- The United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley has launched the “UNITED for Mental Health” campaign
- The initiative will combat mental health problems made worse by the pandemic
- Mental health issues impact people of all ages, including children, seniors and veterans
ALLENTOWN, Pa. - The pandemic exacerbated the mental health crisis across the country, including in the Lehigh Valley.
"Coming out of the pandemic, we have seen mental health needs in our community across the age spectrum, really continue to rise,”Marci Lesko, executive vice president and chief impact officer for the United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley
"Coming out of the pandemic, we have seen mental health needs in our community across the age spectrum, really continue to rise,” said Marci Lesko, executive vice president and chief impact officer for the United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley.
As a result, the United Way is launching the “UNITED for Mental Health” campaign, a three-year initiative that will help to combat mental health problems by pledging both funds and resources.
“Some data that we have been seeing recently is that 43% of youth report feeling symptoms of depression or anxiety. Forty percent of adults report symptoms of depression or anxiety and 25% of seniors report feeling isolated from their community,” Lesko explained.
Dr. Jim James is the chair of psychology and behavioral health at St. Luke's University Network. He said "1.8 million Pennsylvanians have some degree of mental illness. On top of that, 600,000 people within Pennsylvania have mental health services that they should be getting or desire, that they have not been able to access."
"People are really struggling and so we really feel like there's an opportunity here to connect resources and services that people need.”Marci Lesko, executive vice president and chief impact officer for the United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley
That access is what the United Way hopes to offer people in the Lehigh Valley, said Lesko. "People are really struggling and so we really feel like there's an opportunity here to connect resources and services that people need.”
She said the plan is to focus on three pillars, including children and families, support for seniors, and resources for veterans. "This will allow us to mobilize donor resources and community resources into programs and services where people need it the most,” Lesko said.
One way this funding will be used is to bring school-based behavioral health support into United Way community schools.
“There is a relationship between students' mental health and their ability to learn," said Jack Silva, superintendent of Bethlehem Area School District. "United Way supports the Community School movements to help support Bethlehem schools to be community schools."
Veronica Gonzalez is the CEO of Valley Health Partners, an organization that aims to make health care affordable and accessible to all communities.
“It takes a village to take care of the community, so really being united with community-based organizations with government agencies, the school district, to serve our community is key,” Gonzalez said.
Schools, community groups, and local health care providers are all expected to team up for this initiative with the collective goal of creating a healthier community.
The United Way is also partnering with Bethlehem-based BSI Corporate Benefits, which has committed to $500,000 in matching resources to the initiative. The public can get involved in that process online by donating and every dollar will be matched.
