The Arthur M. Blank Foundation announced on Wednesday a new series of grants focusing on mental health and well-being in response to America’s growing mental health crisis.
The foundation is funding 15 grants ranging from $100,000 to $2 million to support organizations that address mental health needs “from crisis to stability to flourishing.” Five of the grants were awarded to Georgia-based organizations.
“Our chairman, Arthur M. Blank, has a keen interest in improving the state of mental health and well-being, especially for young people across our nation,” said Fay Twersky, president of the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation, in a press release. “The recent escalation and urgency of the crisis has prompted our foundation to make a multi-year, long-term commitment to invest in solutions.”
The foundation noted that the nation’s mental health crisis worsened with the pandemic, but also acknowledged the growing awareness and acceptance around the issues that has led to work being done to solve it.
According to the National Alliance on Mental Health, 21% (52.9 million) U.S. adults experienced mental illness in 2020. In the United States, suicide is one of the leading causes of death.
Of the five grants given to Georgia based organizations, $500,000 will go The Carter Center to support their mental health program,$250,000 will be go to Kate’s Club to support children who have lost significant figures in their lives, $225,000 will go to CHRIS 180 to provide behavioral health services in Atlanta’s Westside, $100,000 will go to Inner Explorer to launch a meditation program in Atlanta public schools and $200,000 will go to Resilient Georgia to create a behavioral health network for children in Georgia.
“There’s no one specific approach to well-being that works for everyone,” said Beth Brown, managing director of Mental Health & Well-Being at the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation. “These grants will allow us to explore a multitude of approaches with our nonprofit partners, whose work is characterized by a special blend of compassion, innovation and impact.”
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