Wellness Within Reach offers free in-home or on-campus therapy for community members experiencing trauma and other challenges
With numerous supporters and philanthropic and community representatives in attendance, Harvest House leaders conducted a ceremonial ribbon-cutting for the nonprofit’s Wellness Within Reach program on Nov. 5, Harvest House has announced.
Approximately 100 people were in attendance for the celebration, “which took place at the program’s new center on Mango Avenue in Sarasota,” a news release says.
The event included remarks by Harvest House President and CEO Dan Minor, Harvest House Clinical Director John Lopez, Gulf Coast Community Foundation President and CEO Phillip P. Lanham, and Rebecca Abrahamson, director of community engagement for the Community Foundation of Sarasota County, the release adds.
“After the remarks, guests were invited to tour the facility and enjoy light refreshments,” the release continues.
“Today, we’re not just cutting a ribbon, but we’re opening a door, a door that leads to care, to hope, and to healing for people who — for far too long — have been standing on the other side of that door,” said Minor during the event. “Recovery isn’t just about having a roof over your head; it’s about having someone to talk to when life gets hard, when the past feels heavy, and when hope feels out of reach,” Minor continued. “When care is within reach, healing begins. When we remove the barriers to care, we build stronger families; when we build stronger families, we build stronger communities,” Minor said.
On Oct. 1, after “a highly successful three-year pilot program,” Harvest House officially launched the Wellness Within Reach program, the release continues. The “initiative provides free mental health therapy services delivered directly in supportive housing or home settings, lowering barriers to mental health care for individuals and families experiencing homelessness and/or severe trauma in Sarasota and Manatee counties,” the release explains.
“Harvest House’s targeted demographic in Sarasota County includes low- and moderate-income residents, the release adds. “Limited access to affordable and geographically accessible mental health services exacerbates instability, perpetuating cycles of homelessness and trauma,” the release points out.
Harvest House tracked the impact of the pilot program on 126 participants, the release continues, “and the results were resoundingly successful.” The program achieved a 100% success rate related to housing stability, the release notes, and it “significantly reduced incidence of recidivism for program participants who engaged in therapy: women who received therapy had a 0% recidivism rate while men who received therapy had a 14% recidivism rate. These outcomes are much lower than Florida’s average,” the release says, with data having shown that more than 60% of people released from prison statewide have been re-arrested within three years, and approximately 25% of them have been reincarcerated.
“Additionally, program organizers found the program increased community resilience, reduced the stigma surrounding mental health conditions, and improved overall health outcomes within its target populations,” the release points out.
“When this building first opened in 2018, it became a lifeline to youth ages 16-24 [who were] experiencing homelessness or at risk of becoming homeless — a safe, welcoming place where young people could rest, recharge and begin to heal,” said Lanham of the Gulf Coast Community Foundation during the ribbon-cutting ceremony. “Harvest House is once again transforming this space, this time into a hub of accessible, no-cost mental health care for residents of all ages,” he added. “Now, free weekly therapy delivered here on campus or in people’s homes removes the biggest barriers to care: cost, transportation, child care and stigma.”
Harvest House received a total of $380,000 from area foundations and governmental entities — including the Gulf Coast Community Foundation, the Community Foundation of Sarasota County, the Golisano Foundation and Sarasota County HERO Funds — “to expand the program to reach additional community members,” the release says.
Visit harvesthousecenters.com for more information.