The Beacon Tree Foundation, founded by Thomas and Diana Leahy, is dedicated to assisting families with at-risk children. Their purpose is to provide information and resources, advocacy and support, and financial assistance.
Scholarships are awarded to young adults who are have overcome their mental health issues and successfully graduate from a special school and are going on to college. Beacon Tree foundation is also building to be able to provide grants and facilitate low-interest K12 loans for families to help defray the cost of special schools and programs heeded to help their children cope with their mental or emotional problems.
As these children are ready to begin college, the financial burden can be too much for families to bear. Beacon Tree and their advisory board allow the youth in our region to receive an education and give back to their community.
The chronic underfunding of child, adolescent and family mental health services and a related undersupply of specialized clinicians creates a scarcity of children’s mental health services.
- One in five children suffers from mental issues or substance abuse.
- Almost one-third of six to twelve year old children diagnosed with major depression will develop bipolar disorders within a few years.
- For every older teen and young adult who takes his or her own life, 100-200 of their peers attempts suicide. Between 500,000 and 1 million young people attempt suicide each year.
There is little doubt that the families of these children are burdened with the cost of receiving the care they need. Time off from work, specialized facilities, and hefty medical bills stress families to the brink. Often college, vocational school or any secondary education is out of the question. However, it is imperative these young people have the same opportunities to receive an education and become productive members of our workforce.
Thomas Leahy, founder and director of Beacon Tree Foundation points out, “you only have to look to the Virginia Tech tragedy to understand the gravity of not addressing children’s mental health.”
Beacon Tree Foundation has partnered with the Virginia Treatment Center for Children and other mental health professionals in the Richmond metro area to create a gateway for families to find the resources and assistance they need to help their children combat their issues. The Children’s Mental Health Resource Center will provide an entry point for families in Central Virginia that provide a detailed review of the mental health system, custom treatment plans for patient care, and links to families with similar mental health issues. This support network will allow families to go on-line through a custom web-portal and find convenient, live support at a physical location.
The mental health system can be cavernous and confusing, especially for families dealing with immediate crisis situations. There are over ten local organizations that have agreed to work together to build an alliance of quality mental health care for our youngest citizens and their families who suffer from mental illness. The National Alliance for Mental Health, Voices for Virginia’s Children, Mental Health America of Virginia, Virginia Federation of Families, Psychiatric Society of Virginia, and the Virginia Association of Community Service Boards, VCUHS Department of Psychiatry’s Virginia Treatment Center for Children, and the Beacon Tree Foundation are proud to work together to provide access to information, support systems, and excellent diagnostic.
For more information log on to www.beacontree.org
