Kristin Hunt, LCSW, MSW, MAT

About Kristin Hunt

I attended Libertyville High School, Hope College, and then NIU, where I met the love of my life, Jason. In 2005, I obtained a Master of Arts in Teaching (K–9) from Dominican University in River Forest.  I have taught in several schools in Lake County.  If you were my student, please reach out and tell me how you are and what you are doing!  Teaching was wonderful, especially French and working with gifted students, but the demands of being a parent and the stress of being an Army wife won out somewhere during the 3^rd deployment. By 2010, I felt a bit lost.  I worked at St. Joseph’s Church in religious education and tried working as a bank teller (my parents, Deb and Bob Marrs, were both bankers for decades in Lake County), but I was not finding what was right for me. 

In 2015, at a yellow ribbon Army post-deployment marriage retreat, I had my ah-ha moment and realized that I wanted to be a counselor/therapist. I was completely drawn in by the thought of helping others by working closely with small numbers of people, which starts what I call the ripple effect.  This is the ripple effect: When a couple stays together, that can impact their children, friends, and extended family. When someone learns a coping skill from me and shares it with someone else, who shares it with another person —well, the possibilities are endless and I just love that!  So, in 2015 I went back to Dominican University for a second master’s degree in social work with a military concentration, and  in 2017, I completed a yearlong internship at the Captain James A. Lovell Federal Health Care Center in North Chicago.

Lemon Tree Counseling Services is a long-time dream come true!  I have wanted to own my own business since I was a little girl—at that time, a restaurant,  and later, I also dreamed of becoming a teacher.  I started working with children as a teen lifeguard at Adler Pool.  Over the years, many of my dreams came true.  I married Jason and we now have two amazing sons who make us prouder every day!  Justin is preparing for a promotion to Captain in the Army soon.  Ryan can be found climbing poles, digging holes, and mending and setting up cable throughout the Milwaukee area.  They both found the love of intelligent, talented, and kind women who are beautiful inside and out and we are so happy to have them in our lives!  It has been a long road filled with ups and downs (as I am sure you have all experienced as well). Following the death of my parents, I wanted to honor them somehow.  They were HUGE Peter, Paul, and Mary fans and took us to Ravinia to hear them sing years ago.  It is a cherished memory of mine. We also enjoyed their concerts on PBS and listened to their albums (sometimes on 8-track!).  One of my favorite songs was called “Lemon Tree”; to me, this means good times, warm memories, and LOVE.

About Lemon Tree Counseling Services

Insurance Plans – current

Insurance Plans – coming soon

The Lemon Tree Counseling Services office building is handicap accessible, with both stairs and an elevator to the 2^nd floor office.  We has several office spaces, suitable for various types of therapy, including offices with games and toys to help children tell their stories and interact with their therapist.

Please note:  Our policy is to see a child of divorce only if 1) the parent requesting services has 100% custody and/or medical decision making rights or  2) both bio/original parents sign BOTH our Parents’ Financial Agreement (stipulating consent and agreeing in advance as to who will pay any fees) and the Therapist and Parents Child Safe Harbor Agreement.  These will be emailed first to one parent via docusign and then will be forwarded to the second parent.  Upon completion of both signatures, the document is returned to this office.  In the case of joint custody/medical decision making, services cannot begin until this document has been completed.

All therapists at Lemon Tree Counseling Services are mandated reporters in the state of Illinois.  The safety of anyone who walks through our door is of utmost importance. Therefore, please be aware that all reports of abuse or intention to harm others are taken very seriously and will be reported to the proper authorities.  For more information, please click here