Who Are We?

“Decrease WNC’s regional gap in LGBTQ+ supportive services by offering access to safe community spaces, wellness and therapeutic services, and queer-focused education.”

Our Mission:

Well, we first started as an LGBT+ community center in 2021, but then realized that our neighbors and community needed more than a rented space for events and private pay therapists. In August of 2022, queer and queer allied folks came together once again to create a nonprofit called Cornbread & Roses Community Counseling (CBRCC).

At CBRCC, we believe that all folks deserve therapy and healing no matter income, insurance, or location. We focus on LGBTQ+ folks because we are part of that community, we live here, and we don’t need to go anywhere. We realize that folks in the Western NC mountains are not all able to access the right supports, especially any they can afford.

  • Jennifer Harr, MSW, LCSW

    Director

    She/Her

    I am not the therapist here, but I support them wholeheartedly. I have been a therapist for almost a decade. I grew up in these mountains, and found myself in them too. I strongly identify in the autism, queer, and chronic illness communities. I have my own private therapy practice called Spectrum Squared (spectrum-squared.com) that I “infodump” and research about constantly. I believe that the world wasn’t created for folks like me, so I found others and created a space that felt safe and healing. I am not everyone’s “cup of tea”, and I am finally okay with that.

    In my spare time you can catch me collecting tiny objects, going to Sylva Belles Drag Shows, reading queer sci fi novels, and taking naps with my Saint Bernard named Walt.

    May we all have a space to be vulnerable, seen, heard, and affirmed.

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  • Kassie McAlpin, MSW, LCSWA

    Community Clinical Therapist

    She/Her

    It is my belief that everybody is inherently worthy of feeling seen, listened to, and understood – especially LGBTQ+ youth, and especially right now. I recently graduated from the Master of Social Work program at Western Carolina University, where I carved a path for myself specializing in offering therapeutic mental health support to LGBTQ+ identified, as well as neurodivergent, children and adolescents. As a queer-identified person who was born and raised in the rural south, I have a personal understanding of many of the challenges and barriers faced by queer, transgender, and gender expansive individuals in WNC. I am also aware of the resiliency that exists within the LGBTQ+ community.

    I offer a safe, affirming space to explore aspects of identity, navigate life transitions, and address struggles with mental and behavioral health through a strengths-based and person-centered lens. My work is rooted in an anti-racist, intersectional framework. However, I am here to get it right, not to be right. I recognize that all of my clients are the experts of their own experiences.

    While I utilize techniques from practices such as DBT, polyvagal theory, trauma-informed care, and art & play therapy, I know that every person has a unique and complex set of needs. Those unique needs will always be prioritized over any one approach. Most importantly, I strive to create a space where clients can feel safe to show up with authenticity and vulnerability. I believe deeply in the healing power of creativity & play, so I also offer options like puzzles, art supplies, coloring books, and games during sessions for anyone who may struggle with or prefer an alternative to just talking.

    In my spare time, you can probably find me worldbuilding for the fantasy novel I hope to write, spending time outdoors with my pup, or making my wife watch all my favorite animes.

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