Stories from our community show what is possible when people have access to the right support at the right time.
A Wabash Valley girl struggled with addiction that eventually cost her family relationships and sense of stability. After multiple arrests, she was sentenced to prison. While incarcerated, she enrolled in a recovery program that combined counseling, reflection and peer support, helping her confront the trauma and choices that shaped her life.
When she returned home, she knew recovery outside prison would be even harder. She couldn’t do it alone. Within days, she entered Ruth House, a recovery residence in Sullivan County that provided the structure, accountability and supportive community she needed to rebuild her life and re-envision her future.
She’s not alone. United Way of the Wabash Valley regularly convenes community leaders, educators, health experts and nonprofit partners to have conversations focused on our three core priorities: financial security, healthy communities and youth opportunity. Despite coming from different perspectives, every group agrees that our young people are struggling, and they need our help.
Behavioral health challenges among youth are rising across Indiana. Stress, anxiety, depression and substance use are affecting them at high rates. According to the Indiana Youth Institute (IYI)’s Youth Risk Behavior Survey, nearly half of Indiana high school students – 47% – report experiencing depression in the past year.
At the same time, families, schools and community organizations often lack the resources needed to respond, a reality that is not abstract. Families are trying to find counseling services, mental health support or substance use treatment programs that can be difficult to access due to cost, transportation barriers or a shortage of trained professionals. In fact, two-thirds of Indiana youth who experience major depression never receive the treatment they need, according to IYI.
Even when help is available, stigma can prevent young people from speaking up or seeking support. That’s why investing in behavioral health early – before challenges escalate to crises – is critical. Not only do we help them grow up to be healthy and resilient, we also strengthen families, workplaces and neighborhoods, a belief that is driving United Way’s investments in the community.
We recently awarded more than $168,000 in behavioral health grants to nine local organizations working to expand services and reach more families across our six-county region – like Ruth House.
Several of these initiatives focus on children and adolescents directly, including new counseling programs in elementary schools and evidence-based social-emotional learning for our youngest students. Others focus on strengthening families and expanding adult recovery services that ultimately benefit children as well.
These grants build on years of collaborative work throughout the Wabash Valley. Through local partners, we have invested in expanded peer recovery coaching and helped launch crisis response partnerships with law enforcement and community-based treatment programs that help individuals recover while maintaining their jobs, housing and family connections. While these programs are working, the need continues to grow.
Still, one of the greatest challenges in our region is keeping trained professionals. Ninety-one of Indiana’s 92 counties are designated as having a shortage of mental health providers, making it difficult for families to find timely care, IYI data shows.
Many communities, especially in rural Indiana, struggle to recruit and retain counselors, therapists and psychiatrists. That’s why new initiatives, such as efforts to establish a psychiatry residency program in the Wabash Valley, are so promising. When medical professionals train in a community, they are more likely to stay and build their careers there.
Investments like these create long-term solutions. But no single organization can solve this issue alone. Building a healthier future for our young people requires us all – educators, employers, healthcare providers, policymakers and neighbors – to work together to ensure children and families have access to the support they need.
When we provide young people with access to behavioral health services, caring adults, safe environments and strong schools, we are not just helping them navigate today’s challenges. We are building a stronger community for generations to come.
If we want a future defined by opportunity rather than crisis, and by stability rather than struggle, the path forward is clear.
Today, the young woman I mentioned in the beginning is in recovery and helping others heal, mentoring girls beginning their own journeys and serving as a certified peer support professional.
Her story is a powerful reminder that recovery is possible when communities invest in programs that provide support, connection and hope.
Dorothy Chambers
Executive Director, United Way of the Wabash Valley