Our Mission

Our founder Mark grew up in Arkansas in a small rural community in the northeast part of the state. His parents were older when they had him, having 2 kids in the 1940's and 2 more in the 1960's. Mark always told his dad that when he moved back to Arkansas and the farm he needed some farm help. He would laugh but never deny it. Mark is thankful he grew up on a farm and ranch in Arkansas and went to a small rural school system. He spent two years in the small town, ended up at the University of Arkansas, in Fayetteville, and finished his undergraduate there in the late 80s.

Near the end of his college career in 1987, Marie and Mark got married. They ended up having four children -two biological and two adopted. They have lived in the greater Dallas area their entire marriage. When Mark got married to Marie, He wasn't confident about the direction of his career. He had done real estate growing up with his dad, so for a while, he thought that might be the direction he would go. As Marie and Mark prayed about it, they got more and more inclined to move toward counseling. As he explored options for counseling and options for jobs after graduating, he sensed more and more peace about going in that direction. They were married for a little over a year and Mark was accepted into the University of Texas at Arlington school of social work. He became a clinical social worker.

Samaritans Well started many years before it was called Samaritans Well. Mark began as the Clinical Coordinator at the Dallas Suicide & Crisis Center in the fall of 1990. Throughout the '90s, he worked in inpatient, outpatient, and private practice. In the late 90s, he started working with Every Man's Battle workshops, and Joe Dallas. It was a great honor to work with Joe and be a group leader and worship leader for Every Man's Battle for several years.

In the early 2000s, he began to consider having his own outpatient practice and in 2003, Mark started on his own. For several years after this, Mark began to get a vision of doing workshops and weekend intensives with women, men, and for married couples That culminated in 2009 with the formation of Samaritans Well and the beginning of having workshops and conferences, along with intensive and individual and family counseling. Hundreds of people came through those workshops in the early years. A number of counselors worked with them at the beginning of Samaritans Well.

Over the years, our workplace and goals adjusted to meet everchanging needs. By embracing these shifts in focus we've been fortunate enough to witness countless lives blossom - from individuals through entire families - all thanks to experiencing real transformation for the better.

For the last two decades, Mark has experienced tremendous joy witnessing the adoption of his children and profound sorrow in losing both parents. He is undoubtedly a stronger believer today as God has deepened his connection with Him through all of life's changes - an ongoing story that continues to broaden and deepen on so many levels.

Since 2011, Mark and Marie have been incredibly blessed to be members of Upper Room Dallas with Michael & Lorisa Miller. They've even taken it a step further by serving as elders for multiple years - an incredible honor! This church family has played such a big part in their journey that they'll never forget the impactful lessons learned along the way.

Samaritans Well wouldn't be what it is today without Marie! Always encouraging and never one to shy away from challenging work, she has been a driving force behind the foundation - an inspiring support system for Mark. A true blessing in every way imaginable, her presence continues to impact their ongoing success.

Mark's son Josh has been a powerhouse of energy for Samaritans Well, tackling everything from the planning and financials to marketing and website development. He even took care of all the social media outreach! His contributions are indispensable - no doubt instrumental in crafting success stories for this remarkable business.

Josh and Marie have been working wonders with Samaritan's Well! They've made Sundays a lot more meaningful by organizing workshops that help people learn more about Soul Sense, achieve inner healing, and strengthen marriages. Each workshop runs from 2 to 8:30 pm - how amazing is it when one day can bring about so much transformation?

As we progress forward, our story is filled with expanding possibilities and opportunities. We're taking on more counselors to help us reach even more people, while also providing new training for existing staff. On top of that - books are being written about our methods! It's a thrilling adventure as we continue this journey into greater territory.

The Samaritan's Well story has been made possible by the hundreds of individuals who have mustered up strength and courage to come through our doors in need. These brave people are true heroes - they poured out their hearts, and shared stories both joyful and sorrowful; yet never let that stop them from taking a chance at getting help. Our mission is deeply rooted in Biblical teachings: Weep with those who weep as it will bring forth joy eventually! It has certainly held true for all we've had an opportunity to serve here at Samaritans Well- these courageous folks reap what can only be described as a life-changing transformation!

Our story is really just beginning, and we wanted to share it with you. We know everyone has their own unique journey—we'd love to be part of yours! If there's any way we can help make your experience even better, please don't hesitate let us know - many others have taken the leap already! May God continue blessing each step along your path.

In our first session, we will get to know you and get as much about your history as we can in that first hour to prepare you for something that should be a specific focus in the second hour that you're there. We want you to leave with encouragement and the knowledge and understanding that there's hope. If you want to look through some of the reviews, you're welcome to. Literally, hundreds and hundreds of people have been helped through Samaritan's Well Counseling. We address needs from a biblical perspective and a professional perspective. We ask that you let us know what your highest priorities are when you come in for counseling. We will have an assessment at the end of that first session, and it's vital that we take that assessment combined with your specific needs, to determine the plan from that moment on. We want this to be life-changing for you. 

Counseling comes in a wide variety of shapes and sizes. It's samaritans well we still have a variety of counselors and ways that we approach things, but there's a common thread and accountability that certain vital parts of the counseling process are consistently there. We want to pray with you if you're comfortable with that. We want to bring the scripture in if you're comfortable with that. Many people come to us specifically because we are bringing scripture into our sessions please consider before you come, any issues that are really vital that be addressed, and any issues that you'd rather not go to in the beginning. Often if we hear those two sides, it can help us understand where you are and where you're hoping to go.

When we get to your second session, it will be important to know any changes that have happened between session 1 and session 2. And in general, will want to know how you're doing with sleep-getting to sleep and staying asleep; eating, current work and family relationships, and anything significant that's happened since the last time we met. It's important that you come into any session with somewhat of an awareness of what is going on emotionally and spiritually with you. Here is a way that can help you with that.