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A Message from the Executive Director
This past year our system of care showed tremendous resilience, responsibility, and resolve to support our community and in doing, helped to make Mahoning County continue to be a great place to live and work.
A major change this year was our board staff was restructured to meet the needs of the community as well as to be more visible to the people we service. We welcomed 4 new staff members whose expertise and diversity blended with our current staff to develop a strong team of professionals (pg.4).
Another major accomplishment was the infrastructure work that began on the Campus of Care. Under the leadership of the Mahoning County Board of Commissioners, and in collaboration with the West Reserve Port Authority, major renovations have taken place with an investment of over a million local, state and federal dollars.
The MCMHRB joined the Mahoning County General Health District, and the Youngstown City Health Departments, to address two major concerns. The increase in fatalities due to overdose deaths was addressed with the coordination of Project DAWN (Deaths Avoided with Naloxone), providing Narcan kits to community members. The MCMHRB also established a suicide fatality review committee to help address suicide as a serious public health problem.
With a need in the community, the LOSS/DOSS (Local Outreach to Suicide Survivors/Drug Overdose Survivor Sup-port) teams where created to provide volunteer outreach to families who have experienced a loss due to suicide or over-dose (pg.3).
All the progress of the board would not have been possible without the support of the Mahoning County tax payers. We are looking forward to this New Year to continue to meet the needs of our community.
Duane
Message from the Chairman
Another year has come and gone and what a year it has been! Much like 2020 and 2021, this past year was not without obstacles to overcome. However, the Board kept the faith and relied on our tag line “Help for today. . . Hope for the future.”
Our team expanded with the addition of four new employees, Valerie Burney, serving as community engagement and outreach coordinator; Lee DeVita, as program coordinator, focusing on housing and homelessness in Mahoning county; Tracy Morocco as administrative assistant and prevention trainer to provide crisis intervention training and Michelle Werth as Clinical Director assisting and advising the Board and contract agencies on developing and modifying mental health and substance use disorder treatment programs.
As a part of our diversity, equity, and inclusion strategy, the MCMHRB began working with OhioMHAS on a special project addressing social determinates of health in minority and underserved communities. Additionally, we established a $5,000 YSU scholarship for an African-American student residing in Mahoning County interested in a degree in social work.
We had 37 law enforcement officers and three clergy graduates from our crisis intervention training from Mahoning County.
As in previous years, the MCMHR Board is immensely proud of and deeply indebted to our agencies, providers, advocates and supporters who work tirelessly with us in improving mental well-being and resilience on our community.