Mental health and suicide are the top two emerging issues that need to be addressed in Stark County. Currently, the population to therapist ratio in Stark County is 310:1.
Building Hope is more than a capital campaign. Building Hope is one answer to a mental health crisis in Stark and surrounding counties.
The Building Hope Campaign is a 2.5-million-dollar initiative to construct a new Encompass Christian Counseling and Encourage Foster Care facility in Massillon, OH. The new facility will more than double the current size of our Massillon Encompass office and provide vital mental health and foster care resources to the area.
Due to our current facility’s size, our waiting list for therapy can be upwards of 100 people, and individuals in need are referred to other counties or forced to wait for the mental health services they so desperately require.
In addition, Encourage receives approximately 20 referrals a day looking for placements for foster children in Stark County. Due to the lack of Encourage foster homes in that area, we can typically only place 1-2 foster children per 20 referrals.
The new facility will allow us to increase our staff from 7 to 16 clinicians with room for Encourage Foster Care. We will have the capacity to expand counseling services into more schools in Stark and surrounding counties. We will also be adding a life skills room, a group/training room and will have better accessibility to allow a wider range of clients that we can serve.
"I've worked in the Massillon facility for a long time. It's something I'm grateful for, but I recognize the reality of the space. It no longer fills the need. It would mean a lot to me personally to be able to celebrate having a facility that matches the community and the needs out there." - Rebecca Ryder, Encompass Regional Program Director
It is in our ability to impact lives, families and communities – to allow us to better care for the mental health and foster care demands in Stark and surrounding counties. Together, we can help more people experience their worth in Christ.
Learn more at buildinghopecampaign.org.
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