Parkland Cares Opens Grant Process for Mental Health Providers

PARKLAND, Fla., Aug. 14, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Parkland Cares has awarded $239,000 to six mental health-counseling centers and now the nonprofit, which focuses on funding nonprofit mental health agencies in the aftermath of last year's tragedy, continues its' commitment to give families easier access to mental-health and trauma counseling.

Parkland Cares is going beyond its original invitation-only grant model and is opening the application process to all mental health nonprofit organizations who serve the community. The board of directors are urging South Florida organizations to review the grant guidelines and apply during the submission period of August 1 -31, 2019.

"When we started only 18 months ago, we wanted to make sure that that funds raised would provide direct services to the Marjory Stoneman Douglas community," Parkland Cares Executive Director Stacey Udine says. "With the generous help from donors, our commitment remains the same and we are dedicated to making sure that long-term therapy and support are available."

Previous grant recipients received between $25,000 and $80,000 each. Some used those grants to develop Parkland-specific resources they couldn't have otherwise afforded. For example, the Children's Bereavement Center launched a free Parkland grief support group for families last September with the award money. Tomorrow's Rainbow opened a similar group specifically for Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School students and families.

Parkland Cares was founded after the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School by Howard Dvorkin, CPA and Chairman of Debt.com who is a Parkland resident living only a few miles from the school. Dvorkin immediately saw the need for mental-health counseling.

"When the news fades from the national headlines, the community still has to pick up the pieces," Dvorkin says. "Studies have shown that long-term mental health care is needed after such a tragedy and with Parkland Cares broadening our reach, we want to hear from organizations specializing in the hardest kind of care: the kind that continues for a long time."

About: Parkland Cares mission is to provide immediate and long-term funding and awareness for mental health counseling for the Marjory Stoneman Douglas shooting survivors, their families and the community-at-large.

SOURCE Parkland Cares

Related Links

https://parklandcares.org