment, counseling, and psychotherapy within rehabilitation settings.

For Kirk, collaboration was becoming an organizational principle. There would always be competition. But in mental health, the need is too great to build the profession around competition alone. There is more work than any single clinic can do. There is greater value in collaboration.

The pandemic as a defining test of GWI's mission.

The COVID-19 pandemic became one of the most demanding periods in GWI's history. Together with the Wellbeing Cluster, CenVisNet, and other partners, GWI participated in psychosocial support initiatives for doctors, nurses, healthcare workers, and communities. People were overwhelmed. Healthcare workers were exhausted. Fear and uncertainty had become part of everyday life.

Even while Kirk himself was infected with COVID-19, he continued providing psychological support to healthcare workers through listening and assistance. The experience reinforced GWI's purpose: mental health care is not simply about providing a service inside a clinic. Sometimes it means going where people are. Sometimes it means responding during a disaster. Sometimes it means simply listening when someone has nowhere else to put their fear.

In 2020, Sheila and Jimmy Clemente became GWI shareholders and investors — bringing rehabilitation experience from their association with FARM and other recovery centers into the GWI community.

From 15 square meters to a structured clinical center.

By 2021, GWI was operating at both its Talisay clinic and a new facility at Velez Medical Arts, V. Ranudo Street, Cebu City — approximately 78 square meters with a reception area, dedicated counseling rooms, a testing facility, office space, and a small pantry. The original 15-square-meter room had grown into a clinical center.

The organization had also developed into a true multidisciplinary practice — psychologists, psychometricians, psychiatrists, and other professionals working together. The addition of Dr. Lynn Rocelle P. Indolos as psychiatrist strengthened GWI's clinical capacity significantly.

That same year, Kirk was appointed to the DOH Region 7 Mental Health Council through the Wellbeing Cluster — a seat held from 2021 to 2025 — placing GWI formally within the region's public mental health governance framework.

An institution is not defined by one building.

Typhoon Odette became another defining moment in GWI's history. The Talisay clinic was flooded and sustained significant damage. In March 2023, the entire clinical operation was transferred to Velez Medical Arts — Room 515, which remains GWI's primary clinical location.

Talisay continues to hold important institutional infrastructure — records, documents, servers, and data systems — while clinical and operational activities are consolidated at Velez. The transition demonstrated something important about GWI: its identity is not dependent on one physical location. It exists in its people, relationships, knowledge, systems, and commitment to service.

Governance, growth, and a continuing commitment.

GWI added Solace Drug and Alcohol Addiction Treatment and Rehabilitation Center as a partner in 2024. In March 2026, GWI completed its PRC Permit-to-Operate requirements and filed its application — a milestone representing the maturation of an organization that began with very little physical infrastructure but with an unwavering belief in the value of psychological care.

GWI now serves, alongside the Ramon Aboitiz Foundation Inc. (RAFI), as a Joint Convening Institution and Institutional Steward of the Wellbeing Cluster Philippines — helping lead the coalition's governance, from convening its General Assembly to accrediting member organizations and coordinating emergency response. That same partnership carried GWI a seat on the DOH Region 7 Mental Health Council, held from 2021 to 2025.

GWI’s Gestalt practice also stays current through ongoing international supervision — with Stefan Green Meinel (Denmark), Lorena Soberanes (Mexico), and Sheishi Harada (Japan) — whose sharing, teaching, and experience keep GWI’s modalities relevant and evidence-based, and ground the team’s own self-care.

GWI continues to strengthen its systems, clinical governance, professional development structures, and multidisciplinary capacity. Neither Kirk nor GWI sees this as the end of the journey. Being a clinician and working in mental health requires lifelong learning. Every client, colleague, challenge, failure, and experience becomes an opportunity to learn. GWI is still learning too.