For All Seasons announced in March it will launch its “Give With Your Heart” seven-day virtual campaign which will underscore the importance of mental health and community connection and the impact it has on all of us.  Each day between March 25 and March 31, For All Seasons will share a video featuring its friends, clients, and staff on its social media and a virtual giving wall. The videos will showcase individual stories of mental health and the importance of reaching out for help. A campaign music video, featuring For All Seasons’ staff and Heart & Music cast members, will be released on March 31.

“Mental Health affects everyone, whether it is our own struggles or struggles experienced by our family, friends, or coworkers. No one is immune. Our ‘Give With Your Heart’ campaign highlights how mental health is at the heart of all of our stories. We invite everyone to donate to our heart wall to be a part of bringing hope, help, and healing to our community,” states Beth Anne Dorman, President & CEO of For All Seasons.

Visit givewithyourheart.org to watch For All Seasons’ mental health stories and to participate in the “Give With Your Heart” campaign.

For All Seasons is also looking for individual and business sponsors for the online event. Sponsorship includes recognition during the seven-day campaign, media coverage, and more. For sponsorship information, contact Lauren Weber, Vice President of Philanthropy and Education, at lweber@forallseasonsinc.org or (410) 822-1018.

For All Seasons provides the highest quality mental health and victim services to children, adults, and families across Maryland’s Eastern Shore. Services are offered in both English and Spanish and include therapy, psychiatry, victim advocacy, 24-hour crisis hotlines, outreach, and community education. For further information, contact For All Seasons at 410-822-1018 or visit forallseasonsinc.org.

Melissa Kelly of Easton has recently joined the Board of Directors of For All Seasons. Kelly is currently the Eastern Shore External Affairs Manager for CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield (CareFirst). Before this, she was the Eastern Shore Regional Director for U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen. She has an extensive background in health care, having served as Operation Coordinator for the Diagnostic & Imaging Center for the University of Maryland Shore Regional Health and Practice Manager for the University of Maryland Community Medical Group, as well as Coordinator of the University of Maryland Clark Comprehensive Breast Center.

She is a graduate of Shore Leadership and attended Chesapeake College. Her civic involvement includes being a Board Member for U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen’s Service Academy Nomination Board and a Member of the Mid Shore Local Health Improvement Coalition, Telehealth Subcommittee Member. She also served as President of the Soroptimist International of Talbot County.

“I’m a resource person and a connector. I am eager to help connect stakeholders to For All Seasons to support new facilities and meet the current demand for mental health services,” Kelly states. “Behavioral health is a huge priority for every local institution. Anything we can do to better support people within our communities and their mental health will ultimately help drive economic development and growth for our region.”

“We are excited to welcome Melissa to the Board of For All Seasons. Her background, enthusiasm, and skillset are a great addition and will help the board continue to grow and serve the mission of the organization,” comments Leslie Sea, President of For All Seasons Board Directors.

A capacity crowd attended the recent Open House for For All Seasons’ new location at 322 Market Street, Ste. 207 in Denton. Guests enjoyed the opportunity to enjoy light refreshments and a tour of the agency’s new space. Caroline County is the second largest county For All Seasons serves. This past year, the agency was able to bring help, hope, and healing to nearly 1,000 Caroline County residents with over 13,000 direct care services and provide nearly $70,000 in financial assistance to Caroline County residents.

“Caroline County is a mental health care desert. Three years ago when the last time data was compiled there was only one mental health provider for every 2,000 Caroline County residents. Since then, many of the existing providers have moved into private practice, accepting only private insurance or asking clients to pay for services entirely out of pocket. Other providers have closed down altogether. For All Seasons is integral to Caroline County’s overall health and resilience,” stated Beth Anne Dorman, President and CEO of For All Seasons.

“Opening this office reflects our commitment to showing up for Caroline County and its residents. Debuting this new, larger, more state-of-the-art office is a bold statement about the importance of accessible mental health care. These four walls represent hope for a bright, healthy, and thriving Caroline County today and for the future.”

Beth Brewster, Supervisor of Food Services at Caroline County Public Schools, who attended the open house, added, “The number of mental health issues after the pandemic was overwhelming. To have this beautiful facility and friendly staff filling the mental health needs of Caroline County is huge. Part of the holistic approach to helping our families be whole is addressing their mental health.”

Ja Quaya Beasley, Client Services Specialist in the Denton Office, commented, “We have more than doubled our space for clinicians and clients, as well as added space for play therapy in our Denton office. Our clients come in with smiles on their faces, enjoying the welcoming space. It has made a big difference for clients and how they feel about being here.”

For crisis support on the Mid-Shore, contact For All Seasons’ 24-Hour Hotlines: 410.820.5600 for English or 410.829.6143 for Spanish or text in English and Spanish.

For All Seasons provides the highest quality mental health and victim services to children, adults, and families across Maryland’s Eastern Shore. Services are offered in both English and Spanish and include therapy, psychiatry, victim advocacy, 24-hour crisis hotlines, outreach, and community education. For further information, contact For All Seasons at 410-822-1018 or visit forallseasonsinc.org.

Maryland has one of the highest rates of “domestic” human trafficking in the nation. In Maryland, human trafficking affects all parts of the State. Human trafficking involves the use of force, fraud, or coercion to obtain some type of labor or commercial sex act. According to the Governor’s Office of Crime Prevention, Youth, and Victim Services, three major airports, inexpensive bus transportation, train service along the east coast, large sporting events, and disposable income makes Maryland an attractive destination for traffickers. Over the last three years, there have been sex trafficking arrests across the Eastern Shore including in Easton, Cambridge, Federalsburg, Denton, and Salisbury. Again this year, For All Seasons is raising public awareness of this global issue, as well as sharing its impact locally, during the month of January which is National Human Trafficking Prevention Month.

According to the U.S. Department of State, there are estimated to be more than 27.6 million people — adults and children — subjected to human trafficking around the world, including in the United States. Traffickers often take advantage of the instability caused by natural disasters, conflict, or a pandemic to exploit others. During the COVID-19 pandemic, traffickers are continuing to perpetrate the crime, finding ways to innovate and capitalize on the chaos. According to President Biden’s “National Action Plan to Combat Human Trafficking” report, human traffickers can be relatives, friends, politically connected individuals in their country of origin, individuals operating alone, those in loosely affiliated groups or as part of gangs, or transnational criminal organizations. They control their victims by physically isolating and/or emotionally manipulating them, offering false promises of love, threatening a victim with various forms of harm, and controlling a victim’s substance use.

To help Maryland deal with its human trafficking problem, the state convened the MHTTF in 2007 as the state’s primary anti-trafficking organization working to combat trafficking through prevention, protection of victims, prosecution of trafficking, and partnerships. The MHTTF is a multidisciplinary team of agencies and local organizations committed to a victim-centered approach in the fight against human trafficking in Maryland.

“As a member of the MHTTF, we partner with member organizations to help provide resources for the survivor to meet their needs at the moment – everything from mental health resources to clothes, food, gift cards, and rent payments to,” states Kristy Mirando, Director of Victim Services at For All Seasons, who serves on the Maryland Human Trafficking Task Force (MHTTF).

“What we are realizing is that anyone can be trafficked regardless of class, gender, education, or age, though traffickers tend to target marginalized and vulnerable individuals. Such vulnerabilities may include individuals who have experienced sexual violence and trauma in the past, homelessness, involvement in the child welfare and juvenile justice systems, those who have experienced substance abuse themselves or within their families, immigrants, LGBTQ youth, developmentally or intellectually delayed individuals, and many others.”

Mirando adds that trafficking occurs in rural, suburban, and urban communities in every state across the country. Maryland State Police also remind parents of online safety and to be aware of online scams involving the sexual extortion of minors. Investigators find online predators often give the impression they are romantically interested in the minor being targeted, to gain their trust. As the chats progress, the suspect user will request sexually illicit photographs of the minor and might even send photographs back to the minor in return in exchange for money, typically in the form of gift cards and prepaid credit card numbers that are readily available at most stores. The suspects often advise minors that if money is not sent, the illicit photographs of the minor will be sent to family, and friends, and posted online accompanied by distasteful comments about the minor. Parents and caregivers are encouraged to talk to their children regularly about the risks of sexual exploitation and to monitor their children’s use of all digital devices including laptops, tablets, desktop computers, gaming consoles, and smartphones.

To help bring awareness about human trafficking, For All Seasons is sponsoring its Red Sand Project. Participants pour red sand into sidewalk cracks and use the time to start a discussion about the causes and effects of human trafficking and exploitation. The red sand represents the victims of human trafficking who have slipped through the cracks, yet may still be hiding in plain sight.

Red flags of a human trafficking situation can be homeless youth, truancy, chronic runaways, appearing scared or nervous, tattoos or branding, withdrawing from family, school, or church, and always appearing tired. A victim who calls For All Seasons’ hotline gets help with understanding their options and resources, and creating a safety plan if that is what they are comfortable doing at the time.

Red sand packets are available through the end of January. If you are interested in participating, contact Jonathan Qvarnstrom at jqvarnstrom@forallseasonsinc.org. For further information about human trafficking, visit www.eshttf.org or http://www.mdhumantrafficking.org/. The National Human Trafficking Hotline is 1-888-373-7888.

For crisis support on the Mid-Shore, contact For All Seasons’ 24-Hour Hotlines: 410.820.5600 for English or 410.829.6143 for Spanish or text in English and Spanish.

For All Seasons provides the highest quality mental health and victim services to children, adults, and families across Maryland’s Eastern Shore. Services are offered in both English and Spanish and include therapy, psychiatry, victim advocacy, 24-hour crisis hotlines, outreach, and community education. For further information, contact For All Seasons at 410-822-1018 or visit forallseasonsinc.org.

For All Seasons has moved its Denton office to a new location at 322 Market Street, Ste. 207 in Denton. Caroline County is the second largest county For All Seasons serves. The number of clients served by the Denton office grew from 200 clients in FY21 to 900 clients in FY22.

During FY 22, For All Seasons expanded care to nearly 1,000 residents to provide over 13,000 direct care services; administered 57.53% more victim support services than the previous year, including more hospital, court, and law enforcement accompaniments related to sexual assault; treated 23.24% more Caroline County youth and families than the prior year through community- and school-based therapy and psychiatric care, as well as victim support services; and added neurofeedback services in Caroline County.

Pictured is staff at All Seasons new Denton Office located at 322 Market Street, Ste 207. Pictured back row, left to right, are Leah Roy, LCSW-C, Michele Lantz, LCSW-C, Certified Trauma Play Therapist; Jen Friedman, LMSW, Certified Trauma Play Therapist; and Romona Matthews, Case Manager. Pictured front row, left to right, are Ja Quaya Beasley, Client Services Specialist; Sarah Hansen, LMSW, Certified Trauma Play Therapist; and Leslie Wagner, LCSW-C, Associate Clinical Director, Certified Trauma Play Therapist.

“We are thrilled to have more space to provide our services. We had simply outgrown the building we were in – needing to accommodate a larger clinical team and more administrative staff. In our new space, we will be able to offer a more welcome environment for clients, as well as a new play therapy room for the children we serve,” comments Beth Anne Dorman, President & CEO of For All Seasons.

For All Seasons will hold an Open House at its new location in Denton on January 24, 2023, from 5 to 6 p.m. Guests will be able to meet the team while enjoying light refreshments and a tour of our new space.

For All Seasons is your community behavioral health and rape crisis center offering therapy, psychiatry, advocacy, and education to individuals and families, regardless of one’s ability to pay. For further information, visit www.forallseasonsinc.org.

Recently, Willow Construction and St. John Foundation each renewed their membership in For All Seasons’ Leadership Circle with $10,000 charitable gifts to the agency.

For All Seasons’ Leadership Circle is comprised of an exceptional group of individuals and leaders in the business community who give generously and lend their talents, expertise, and connections to the forward momentum of the agency. Members of the Circle are critical partners in For All Seasons’ life-saving work, playing an instrumental role in building the agency’s capacity to meet the demands of the current mental health crisis.

“The Board of Directors of Willow Construction appreciates the hard work that For All Seasons dedicates to the growing mental health needs of those living in our area. We are confident that the funds we donate to this organization are an investment in the betterment of the community,” comments Michael S. Hiner, President of Willow Construction.

The St. John Foundation annually supports critical needs in our community. Vernon Nily of the St. John Foundation has been helping nonprofit organizations in Talbot County meet their missions since 1993. He comments, “We have supported For All Seasons because it is meeting the needs of so many people in our community. Mental health is underserved in our region. We all need mental health services at some point in our lives, but no one wants to talk about it. Today, we need these services more than ever and we should all support organizations like For All Seasons more because of that need.”

“The For All Seasons staff is so genuine and works so hard, how can we not give to something like this?” Nily adds.

For All Seasons is your community behavioral health and rape crisis center offering therapy, psychiatry, advocacy, and education to individuals and families, regardless of one’s ability to pay. For further information, visit www.forallseasonsinc.org.

For further information on supporting For All Seasons or its Leadership Circle, contact Lauren Weber, Vice President of Philanthropy and Education, at lweber@forallseasonsinc.org or call 410-822-1018.

 

 

Nearly 1,400 people participated in For All Seasons’ second annual Frosty’s Holiday Village event on Friday, December 2, from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. on the Talbot County Courthouse Lawn in Easton, MD. Participants included everyone from young families to Easton Midnight Madness shoppers and represented all ages and ethnicities.

Guests at the free community event strolled through the holiday displays and enjoyed free activities, including professional photos with Frosty, holiday crafts, complimentary cocoa, cider, and winter treats, winter story time in partnership with the Talbot County Free Library, and a continuous showing of Frosty’s Winter Wonderland on the big screen. Even Bumble the Abominable Snowman, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, and the Grinch were on hand.

Kelsey Trumbull, Philanthropy & Education Associate at For All Seasons, comments, “The event has grown exponentially. When we first started last year, it was predominantly confined to the front lawn of the courthouse. This year, it doubled in size and spread out onto the back lawn as well. The face painting activity was especially popular this year. It’s exciting to see our community connecting over shared fun during the holiday season.”

The event was entirely donor-supported to ensure this event remained free to the community. This year’s Frosty’s Holiday Village event was possible with support from presenting sponsors the St. John Foundation and Tri-Gas & Oil. Additional sponsors include Easton Utilities, Kiln Born Creations, Willow Construction, Earth Data Incorporated, and Ewing, Dietz, Fountain, & Kaludis, PA. Special community partners this year include the Talbot County Free Library and Christ Church – St. Michaels Parish.

For All Seasons is your community behavioral health and rape crisis center offering therapy, psychiatry, advocacy, and education to individuals and families, regardless of one’s ability to pay. For further information, visit www.forallseasonsinc.org.

For All Seasons and Talbot Hospice have partnered to offer the first Latino Bereavement Group. The group, an outgrowth of the Latina Support Group, was formed when members of the group shared that there was a need in the Latino community for grief support for several people who had experienced the loss of a loved one.

“We reached out to Talbot Hospice to see what we could offer and decided that the pilot program, which began November 2, would be done through Zoom since a number of those needing grief support lived in other counties on the Mid-Shore,” states Ivy Garcia, Director of Latino Services at For All Seasons.

Four individuals attended the weekly sessions – two women from Cambridge and two women from Caroline County. Sessions were led by Lindy Barton, Talbot Hospice Bereavement Coordinator, and Janine Puma-Martinez, For All Seasons Interpreter, and lasted seven weeks.

“This has been our first Latino Bereavement Group in the community. This has been a very good experience doing Zoom work with the interpreter, so we plan to continue this format because it is convenient for those who don’t live locally and who may experience transportation challenges,” commented Barton.

Photo: Standing left to right are Ivy Garcia, Director of Latino Services, For All Seasons; Alberto Ardaya, Interpreting Services Supervisor, For All Seasons; and Lindy Barton, Talbot Hospice Bereavement Coordinator. Participant Nancy Marquez and Janine Puma-Martinez, Interpreter, For All Seasons, are seated left to right.

“The group did a lot of work in a short time. They found it a safe space to share. Faith was a very strong component for the group in dealing with their emotions and feelings.”

For All Seasons and Hospice plan to continue the collaboration in February, offering sessions for men and women, and expanding the times to make the classes convenient for those working during the day. Participants do not have to be clients of For All Seasons.

One participant shared, “I feel this peace inside of me now. I am content and feel as if my son has never left me. I am thankful to all the staff at For All Seasons. When we are all together in class, it helps me day to day.”

Another participant added, “I have never been in a group like this. We touched on a lot of things – it helped to give me strength and resilience.”

The bereavement class ended with an in-person art and craft project to help reinforce the coping mechanisms the group had learned. Participants made framed shadow boxes or ornaments with pictures of the loved ones they lost. Pieces of prayer shawls with a supportive saying were also shared to help participants cope once leaving the group.

Barton shared with participants on the last night, “Tears are okay. You can borrow them this season to get through the rough spots.”

“We were made aware by support group members that many community members who lose a family member don’t always process the death. This group has helped these four women tremendously. We will continue to meet with them after the support group ends,” added Garcia.

For All Seasons Latina Support Group begins meeting on January 2 at 10 a.m. and January 3 at 10 a.m. with the option for a Zoom Support Group on Mondays at 1 p.m. For further information about these support groups or the upcoming Bereavement Group scheduled to begin in February, contact Ivy Garcia at 410-822-1018 or igarcia@forallseasonsinc.org.

For All Seasons is your community behavioral health and rape crisis center offering therapy, psychiatry, advocacy, and education to individuals and families, regardless of one’s ability to pay. For further information, visit www.forallseasonsinc.org.

Emma Walker of Easton recently raised funds for For All Seasons through her bat mitzvah project. In her bat mitzvah speech, Walker, a 14-year old talked about the role of For All Seasons in our community and its mission as a full spectrum behavioral health agency to provide services “regardless of one’s ability to pay.” To fulfill her goal of raising funds for For All Seasons, Walker made bracelets and sold them, earning $750. She then matched and exceeded her earnings personally with an additional $1000 in donations.

“We are thrilled with Emma’s passion for helping others in our community and sharing with us that passion. She is an amazing young person, and we can’t thank her enough for thinking of our agency and those clients we serve who have limited resources to pay for mental health services,” adds Lauren Weber, Vice President of Philanthropy and Education at For All Seasons.

For All Seasons is your community behavioral health and rape crisis center offering therapy, psychiatry, advocacy, and education to individuals and families, regardless of one’s ability to pay. For further information, visit www.forallseasonsinc.org.