Leadership Team
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Cesar Vasquez, LCSW-R
Brown Team Captain
Senior Supervising Social Worker
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Dr. Melanie Styles
Red Team Captain
Director of Quality Measures and Outcomes
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Mizana Parsons-Munir, MA
Green Team Captain
Director of Holistic Medicines
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Monica D'Agostino
White Team Captain
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Sharon Kennan, LCSW
Purple Team Captain
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Yvette Stovall, CLC
Chief People Officer
The Companies at Legacy, Inc
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Jessica Benedetto, LMHC
Orange Team Captain
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Sherman Stovall Jr, LCSW-R, MA, CEAP, Q-SAP, C-DER, EAS-C
President of The Companies at Legacy, Inc
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Carla Natale, LCSW
Blue Team Captain
Dr. Melanie Styles, Director of Quality Measures and Outcomes
Dr. Melanie Styles is the Director of Quality Improvement for The Companies at Legacy, Inc.
She is a Supervising Clinician with Legacy Behavioral Health and is leader of the “Red Team”.
A native of Albany, NY, Dr. Styles’ education includes; her Associates Degree in Human Services, Bachelor’s Degree in Liberal Arts, and in 2002 she received her Master’s Degree with honors in Community Counseling. Dr. Styles continued her education and in 2006 garnered her License as a Mental Health Counselor in the State of New York. While working in the community- counseling field, she pursued and graduated in 2016 with a high honor’s Doctorate Degree in Educational Psychology with a concentration in Pastoral Counseling. Dr. Styles works in affiliation with multiple religious and community boards as their counseling consultant and therapist.
Dr. Styles has worked in the Human Service field in multiple facets for the past two decades as; Case Coordinator, Case Manager, Foster-care Director and most recently as Senior Therapist for her own business, Step by Step Counseling. Dr. Styles has passionately proven to foster hope and support to many individuals and families who have endured traumatic and difficult life experiences. Counseling continues to be one of Dr. Styles greatest joys in seeing people effectively develop inner hope and survival techniques to cope with life’s issues.
Dr. Style uses a range of therapeutic modalities including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Solution Focused Therapy, Grief and Loss, Trauma Therapy, Crisis Intervention and Mindfulness.
Her specialties include: Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, psycho-educational anxiety, gender identity, child abuse, anger management, mood disorders, marriage and family interventions, crisis intervention, depression, anxiety, stress management and faith -based therapy.
A message from Dr. Mel…
“Every step out of the past is a step into your future.”
Monica D'Agostino, LCSW-R
Monica is a Supervising Clinician with Legacy Behavioral Health and is captain of the “White Team”.
Monica is a New York State Licensed Clinical Social Worker with the "R" psychotherapy privilege, licensed to provide diagnoses and psychotherapy to individuals experiencing behavioral health concerns. She has been a provider of behavioral health services for over 16 years. After spending 10 years in public service, and only 1 year as a Supervisor at Legacy, Monica joined The Companies at Legacy, Inc full time in November of 2021 while bringing her diversified and exceptional clinical expertise to The Companies at Legacy, Inc.
Monica is originally from Western, NY and moved to the Capital Region in 2002. She received a Bachelor's degree in Social Work from Keuka College in 2002. She holds a Masters in Social Work from the University at Albany, 2005. Earlier in her career, Monica worked as a Care Manager for a not for profit agency in Saratoga County. There, she worked with adults experiencing severe mental illness. After graduate school, Monica worked at a Continuing Day Treatment Program for Adults suffering from addiction and mental illness. There, she provided individual and group therapy and in 2011 was promoted to Clinical Supervisor and assisted with the transition from a day treatment program to a PROS (Personalized Recovery Oriented Services) Program.
Since her time spent at PROS, Monica transitioned to working as a Supervising Social Worker for an outpatient community mental health clinic where she provided individual and family psychotherapy to children, adolescents and young adults.
Monica's passion is working with children. Her areas of expertise include treating individuals with mood disorders, depression, anxiety, school stress, and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. She practices with an eclectic range of treatment modalities by using a client centered approach. Her most favored clinical techniques include Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, play therapy, solution focused and mindfulness approaches. She believes that the most important aspect in therapy is developing a positive and trusting relationship between client and therapist.
Cesar E. Vasquez, Senior Supervising Social Worker
Cesar (LCSW-R) is the Senior Supervising Social Worker for The Companies at Legacy, Inc.
He is a Supervising Clinician with Legacy Behavioral Health and is leader of the “Brown Team”.
Cesar is a New York State Licensed Clinical Social Worker with the "R" psychotherapy privilege, licensed to provide diagnoses and psychotherapy to individuals experiencing behavioral health concerns. He has been a provider of behavioral health services for 14 years.
Cesar received his Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from the State University of New York at New Paltz. He completed his Masters degree in Social Work from the School of Social Welfare at the University at Albany, SUNY.
He is a bilingual (Spanish) Social Worker with nearly two decades of experience in the mental health field. He spent 11 years working for OMH (Office Mental Health) at the premier psychiatric institute in New York State, the Capital District Psychiatric Center (CDPC). While there, he also worked for the New York State Crisis Intervention Unit as a Social Worker Supervisor for New York State.
Cesar adds to his experience with his time spent with OMH, working for the Child/Adolescent Clinic where he conducted intakes, screenings and evaluated the needs of families while working in collaboration with psychiatry staff. He also facilitated individual, group and family therapy while educating clients about the nature of their illness.
Cesar has also worked as a Crisis Intervention Specialist for the Capital Region Children and Adolescent Mobile Crisis Team in Albany, NY. There, he provided rapid response to children, adolescents, and families in crisis.
Prior in his career, Cesar worked as a Mental Health Social Worker at Unified Services in Troy, NY for Rensselaer County’s Department of Mental Health.
Cesar has also worked for Vanderheyden Hall, Inc in Wynantskill, NY as an IRA House Manager, Direct Care Worker and Staff Support Specialist. He has worked for RSS (Rehabilitation Support Services) as a Mentally Ill and Chemically Addicted Case Coordinator in Albany, NY.
Earlier in his career Cesar worked as an Activity Coordinator and Case Manager for Supervised Lifestyles Health in Brewster, NY. He has interned for the award wining Albany County Mobile Crisis Team in Albany, NY; and also interned at Woodlawn Elementary, in Schenectady City School District in Schenectady, NY.
Drawing on his unique experience of immigrating from Peru as a young teenager, Cesar specializes in rapport building with a strengths-based approach towards treating behavioral health concerns.
With many years of practice in a variety of mental health settings including public and private care, Cesar has worked in both in-patient and out-patient settings, He is adept at offering individuals a targeted therapeutic approach to balance short-term needs and present skillful and competent interventions while simultaneously building rapport towards long-term goals.
Cesar has extensive training in crisis intervention and has worked in a supervisory capacity for several years; making him responsible for the training and competency of dozens of skilled clinicians in New York State. As with most crisis clinicians, and with a contagious and fun loving personality; Cesar is best known for his assessment capability and skillful aptitude towards managing almost any situation while providing direct support and untrammeled professional supervision to his team.
A message from Cesar...
"Good mental health means hope - finding strengths, building resilience, and valuing most of all, every individual's own unique dignity and value."
Jessica Benedetto, LMHC
Jessica is a New York State Licensed Mental Health Counselor, and holds a Masters degree in Mental Health Counseling from The College of Saint Rose.
She is a Supervising Clinician for Legacy Behavioral Health and is the leader of the “Orange Team”.
Jessica is highly skilled through her experience working with young children and teenagers that have significant behavioral health concerns including anger, depression and anxiety. Jessica is able to apply her therapeutic approach with interventions, and help youth become successful in school, at home. and in their communities.
In addition to individual therapy, Jessica also specializes in family therapy and helping adults navigate through struggles with their children and families, including significant others. Jessica uses an array of therapeutic modalities, given whatever she is providing consultation for. She explains that different techniques work better with certain personality types and problems that she is helping a particular client with. Jessica uses cognitive behavior therapy, dialectical behavior therapy, and person-centered approach in helping those under her care. She takes special pride in helping families identify barriers and avoid negative thinking patterns. Recognized by her colleagues as both committed and distinguished, she has helped countless families better their communication skills and strengthened their relationships.
A message from Jessica…
“You can be who you want tomorrow, regardless of who you are today. Helping people navigate through their thoughts, beliefs and guiding them towards recognizing their inner strength, is the goal behind therapy...
A person seeking help already has the answer within them, a therapist just helps them find it.”
Sharon L. Keenan, LCSW
Sharon is a New York State Licensed Clinical Social Worker. She holds a Masters of Social Work from Springfield College in Massachusetts. She previously received her Bachelor’s degree in Social Work from the College of Saint Rose in Albany, New York.
She is the on-site Supervising Social Worker at Legacy Behavioral Health, PC and serves as captain of the “Purple Team.”
Sharon is highly skilled with different populations having worked with children, adolescents, teens, families, and adults at Parsons Child and Family Center as both a school based clinician at the Cohoes School District as well as at the New Karner Rd. Behavioral Health Clinic. In addition, Sharon brings with her experience as a crisis therapist at the Family Counseling Center in Gloversville. She has also worked with the forensic population with Albany County Mental Health and with the NYS DOCCS/OMH prison system.
Sharon has a passion for working with those who may be struggling with the aging process. She is currently seeing patients who are between the ages of 30-up; focusing on the ages of 50 and above.
Sharon’s belief is focusing on the “whole person” and “meeting the person where they are at.” She utilizes strengths based, person centered, solutions focused, CBT, and trauma focused approaches with clients. Sharon believes people’s upbringing and their life experiences are the most valuable tools in the therapy process.
Sharon believes a strong therapeutic partnership is crucial to successful outcomes. Each person has a path they are walking in life and when they reach the crossroads of that path, and decide to make a decision, Sharon walks beside them and supports that decision.
Mizana Parsons-Munir, MA , Director of Holistic Medicines
Mizana is Director of Holistic Medicines for The Companies at Legacy, Inc and captain of the “Green Team”.
She is a Reiki practitioner; certified holistic therapist; Integrative Health, Restorative & Wellness Coach. For over 20 years, Mizana has helped her clients break through the obstacles that seem to be holding them back by way of low energy; anxiety; trauma; anger; depression, and self-defeating thoughts.
Mizana’s area of Holistic medicines create a place for healing and is supported by 30 years of training. Mizana completed her Bachelor’s Degree in Creative Arts in Therapy & Chemical Dependency. She holds a Masters Degree in Women’s Studies with a second concentration in Counseling. She is also a retired CASAC (Credentialed Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Counselor).
Mizana is a certified Hypnotherapist and holds certifications as a Holistic Psychotherapist and Integrative Health/Restorative & Wellness Coach. She works with individuals, couples, groups and organizations to introduce clients to the experience of Sacred Medicines - which consists of Holistic Psychotherapy; Reiki; Hypnotherapy; Meditation; Relaxation; Doula Services; Breath-Work; Coaching, Manifesting Sacred Spaces; and Aromatherapy. These medicines engage the experience of clients’ “Spiritual Sense of Style,” while marking the path for long-term lifestyle change.
Mizana believes that finding the right fit of spirituality is important. She explains that it supports commitment which empowers a connection to Source … Greatness. She submits that it allows clients to become who they were meant to be, and not who they think they are.
A message from Mizana…
“Life’s too short to be unhappy, unsure, and unfulfilled. Implementing Sacred Medicines encourage better ways to manifest the Sacred-ness within, all while managing the issues standing in the way of success.”
Carla Natale, LCSW
Carla is a New York State Licensed Clinical Social Worker and a Certified School Social Worker. Having been a provider of clinical services for nearly 20 years, Carla has an unwavering passion for treating children. She received her Bachelor's Degree in Sociology from SUNY Oneonta in 2001. She holds a Masters Degree in Social Work from the University of Albany School of Social Welfare—2003.
Carla is a Supervising Social Worker and is captain of the “Blue Team”.
Carla has a long standing history of working with a diverse population of adolescents, teens & young adults, and has been working in school districts since 2008. She also has experience as a clinician serving clients with intellectual and developmental disabilities and dual diagnosis in a day treatment setting.
Carla specializes in the areas of grief and loss, school anxiety, crisis intervention, interpersonal and school related issues as well as navigating services for families within the special education system. She has extensive experience working with the juvenile justice system, family court and probation services. She utilizes a person-centered, strengths based and solution focused approach with compassion and openness to best serve her clients.
Sherman Stovall Jr., President
Sherman Stovall, Jr (LCSW-R, MA, CEAP, Q-SAP, C-DER, EAS-C) is President of The Companies at Legacy, Inc, (TCAL) and is leader of The Legacy League, USA.
He is founder of LegacyCrypto, a decentralized financial and medical ledger that uses blockchain technology and other consensus algorithms to secure user data.
In 2021, Sherman presented LegacyCoin as the worlds first “Wellness Cryptocurrency”. Later that year he announced LegacyCoin as the official currency of The Companies at Legacy and confirmed plans to develop The Legacy Foundation.
The Foundation’s primary responsibility would be to assist Legacy Technologies with developing a robust network of nodes that could handle T-CAL’s thousands of transactions per second without compromising security of the network.
The Legacy Foundation’s second mission parameter would be to behave as a centralized agent of authority known as TANK on the Legacy Network. This function would ultimately be proceeded by a consensus and mining Designated Proof of Stake protocol—creating the first Wellness centralized ledger to be “backed up” by a decentralized ledger—giving birth to Legacy Crypto.
Sherman has also confirmed plans for Legacy Technologies to develop the new Digital Wellness Experience (DWE) which would include the video game debut of LegacyMan.
LegacyMan follows the digital story of T-CAL’s Legacy Foundation.
In the game, the user can opt to play as ‘LegacyMan’, the worlds first Wellness Superhero.
In the game, LegacyMan travels the universe and saves worlds by initiating acts of wellness by teaching generations of people and children on how to practice wellness.
T-CAL is set to develop the first of its kind Wellness-Crypto-Gaming software that allows users to play as Tank’s general on the Legacy_LANDS network—a character named Cypher.
In this “mining” or idle mode, users can earn cryptocurrency, or Legacy-Coin by completing objectives and tasks as Cypher.
Cypher earns its users cryptocurrency by allowing them to mine cryptocurrency passively from their phones and digital devices.
This creates the worlds first Wellness Cryptocurrency by essentially allowing users to make money in the digital world while simultaneously securing Legacy’s network by simply playing the game.
The new Digital Wellness Experience at T-CAL simultaneously allows its users to be able to earn and spend their LegacyCoin in the digital world of T-CAL’s game—LegacyMan—while also allowing players to purchase healing goods and services from any of The Companies at Legacy.
This allows T-CAL members to operate within both realms while using only the wellness currency, Legacy-Coin.
T-CAL accomplishes this by allowing players to earn and spend cryptocurrency within the virtual space, and in reality—All from one ledger.
In the game, players can even shop at any of The Companies at Legacy, including The Wellness Companies at Legacy, (the retail arm of Legacy). There, they can purchase holistic goods and healing services.
When a player visits The Wellness Companies at Legacy in the game, any items or services that are purchased will result in the player receiving the product in real life.
This turns LegacyMan into a Digital Retail Portal by allowing the player to make decisions related to their wellness in the digital space which can have real life consequences or results. This includes a players ability to earn and spend from their Legacy-Wallet—which exists in both a virtual and real life digital reality.
So now, currency that can be earned for free in the virtual space, has the same value in the digital and real world space—and can ultimately be circulated and used as real life currency.
Users can earn free cryptocurrency by playing LegacyMan on their phones and then use that same Legacy-Coin to purchase healing at The Companies at Legacy or at any merchant that accepts Legacy-Coin.
A truly innovative concept.
Sherman has explained that he designed Legacy_LANDS on the Legacy Network to operate at its best while simultaneously being under-siege and attack from malicious software and users.
Sherman accomplishes this by giving the Legacy Network “Shields”. Shields allow for transactions on the Legacy Network to operate on an autonomous relay for final authentication, a process that Legacy Technologies calls LIT-FAB.
LIT-FAB stands for Legacy Innovative Technologies -Final Assessment & Battle.
LIT-FAB provides a concierge service for Legacy users’ transactions over the LEGACY_LANDS network.
LEGACY_LANDS is T-CAL’s Legacy Authentication Network Defense System.
LEGACY_LANDS includes Sherman’s built in defense protocols, which consists of a robust ‘Delayed Proof of Work’ protocol, followed by SPECTRE’s DAG protocol which works to achieve its required 51% consensus algorithm.
LEGACY_LANDS is ultimately secured “by the People” at Legacy-Nation as a Delegated Proof of Stake algorithm which was originally designed by Legacy Technologies for T-CAL.
T-CAL, or The Companies at Legacy consists of: Legacy Technologies, LLC; Legacy Behavioral Health, PC; Legacy Health Partners, LLC, The Legacy Collection, LLC; The Legacy Tree, LLC; The Wellness Companies at Legacy, LLC; Legacy Steel Transportation Company, LLC; Root3d, A Legacy Company, LLC and The American Legacy Companies, LLC.
Sherman is the founder and managing partner of Legacy Behavioral Health, PC, and Legacy Health Partners, LLC, including its yoga company subsidiary, Root3d, A Legacy Company, LLC.
Sherman has been a provider of clinical services in the Capital Region of New York for over 18 years. He has worked for public, private and corporate entities throughout his career, including years spent in corporate working as a Regional Employee Assistance Manager for CSX Transportation. He has also worked as a Employee Assistance Consultant with Magellan Health and New Directions Behavioral Health for the United States Postal Service. He has many years of experience with collaboration and providing executive consultation to leadership and work groups throughout the country. Sherman enjoys working with his colleagues to provide guidance and clinical supervision to Legacy’s team of Providers. He is well known for utilizing a strengths based approach towards helping his team and clients manage almost any problem.
Sherman has spent years managing conflicts and crisis’ while working for the premier psychiatric institute in New York State, the Capital District Psychiatric Center (CDPC). He worked for the New York State Crisis Intervention Unit (CIU), also located in Albany, NY. Sherman has also worked for the award winning Albany County Mobile Crisis Team, an emergency psychiatric response team in New York State. He adds to his experience with both inpatient and outpatient psychiatric experience through his time spent with the Crisis Inpatient Division located at CDPC. Before leaving public service in 2012 to form Legacy, Sherman was working for the Community Assessment Referral Treatment Team, another specialized unit in Albany County’s Department of Mental Health.
Sherman has specialized training in addiction psychiatry and substance abuse. He has worked for Conifer Park in Glenville, NY as an Addiction Specialist. Prior to that, he worked as a Medical Social Worker for Albany Medical Center Hospital and has received additional training at the LaSalle School for Boys, where he worked in their Juvenile Sexual Victim and Offender Program. Sherman is credentialed by the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services' Municipal Police Training Council, and certified to provide training and instruction on Police Mental Health tactics and negotiations to NY State Troopers and all Police in New York State.
Sherman is certified by the United States Department of Transportation as a Qualified Substance Abuse Professional, QSAP. This designation and specialized training qualifies Sherman to assess, diagnose and make Return to Duty recommendations for federal employees suffering from substance abuse who work in sensitive safety positions across the United States. This includes FAA- Pilots; FRA- Railroad Conductors & Engineers; FMCSA- Federal Motor Carriers; PHMSA- Pipeline Hazardous Materials Handlers; and US Coast Guard & Maritime personnel.
Sherman is credentialed and holds several qualifications by EAPA, The Employee Assistance Professional Association. In 2014, Sherman earned the designation of CEAP, Certified Employee Assistance Professional. He also holds the Employee Assistance Clinical Specialist credential— a qualification signifying specialized training in the field of Employee Assistance in private practice. Sherman also holds credentials from DATIA, the Drug & Alcohol Testing Industry Association. He has served on the Board of Directors for numerous nonprofit organizations across the United States. Sherman has also been affiliated and is a member of countless professional organizations including: IACP, The International Association of Chiefs of Police; NASW, National Association of Social Workers; DATIA; EAPA; DCJS, Division Criminal Justice Services; EAR, Employee Assistance Roundtable and ATAP, Association of Threat Assessment Professionals. He is a subject matter expert in the field of Behavioral Health, Substance Abuse and Employee Assistance. He is a Critical Incident Responder, (CIR) for New York State and works with police agencies to respond to high profile calls requiring rapid assessment, consultation and negotiation. He is a guest lecturer at Universities and Colleges across New York State and continues to provide clinical supervision and consultation to students, individuals, communities and organizations in the Capital Region. He is a New York State Licensed Clinical Social Worker with the “R” psychotherapy privilege, licensed to provide diagnoses and psychotherapy to individuals experiencing behavioral health concerns.
Sherman earned dual Bachelors Degrees in Psychology and Sociology from The University at Albany, SUNY. During his undergraduate career, he also completed a specialization in Education Counseling Psychology.
He holds Masters degrees in both Criminal Justice and Social Work.
from Sherman,
“When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.”