Empowering Youth’s Inner Wisdom (Aired on July 23, 2023)

                 

Mathew Swerdloff and his wife Elise Gold created the Maya Gold Foundation in honor of their daughter Maya who committed suicide at the age of 15, but the Foundation is involved with more than suicide prevention. After a trip to India, Maya became involved in efforts to stop human trafficking in Nepal. Today the Foundation has developed a close relationship with groups in Nepal. The program also features Hannah Stillhouse, now a college student who has gone with one of the groups of 16 teenagers the Foundation takes to work in Nepal, but back in the U.S. has led one of the Foundation’s Youth Action Teams who work to help teenagers improve mental health.

Learn More:
Maya Gold Foundation: http://www.mayagoldfoundation.org/
Youth Action Teams: https://www.mayagoldfoundation.org/who-we-are/youth-action-team
Teen Mental Health First Aid: https://www.mentalhealthfirstaid.org/population-focused-modules/teens/

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September 8, 2023 · Posted in Education, International Programs, Mental Health, Support Groups, Youth  

Domestic Violence Awareness Month at Grace Smith House (Aired June 25, 2023)

               

Once again, RadioRotary interviews Branka Bryan, Executive Director of Grace Smith House, a shelter in Dutchess Country for women (and some men) confronted with domestic violence. Grace Smith House started in 1981 and now serves over 2,500 victims each year. In October– Domestic Violence Awareness Month– a project designed to dramatize the effects of domestic violence once again is in local galleries in Poughkeepsie and Rhinebeck. The Grace Smith House Clothesline Project is a powerful visual display of t-shirts created by survivors of domestic violence, or their loved ones. Each shirt is decorated to represent a particular victim's experience. The t-shirts are on display at local art galleries. The Purple Ribbon Project in honor of Domestic Violence Awareness Month is for students and staff at Bard College and Dutchess Community College to tie a purple ribbon onto a tree branch. Each ribbon represents support for survivors of domestic violence. Along with the ribbons, lawn signs showcase domestic violence statistics and Grace Smith House resources

Learn More
Grace Smith House: https://www.gracesmithhouse.org/
Domestic Violence Services, Dutchess County: https://www.dutchessny.gov/Departments/Community-Family-Services/Domestic-Violence.htm
National Domestic Violence Awareness Month: https://nationaltoday.com/national-domestic-violence-awareness-month/

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August 13, 2023 · Posted in Domestic Violence, Support Groups, Women  

The MARC Foundation, Funding Awareness & Recovery (Aired on March 26, 2023)

                    

Radio Rotary hosts Mike Carber of the MARC Foundation Board of Directors to learn about programs funded by the Foundation and its coming fundraising events. The MARC Foundation, which grew out of the MARC Agency (now a part of Mental Health of America of Dutchess Country), funds programs and organizations that support addiction prevention and recovery, including addiction to alcohol or other drugs or to character defects such as gambling. Recently this support has included developing an overdose memorial, providing scholarships for addiction therapy, and helping substance abusers transition to a drug-free life. Money for this support is raised at the Annual Luncheon and by the Tom Gannon/Cliff Andrews Day of Golf, as well as from contributions to the overdose memorial and donations from the public. A new fundraising event this year is a bowling tournament. Learn the details of these events from the radio show or from the MARC Foundation website, http://www.marc-foundation.org/.

Learn More:
MARC Foundation: http://www.marc-foundation.org/
Mental Health America of Dutchess County: https://mhadutchess.org/
Dutchess County Substance Misuse Prevention and Treatment,  https://www.dutchessny.gov/Departments/County-Executive/Breaking-Through.htm

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April 10, 2023 · Posted in Addiction Recovery, Dutchess County, Mental Health, Support Groups  

Mental First Aid from MHA Dutchess (Aired On February 26, 2023)

              

Andrew O’Grady, CEO of Mental Health America of Dutchess County (MHA) visits Radio Rotary to introduce “Mental Health First Aid,” an eight-hour course that teaches ways to identify, understand, and respond to signs of a mental health or substance use problem. Similar to physical First Aid and CPR, Mental Health First Aid helps a trainee assist someone in a mental health or substance use crisis. MHA, among the sponsors of the First Aid course, is a nonprofit devoted to community-based services for dealing with mental health problems. Its many programs include care management, mobile crisis aid, community residences for persons experiencing substance misuse, veterans’ services, mental-health backup for police, supported housing, several varieties of support groups, and workshops and educational programs. MHA has aided more than 6,000 persons to solve their mental health problems in the past twelve years.

Learn More:
Mental Health America of Dutchess County: https://mhadutchess.org/
Mental Health First Aid: https://www.mentalhealthfirstaid.org/
National Council for Mental Wellbeing: https://www.thenationalcouncil.org/

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March 5, 2023 · Posted in Addiction Recovery, Education, Mental Health, Service Organizations, Support Groups, Veterans  

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