Helen Lavelle, award winning artist and Creative Strategist at the advertising agency that bears her name, will be a featured artist in May at POSH @ The Scranton Club. Lavelle’s exhibit of more than a dozen paintings will debut at First Friday Scranton on Friday, May 6.

A portion of the proceeds of art print sales during the exhibit will be donated to St. Vladimir Ukrainian Catholic Church to benefit all people suffering during the war in Ukraine. “Every artist has an opportunity to give back in a way that not a lot of people do. This is my way of doing that,” states Ms. Lavelle.

The exhibit will include two of Lavelle’s original pieces – a painting of Jesus Christ entitled “Love One Another” and a painting of Mahatma Gandhi entitled “Be The Change”. Posters of these two pieces will be available for a donation, with 100% of proceeds going to support Ukraine. “We are most grateful for Ms. Lavelle’s support,” states Pastor Reverend Myron Myronyuk. “The needs become greater with each hour that passes.”

A nationally-recognized leader in the advertising industry, Lavelle is also an advocate for the arts in all genres. Her figurative, landscape and abstract work is held in corporate and private collections worldwide.

For more information on Lavelle or to view and purchase her artwork, visit https://helenlavelleartist.com/.

Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania will present United Gilsonite Laboratories with an innovation award during the virtual iXchange this month.

This year’s iXchange theme is Innovators: Past, Present, and Future.

The 2022 Ben Franklin Technology Partners innovation award winners are:

• The Entrepreneurial Achievement Award – MXTR Automation, Williamsport
• The R. Chadwick Paul, Jr. Incubator Graduate Award – US Specialty Formulations, LLC, Bethlehem
• The Product Innovation Award – American Paper Bag, Sugar Notch
• The Innovative Application of Technology Award – Tower Products, Inc., Easton
• The Manufacturing Achievement Award – United Gilsonite Laboratories, Dunmore
• The Frederick J. Beste III Partnership Award – Pete Molinaro, CEO and Chairman, Adhezion Biomedical, LLC, Wyomissing

May is National Mental Health Awareness Month, and team members at Tobyhanna Army Depot have a wealth of resources available to support them.

One resource is the depot’s Employee Services Center (ESC), available 24/7 to provide short-term counseling and support for a variety of issues.

ESC’s mission focuses on prevention, education, training and short-term counseling in the areas of substance abuse, suicide, sexual assault, and employee work/life well-being. All services are confidential and take place on post.

Brittany Anderson, the ESC’s Community Support Advocate, is a board-certified clinical counselor who specializes in family situations as well as Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). She says there are differences between ESC services and the traditional mental health care model.

“Our services are not intended for long-term mental health treatment. Instead, we offer members of Team Tobyhanna brief, solution-focused counseling. During sessions, we work with clients to help them balance their stress and create a foundation for their next steps.”

Clients with issues that require long-term treatment are referred out to therapists and/or services in the community tailored to meet employee needs. However, ESC support doesn’t stop once a referral is made.

“Even after referral, we maintain contact and offer follow-ups to ensure Tobyhanna Army Depot is an environment that supports employees during their times of need. We want employees to know that we’re here as they move through their journeys,” said Anderson, stressing that the ESC’s main focus is ensuring Team Tobyhanna gets the proper support they need.

“At the end of counseling, we hope our clients leave with an improved quality of life and the ability to address their challenge. Team Tobyhanna – if you need help, please reach out. We will never turn anyone away.”

The ESC is led by Ricardo Horn, a licensed social worker who earned his Master’s Degree from the Marywood University School of Social Work. As the Chief of the ESC, he oversees formal programs such as the Employee Assistance Program, Army Substance Abuse Program, and the Sexual Harassment/Assault Response Program.  Horn joins Anderson in providing mental health care to the depot population and leads a biweekly lunchtime mindfulness group focused on helping employees reduce stress. The group earns high praise from participants.

“The mindfulness group allows me to hit ‘pause’ on my work day and refocus my thought process, which lowers my stress,” said Joseph Lucas, an electronics mechanic in the C4ISR Directorate. John Tetlak agreed.

“Practicing mindfulness promotes ardency and alertness; so, rather than reacting automatically, you observe the mental process from a non-judgmental perspective. Mindfulness Training is helping me increase my patience and tolerance in stressful situations by reducing negative emotions,” he said.

According to the World Health Organization, one in four people worldwide is affected by a mental health issue or disorder. Horn encourages depot employees to seek help when needed.

“Despite the prevalence of mental illness in America, the stigma associated with counseling still prevents many people from getting the help they need,” said Horn. “Seeking help is a sign of courage and should never be viewed as a weakness or personal shortcoming.”

The services of the ESC are available to all Department of Defense employees and their immediate family members.  For more information or to schedule an appointment, call the ESC office at (570) 615-8873. If you or a loved one are in crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 or the ESC Hotline at (570) 615-5591.

By Dr. Sanjay Chandragiri, M.D.

If you’re like me, you cherish pretty much everything about springtime, from the warmer temperatures to the abundant outdoor activities and rebirth of the flowers and trees.

Of course, that doesn’t change the fact that we as a society are dealing with some very difficult events at the moment, from the continuing global COVID-19 pandemic to the war in Ukraine and to rising inflation and supply shortages. Add all of that to the everyday stresses of life and it’s no wonder that people are experiencing increased rates of anxiety and depression.

How appropriate then that May is National Mental Health Awareness Month, an awareness campaign geared around encouraging people to practice self-care and seek out any of the many mental health resources available to them. This year, the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) is promoting a “Together for Mental Health” message, using the month “to bring our voices together to advocate for mental health and access to care through NAMI’s blog, personal stories, videos, digital toolkits, social media engagements and national events.”

It’s a noble goal, for sure, since mental illness remains a huge public health crisis throughout the United States and the rest of the world. According to NAMI, 1 in 5 American adults experience mental illness in some form and 1 in 20 are seriously afflicted by it. Meanwhile, 1 in 6 youths ages 6-17 have mental health disorders, and suicide is the second leading cause of death among people ages 10 to 34. Types of mental illness range from anxiety and depression to obsessive compulsive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.

These statistics reinforce the great need to further destigmatize mental health so that people aren’t so reluctant to get the help that they need. Fortunately, we have first-rate mental health services available here in Northeast Pennsylvania, including at the Wright Center for Community Health.

At the Wright Center, we offer an array of behavioral health services – therapy, psychiatric care and more – for children, adolescents and adults struggling with anxiety, depression, ADHD, bipolar disorder, substance use and addictive disorders, bullying, relationship stressors, LGBTQI+ issues, trauma, and loss and grief. In addition, our staff has made significant strides in the realm of telehealth services since the start of the pandemic.

Meanwhile, in response to the shortage of psychiatrists in Northeast Pennsylvania and across the country, we started a psychiatry residency in July 2017 and expanded the number of residents accepted into the program in 2022. Our Accreditation Council for Medical Education–accredited residency is progressive in its integration of behavioral health services within primary care environments and promotion of preventive screenings, timely interventions and a team-based approach to care – especially for patients who may not initially seek help on their own.

Our psychiatry residents receive hands-on training in regional public health-based settings, including specialty practices, behavioral health clinics, hospitals and safety-net community health centers where they partner with primary care and addiction medicine teams. The first class graduated in 2021, and scored a 100% pass rate on the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology’s Psychiatry Certification examination.

We are thrilled to be doing our part to address the mental health needs of our community. We have a lot of work to do, but with further advocacy and innovation, we will continue to make great strides against mental illness.

Outreach – Center for Community Resources is honored to receive a $5,000 grant from the Scranton Area Community Foundation to support the delivery of the Incredible Years® evidence-based parenting and positive childhood behaviors program.

This grant provides needed resources for Outreach to provide the Incredible Years® program that helps parents to achieve improved parenting skills, reduced childhood conduct problems, and strengthen social-emotional learning, self-regulation, school readiness, and problem-solving skills. Incredible Years® parents and children increase social connections, resiliency, and knowledge.

The Scranton Area Community Foundation has been serving the Northeastern Pennsylvania region for over 65 years as a steward, a grantmaker, a charitable resource, and a catalyst for change and growth. The Scranton Area Community Foundation was established as a community trust in 1954 by the Scranton Family, whose initial gift was the seed that has grown into a permanent vehicle for donors to accomplish their philanthropic goals while helping to support positive change within our community. Today the Scranton Area Community Foundation holds and manages a variety of funds from individuals, organizations, and corporations. Through these gifts, the Foundation responds to community needs and has provided grants to support regional nonprofits.

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An award-wining craft chocolate and coffee producer is partnering with Settlers Hospitality to provide product for service in all its Hawley locations including The Settlers Inn, Glass-wine.bar.kitchen, The Dock on Wallenpaupack and Cocoon Coffeehouse and Bakery.

Since its founding in 2017, Moka Origins has achieved an inspiring blend of social responsibility and fine quality. The factory in Honesdale produces coffee and chocolate from hand-selected ingredients of the highest caliber. Much of the product is sourced from Moka’s direct-trade farming partners across Africa. The heart of the business is a devotion to ethically sourced cacao and coffee beans. That commitment has grown into a passion for crafting small-batch premium chocolate and coffee. Moka Origins’ factory is a USDA Certified Organic food facility. It is also Fair Trade Certified and Rainforest Alliance Certified. In addition, an organic Swiss Water Process is used to decaffeinate coffee.

“Partnering with Settlers Hospitality has been a dream of ours.,” states CEO/Co-Founder of Moka Origins, Jeff Abella. “This collaboration is the perfect opportunity to deliver our high-quality products to the NEPA community, while also expressing our commitment to supporting coffee and cacao farmers globally.”