October 16, 2020 - In This Issue:
Welcome Back! 
(We miss seeing you in person!)
By Trish Larsen, Executive Director
The past seven months have challenged us in ways we could not have imagined one year ago. They have forced us to adapt to ever-changing conditions that have deeply affected our lives.

The health and safety of our community remains in the forefront of our minds. As schools, community organizations, and many workplaces remain closed to outside visitors, Minding Your Mind will focus on delivering innovative and accessible virtual programming throughout the year. We will continue to study emerging issues that are affecting our youth and the adults in their lives, and continue to provide the resources and supports needed at this time.

Stay safe and well.
Grace & Gratitude
Gifts & Grants Received Since 
March 2020
Ardmore Rotary
Big Lots
Blue Sunsets
Donna Brooks
The Communities Foundation
DCU for Kids
Dolfinger McMahon Foundation
Fuller Foundation
Foundation for MetroWest
Foundations Community Partners
Fox and Roach Charities
Gerry Lenfest Legacy Fund
Green Family Foundation
Jack Satter Foundation
KyleCares
Cindy & Bill McKernan
The Reiner Fund
Sidewater Family Fund
Snider Foundation
Todd Snider
Spungen Foundation
Strott Family
Trent Stetler Memorial Fund
WSFS Bank
Abbey & Michael Zuckerman
Regional Updates
NEW ENGLAND
Minding Your Mind has partnered with RISCA (Rhode Island School Counselor Association) and MASCA (Massachusetts School Counselor Association) to provide four professional development and support sessions to each state's school counselors. Join us for this first session:
Using SEL to Support Student Stress and Anxiety, with Linda Price.
Monday 10/19/20 3:00-4:00pm ET
Most students are experiencing higher levels of stress and anxiety this year during hybrid and remote learning. School counselors, too! This will be an engaging professional development webinar that provides practical guidance for incorporating social-emotional learning (SEL) while supporting students who struggle with stress and anxiety, individually or in groups. Linda will also address how to support students who struggle with social skills and attention challenges. There will be time for Q&A.
RISCA members can register here.
MASCA Members can register here.


We are thrilled to partner with the Tri-Town Council and KyleCares to present a series for parents including The Secret Lives of Teens and Tweens presented by Jon Mattleman, and Parenting with Intention: Building Resilience in K-5 presented by Linda Price. Click here
for more information
Parents and caregivers, join Natick Health Department and Natick 180 for this Minding Your Mind webinar series on School in the Time of COVID-19.  Both sessions are free and open to the public.

10/20 @ 7pm ET: Middle/High School with Jon Mattleman, click here to register.

10/29 @ 6:30pm ET: Elementary School with Linda Price, click here to register.
NEW JERSEY & NEW YORK
Our deepest gratitude to North Brunswick Soccer Club and everyone who participated in their hybrid 5K for Mental Health Awareness! Thanks to the extraordinary generosity of the community, $17,000 was donated to Minding Your Mind for mental health education & suicide prevention programs in New Jersey! New Jersey & New York Director Guy Iacono was on-site to thank Joe Camarota of NBSC for creating this race and choosing Minding Your Mind as the beneficiary.
The Christmas Classic Paddle Tournament is returning for 2020! We are still working out the details, so stay tuned! To join the Christmas Classic email list, please click here.
CLICK LINKS FOR MORE INFO
(events are virtual unless otherwise noted)
 
 
*when using the links, please choose to continue to the WebinarJam registration site




October 28, 2020
Sheila Gillin, Andrew Onimus, Scott Prendergast
 
Andrew Onimus
Follow MYM on Social Media
Click any icon to follow MYM!
MYM hosts an active and ever-growing community of individuals who are interested in making mental health education a priority in our society. We have more than 9,000 followers on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn, and there is always room for one more. On our networks we share information about events, partnerships, and timely news and articles relevant to the mental health community. Come see what everyone is talking about! 

   
LookingForward2Ovations

"We had a great turnout and rave reviews!! Thanks so much."
Maureen Kehan, SHRM-SCP
HR Manager
Graham Company
Philadelphia/New York/ Washington, D.C.
Looking Back
The Minding Your Mind Podcast
At the heart of everything Minding Your Mind does are conversations focused on personal stories about lived experiences. These stories introduce people to new perspectives, educate on different subjects, and connect strangers to each other. When the COVID-19 crisis caused schools and business to close in March, we knew we had to react quickly to keep those conversations going, during a time when connection was more important than ever. Thanks to our generous donors, Minding Your Mind was in a position to serve our constituents in new ways and with new programs addressing new life stressors, delivered virtually and across new media. Existing programs were translated to virtual presentations, and brand new ways of sharing stories were developed. Enter the Minding Your Mind Podcast.

Podcast hosts Jordan Burnham, director of student engagement, and Evan Transue, Young Adult Speaker, have conversations that bring personal stories directly to the listener. "Thanks to the podcast, we are able to reach people who may never have seen a Minding Your Mind presentation," says Trish Larsen, executive director. "It also gives us an opportunity to introduce new voices to the Minding Your Mind family in a way that has no geographic boundaries." 

The Minding Your Mind Podcast is hosted on Spotify; click here to listen and subscribe. Highlights of recent episodes:
Jordan and Evan introduce themselves to you and share their hopes for the Minding Your Mind podcast.
Jordan speaks with Jill Gleeson, a health education teacher in New Jersey, around her experience teaching during COVID-19 and what she's learned from her students. 
Advocate Aaron Sharma and Evan discuss the trauma of Aaron's childhood, his unhealthy way of coping with it in the form of substance misuse, and the treatment that saved his life.
Jordan and Dr. Carol Labor talk about intergenerational trauma in the black community and the importance of activism moving forward. 
Upcoming episodes include conversations with strength coach and nationally recognized Strong Man champion, Joey Szatmary, and Martin Khodabakhshian, Emmy-winning ESPN Senior Producer and independent filmmaker. Don't miss out, subscribe on Spotify today!
Summer Partnership with 
C.B. Community Schools in Philadelphia

For six weeks this summer, Minding Your Mind partnered with C. B. Community Schools in Philadelphia to lead students through a mental health curriculum focused on teaching them new ways to creatively cope and express themselves.

In twice-a-week sessions hosted by art teacher James Jones, Pennsylvania director Marissa Marschall, director of student engagement Jordan Burnham, and a Young Adult Speaker worked directly with students. Six different Young Adult Speakers shared their stories, and students completed a variety of activities related to the subject matter. There was artwork, letter-writing, role-playing, and Jordan taught students how to create their own podcast by workshopping interview skills and recording an actual podcast. The week Kristen shared her story, one of the teachers wrote, "This was probably the most engaged I have ever seen our group."

The mission of C.B Community Schools is to engage, educate, and ensure that vulnerable students, who are currently involved in or were formerly involved in the child welfare or juvenile justice system, learn, heal, and grow into caring, confident, competent citizens of the world. The school is a successful model for prevention and diversion from institutional placement, providing students with the resources and skills to be successful in their communities.  
Learn more here. 

Over the coming weeks, we will be sharing student artwork and writing across our social media. Be sure to follow us and learn more about these inspiring students. Until then, enjoy this sneak peek:
From Young Adult Speaker to Published Author
Read My Perfect Life, by Lucas Wolfe
In September, Minding Your Mind Young Adult Speaker Lucas Wolfe added another role to his title: author. Lucas' memoir, My Perfect Life: How Depression Almost Ended It and How I Found Purpose Through Pain, is a series of stories beginning with the onset of his depression in high school and ending with his full recovery shortly after college graduation. "These stories are goofy, relatable, and emotionally gripping," Lucas says. "They allow you to experience the world through the eyes of someone secretly battling suicidal depression. Most importantly, they teach you how I found purpose through pain, how I developed a greater appreciation for the goodness of life, and how you can, too. Because it doesn't have to be this way. None of us have to die from suicide. None of us have to suffer alone and in silence. I want people to know this truth; it's why I wrote my book and it's why I joined Minding Your Mind."

"I've read a lot of books on teen depression, anxiety, and suicide, and have never come across a book that can be so helpful for so many," shares Wendy Sefcik, founder of RememberingTJ, a suicide prevention foundation dedicated to her late son. 

To read more about My Perfect Life and order your copy, visit Lucas' website.
LookingForward2Looking Forward
Move For Your Mind Challenge
Register now, participate through 10/31

Run, Walk, Dance, Jump, Climb, Swim, Cycle, Roll, Lift, Row, Balance or play a backyard game - there are no restrictions to the challenge as long as you are staying safe. We invite you, your friends, family, athletic team and/or social group to participate. Click here to learn more and register!

We hope you will join us...as with so many events in 2020, our in-person fundraisers all were canceled, but the need for mental health education only grew. This virtual event will allow us to connect with our friends and raise desperately needed funds to provide virtual programs to schools and students all over the country.
INTRODUCING...
Minding Your Mind: ONLINE
No in-school presentations? No problem! During the past seven months, Minding Your Mind has worked to develop a way to continue delivering mental health education in schools, regardless what that was going to look like for the 2020-2021 year. The result is  Minding Your Mind: ONLINE, a registration-based platform for schools. Through web-based foundational mental health education, students continue to learn from our Young Adult Speakers about the signs and symptoms of mental health conditions, as well as coping skills to manage many of life's inevitable difficulties. 

In Minding Your Mind: ONLINE, programs and supporting material can be delivered in a variety of ways to accommodate all types of learning plans. Watch the video below to learn more:


Topics will continue to be added that address current events and managing mental health.

Modules available now:
  • Stress, Anxiety, and Depression
  • Coping Skills & Building Resilience
  • How our Thoughts Influence our Well-Being
  • Transitions: Back to School During COVID-19
  • Minority Mental Health
Additional Modules in development are:
  • Mindfulness
  • Substance Use
  • Disordered Eating
  • Perfectionism
  • Social Media
A one-year subscription will provide access to all personnel in a single school, and priority release of new modules. For more details and to submit a request to discuss the options, click here.
Community Conversations
A Monthly Forum for Building Connections
Facilitated by Sheila Gillin, LCSW
On the last Wednesday of every month, Minding Your Mind Clinical Director Sheila Gillin, LCSW, hosts a community conversation that is free and open to the public. Participants login via Zoom to hear Sheila provide background information on a timely topic impacting our lives today, then interact with her and others in their peer group to ask questions and discuss. 

Join Sheila on Wednesday, October 28 at 7pm ET for Managing Transition During a Pandemic, with Minding Your Mind speakers Andrew Onimus and Scott Prendergast. They will share their experience transitioning to a virtual world and share their insights regarding the impact of the pandemic on young adults. Click here to register.