Peter Pennington
Chief Executive Officer
Peter Pennington is the CEO at The Refuge as of March 2023. A native of South Carolina, Peter relocated to Roanoke, Virginia, in 2005. Peter is an alumni of an Acadia facility, having dealt with substance use and mental health issues and finding recovery in 2008. Having found recovery, Peter returned to school in 2010 and completed his undergraduate degree at Roanoke College in Salem, Virginia, with a B.S. in History. While in school, Peter was employed with an Acadia facility as night clerk, as he strived to help others as he was helped. This led to his dream of clinical work by earning a M.S degree in clinical mental health counseling from Walden University in 2015, followed by his LPC licensure in Virginia in 2018.
Since 2016, Peter has worked in leadership roles with multiple companies, including admissions, utilization management, business development, and executive positions. Peter returned to Acadia Healthcare in 2021 serving as treatment placement specialist in Eastern Virginia, helping clients, families, and professionals navigate treatment options nationally for all behavioral health needs. Peter has also served in executive functions in Virginia and North Carolina, helping facilities provide safe, quality treatment in the behavioral health field.
Peter is a transformational leader, supporting and energizing leadership teams to meet goals and work in a healthy space, with the client’s needs always at the forefront. Peter is supported by his husband of 12 years and 9 year old twins, along with his “herd” of three dogs. In his spare time, he enjoys playing and watching most sports, especially college sports – he is a diehard South Carolina Gamecock fan! He also enjoys watching movies, reading books, having coffee anytime, and he adores laughing with his family and friends.
