Great news for Lutheran Children and Family Service! LCFS, a service of Liberty Lutheran, is the recipient of two grants totaling $220,000 that will be used to support its programs benefiting refugees in the Greater Philadelphia area.
“These grants will be instrumental in allowing LCFS to continue provide vital programs and services to hundreds of refugee children and their families who have suffered unimaginable trauma in their home countries,” said Peter Gottemoller, Director, Child Welfare Programs, Lutheran Children and Family Service.
LCFS will receive $140,000 over the next three years from The Pew Charitable Trusts for continued support to improve the utilization of behavioral health services by refugee and immigrant children and their families. Through this funding, LCFS will provide training for over 300-school and social service providers, designed to increase their understanding of cross-cultural issues in managing behavioral health problems of immigrant children and youth, and improve local organizations’ capacity to work through the communication and cultural challenges that often impede effective service delivery for this population. LCFS will also provide case management, referral and follow-up services to 150-children and youth annually to help them obtain needed treatment services. Lastly, LCFS will provide outreach and support to at least 100-immigrant parents each year, to help them connect their children to specialized behavior health services.
LCFS was also selected by the City of Philadelphia-Department of Behavioral Health and Intellectual Disability Services to receive $80,000 for continual funding of the Philadelphia Refugee Mental Health Collaborative (PRMHC.) The PRMHC is lead by LCFS, which partners with Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society-Pennsylvania, Nationalities Service Center, BuildaBridge International, Belmont Center for Comprehensive Treatment, Nemours Pediatrics, and Temple University Intergenerational Center. The PRMHC works collaboratively to link refugees with culturally and linguistically appropriate mental health care.
“Thanks to this funding, refugee children and their families have access to a wide network of mental health and community supports rooted in their own languages and cultural identity,” said Melissa Fogg, Immigrant Mental Health Specialist, Lutheran Children and Family Service. “The variety of programs we offer help meet the unique needs of each family and serve as reminders of their resilience.”
The Department of Behavioral Health grant, part of the Community Coalition Wellness Initiative, will support PRMHC activities and programs such as art therapy, education, services to survivors of torture, community health presentations, outreach to the refugee community about mental health services and the development of a refugee mental health screening tool.
“We are very grateful for the funding support from The Pew Charitable Trusts and the Department of Behavioral Health,” Gottemoller said. “Being recognized by these organizations is an honor and a testament to the quality of our programs and the number of people we serve across the region.”
About Liberty LutheranIncorporated in 2001 and headquartered in Ambler, Pa., Liberty Lutheran, with its more than 25 locations and combined service history of 300 years, faithfully provides vital resources to individuals and families facing life-changing situations. These individualized services include independent and assisted living, skilled nursing, rehabilitation, hospice care, in-home supports, wellness services, children and family services, integration services for immigrants and political refugees, and disaster response. Liberty Lutheran’s team of dedicated employees serves individuals and families through their family of services in Eastern Pennsylvania, including Artman, Paul’s Run Retirement Community, Liberty at Home, Lutheran Children and Family Services, Lutheran Congregational Services, Mary J. Drexel, and The Village at Penn State. www.libertylutheran.org
