United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley announces $250,000 in grants through two new funding initiatives—Youth Mental Health Innovation Grant and United for Veterans’ Mental Health Grant, to address the region’s growing mental health crisis. With intentional investments, United Way can support innovative projects that prioritize and enhance the mental well-being of young people and programs and initiatives that make mental health resources and support available to veterans.

“At United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley, we’re dedicated to addressing the growing need for mental health services for everyone in our community,” said Marci Lesko, chief executive officer of United Way. “We want children, families, older adults and veterans to feel seen, heard, understood and supported. We’re honored and excited to provide support for prevention-based and intervention-based solutions, to empower youth to be a part of the solution and raise awareness.”

Across the nation, mental health needs are rising rapidly, creating substantial impacts on all parts of life including physical health, quality of life and even a student’s ability to learn in school. In fact, the U.S. Surgeon General has described declining mental health among youth as the crisis of our time. In the Greater Lehigh Valley:

• 39% of youth report feeling depressed most days,

• 40% of adults report symptoms of depression or anxiety,

• 25% of seniors report feeling isolated from their community, and

The suicide rate is 34% higher than the state average, with Carbon County reporting the highest suicide rate among veterans in Pennsylvania.

The following organizations began receiving grants ranging from $5,000 to $20,000 in January.

Youth Mental Health Programs and Initiatives:

• Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Lehigh Valley, Sports Buddies Mentoring Program ($10,000) — The program combines evidence-based mentoring approaches with increased youth access to sports.

• Lehigh Valley Community Broadcasters Association, Inc., You Are Not Alone Lehigh Valley Program ($9,000) — The youth media program is hosted by two local teenagers and explores a variety of topics related to mental health and how it impacts thoughts, feelings and behaviors.

• Northampton Community College/Bangor Area High School, 5K Race ($2,500) — Hosting a 5K that will address youth mental health by bringing awareness to the problems many students face, empowering more students to speak up.

• Preventative Measures Foundation, TeleWell App ($10,000) — To address the mental health challenges faced by low-income commuter students at Lehigh Carbon Community College, the Preventive Measures Foundation is partnering with TeleWell, an online platform providing accessible mental health services to provide access to professional counseling, real-time chat/text services and meditation tools to help manage stress and anxiety.

Veterans’ Mental Health Programs and Initiatives:

• Battleborne ($20,000) — Enhance Battleborne’s veteran program and expand their reach into Carbon County and its rural areas to build out key initiatives that promote mental health and resilience, ensuring veterans, first responders and their families in these underserved communities receive the support they need to reintegrate successfully into civilian life.

• Penn Foundation, St. Luke’s Victory for Veterans Program ($20,000) — This community-based peer support and case management program is offered at no cost to veterans and their families living in Carbon County who are actively struggling with suicidality. The Program is co-located at a St. Luke University Health Network’s site with the Carbon County Veterans Affairs Office called Veteran’s Hub.

Funding through the United for Mental Health grants also supports training on trauma-informed approaches via United Way’s Resilient Lehigh Valley initiative.