Community Foundation Focus: Mental Health

Mar 6, 2019

Mental Health: Mind Matters

Mental Health: Mind Matters, a traveling exhibit at the Science Center of Iowa presented by HealthPartners UnityPoint Health, uses immersive, interactive experiences to help visitors explore mental illness and its prevalence in society. The exhibit builds awareness and understanding by giving visitors the opportunity to see how mental illness has been treated in the past and to better understand what it’s like to live with mental illnesses such as depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder.

 

 

  

WATCH: Kristi Knous, Community Foundation president, talks to Renee Shull-Harmon, Science Center of Iowa vice president of science learning, about the Mental Health: Mind Matters exhibit.

Visit the exhibit for free on Sunday, March 10.

It was our privilege to connect Community Foundation charitable giving fundholders with the opportunity to support the Mental Health: Mind Matters exhibit. Thanks to generous donors, admission to the exhibit will be FREE to the public on Sunday, March 10 for a Mind Matters: Mental Health Fair. On this free admission day, you, along with your family and friends, can experience the exhibit, explore the many mental health resources available in Greater Des Moines and discover all the Science Center of Iowa has to offer. A variety of local organizations and mental health professionals will be available at the Mind Matters: Mental Health Fair to discuss their offerings, provide free screenings and offer education about mental health issues.

 

In addition to the Mental Health Fair, the Science Center, in partnership with Capital Crossroads, is hosting a number of community conversations designed to create awareness about and inspire action around mental illness. These conversations provide attendees with actions they can take to dispel misconceptions, reduce stigma and access resources while encouraging Iowans to #MakeItOK to talk about mental illness. Learn about those events by visiting the Capital Crossroads website.

Leadership Grant Spotlight: House of Mercy Mental Health Center

At the Community Foundation, we know mental health care is a critical issue in our community. We recently provided a $100,000 Leadership Grant to MercyOne Des Moines Foundation to support the renovation of an existing wing within the House of Mercy to become a Mental Health Center. The transformation of this wing will increase the number of mental health care professionals from 13 to 20 and allow for the addition of a projected 9,000 hours of appointment times and 900 new clients. 

 

 

WATCH: Community Foundation Leadership Grant supports transformation of an existing wing within the House of Mercy into a new Mental Health Center for the community.

 

Leadership Grants are made possible by gifts to the Better Together Fund. The Better Together Fund provides an opportunity to invest in our community's most important issues, initiatives and needs for generations to come. The flexible dollars it provides enable the Community Foundation to respond, through grantmaking, to emerging needs as they arise—such as mental health—and invest significant funding in initiatives and opportunities that strengthen Greater Des Moines.

Connect with the causes you care about.

We want to make giving simple. GIVEdsm is an online resource that provides the opportunity to learn about the needs of our community and offer support to those that match your interests. GIVEdsm allows you to select your areas of interest and see profiles of available projects in need of support. Each profile provides the opportunity to learn more and then grant directly from your Community Foundation charitable giving fund or give directly to the organization. This is impact made easy. 

 

As always, feel free to contact us to consider options that meet your giving goals.