For more than 14 years, Arnita Thorpe has been the Flinn Foundation’s go-to person. As Operations Manager, she helps with pretty much everything that the Flinn Foundation does –from grant managing and accounting to IT and web development. But when we asked her about herself and all she does for the organization, she was pretty reticent. She’s not one who seeks the spotlight or toots her own horn. As Flinn’s Executive Director and CEO, Andrea Cole, says, “Arnita is modest! She’s literally the glue that holds this organization together and running so smoothly.” But while Thorpe downplayed her role with Flinn, she shared some interesting insights into her family, her favorite food, what she loves doing in her spare time and more.
What drew me to work for Flinn is the staff. I worked with Andrea (Executive Director & CEO) and Leonard (retired Chief Investment Officer and current Board Trustee) for over 30 years. We have a great working relationship.
I have been married to my high school sweetheart Richard for 44 years. We have one son and five grandsons.
Filet mignon – and Andiamo and Joe Muer are the Detroit restaurants I go to.
My free time is spent watching Lifetime channel movies. Lacey Chabert is one of the actresses I watch all the time. There is no favorite or specific movie. I look at the previews and if it appeals to me, I set my DVR, just in case I don’t have time to watch.
I grew up eating Coneys at the American Coney Island in downtown Detroit. I do not like Shawarmas because I am not a fan of garlic.
The Ethel and James Flinn Foundation, a Detroit-based organization dedicated to mental health awareness, advocacy and treatment, awarded grants to partner organizations who work to improve mental health awareness and access in Michigan. The Flinn Foundation awarded $2.7 million to 52 organizations, which includes some new mini grant partners.
“The mini grant program is an opportunity for us provide smaller, flexible grants to community organizations we may not have partnered with before,” says Andrea Cole, Executive Director and CEO of the Ethel and James Flinn Foundation.
The goal of the grants is to increase access to mental health treatment and support to as many individuals as possible.
“We appreciate the important work our partner organizations are doing and want to support them in meeting the needs and growing demand for treatment and supports,” she adds.
The grants recipients, which are broken into five program areas, are listed below. Read on for details on what each organization plans to do with its grant award.
This Pontiac-based organization was awarded $75,000 to support its Family Resilience Program, which is aimed at reducing the likelihood of child abuse and neglect.
This Detroit-based organization received $75,000 to implement Parent-Child Interaction Therapy, which builds positive parenting skills for caregivers of children involved in welfare services.
This Bloomfield Hills-based organization was awarded $100,000 to develop southeast Michigan’s first Behavioral Health Urgent Care Clinic.
This Walled-Lake based organization received $75,000 for a special needs program that consists of providing parents with skills to ensure their child’s health and safety.
This West Bloomfield-based organizations received $65,000 to increase its capacity to offer behavioral services to youth.
This Ferndale-based organization is the recipient of $50,000 to use towards Applied Behavioral Analysis.
This Pontiac-based organization received $55,000 to provide Dialectical Behavior therapy to its clinical staff.
This Southfield-based organization received $100,000 to pilot a program that would provide behavioral healthcare and case management to patients released from the ER.
The Detroit-based organization was a recipient of a $75,000 grant, which will be used to start a community-based substance use disorder clinic in Oakland County for adolescents.
The Southwest Detroit Community Justice Center received $100,000 to provide mental health supports for those participating in the Community Court program and specialty diversion courts.
The 100,000 grant awarded to this Westland-based group is being used to develop a care coordination model and expand behavioral health treatment to adults in Detroit.
This Inkster-based organization received $70,000 to provide clinical training in Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy.
Children in the Livonia School District will receive expanded behavioral health services thanks to a $72,500 grant. In addition, the Board of Governors received a $75,000 grant to establish the first perinatal and early childhood clinic in Detroit, which will provide on-site behavioral health services for kids birth-5 and their families.
The $75,000 grant will support the Western Wayne Suicide Prevention Coalition, which is a program of behavioral health services, youth activities and education.
The Ann Arbor-based corporation plans to use its $75,000 grant to implement the IMPACT Collaborative Care Model in two pediatric clinics that will improve access to behavioral health services for ages 12-18. An additional $75,000 grant will be used to support evidence-based integrative physical health and behavioral health care at OB/GYN clinics in Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti.
This Detroit-based program will use its $100,000 grant for evidence-based mental health care to sexual assault and human trafficking survivors.
This Inkster-based organization will provide behavioral health services to immigrant women, refugees and women of color with its $62,500 grant.
The $50,000 grant awarded to Novi-based CNS Healthcare will provide mental health first aid training to address behavioral health episodes.
The $50,000 grant will be used toward the Pre-Plea Diversion Program, which is the first of its kind in Michigan.
This Pontiac-based health clinic will use its $50,000 grant to expand behavioral health services.
This Ypsilanti-based foundation will use its $50,000 grant to expand access to early childhood mental health services.
The hospital group received $50,000 to train clinic and hospital staff to identify and address mental health concerns in patients after birth.
This Farmington Hills-based center received $50,000 to expand mental health services for grades 6-12 in southeast Michigan.
This Detroit-based organization received $50,000 to train staff to improve mental health treatment for those with co-occurring disorders.
The $50,000 grant will help expand telehealth services to residents of Holly-based Rose Hill Center.
The $50,000 grant will provide on-site mental health services to those in need.
The Detroit-based group received a $50,000 grant to implement an effective training model for clinical assessment and intervention for children and families.
The $50,000 grant awarded to this Detroit-based organization will help close gaps in children’s mental health services.
The $50,000 grant will help with training at this Dearborn Heights-based organization.
This Lansing-based organization received a $15,000 grant to support general operating costs in order to provide advocacy support for children and families.
This Southfield-based advocacy organization, which focuses on treatment for individuals living with autism and their families, received a $25,000 grant.
This Grosse Pointe Park-based advocacy organization, which shares evidence-based practices to prevent suicides, received a $15,000 grant for general operating support.
This Lansing-based organization, which is a mental health policy and research advocate, received $50,000 for operating support.
This Lansing-based group received $65,000 for operating costs to support its efforts in mental health advocacy.
The $15,000 grant that this Northville organization, which focuses on Wayne, Oakland and Macomb Counties, will help support general operating costs.
This Lansing-based organization received $50,000 for general operating support to continue its statewide efforts in mental health care, treatment and recovery.
This Ann Arbor-based organization, which covers Washtenaw County, received $15,000 for general operating support.
A $5,000 mini grant was awarded to this Milan-based organization to help provide group workshops on children’s mental health.
This Detroit-based organization received a $5,000 mini grant to educate behavioral health professionals about the process of Assisted Outpatient Treatment.
The $5,000 mini grant awarded to this Detroit-based organization will be used for its Smash Suicide Billboard Awareness Campaign.
The Bloomfield Hills-based camp received a $5,000 mini grant to train counselors and staff on a number of mental health topics.
The $5,000 mini grant will increase staff capacity to promote mental health awareness and access in Northwest Detroit, specifically focused on older adults.
The $5,000 mini grant will provide restorative practice training to everyone at this Belleville-based agency.
The $5,000 mini grant awarded to this Farmington Hills-based foundation will provide therapist-led youth focus groups.
The $5,000 mini grant will provide coping skills and education outreach programming at this Highland Park-based organization.
The $5,000 mini grant awarded to this Southgate-based organization will help their work with parents of young children to understand early social-emotional development.
This Ypsilanti-based organization received a $5,000 mini grant to education students on the warning signs and causes of depression and anxiety.
The $25,000 grant awarded to this Detroit-based foundation will support a collaborative effort related to substance abuse disorder and opioid settlement dollars in Michigan.
The $100,000 grant will be used to support a Detroit Co-Response Model pilot between the Detroit Police Department and Detroit Wayne Integrated Health Network.
The $200,000 grant will provide support to the Wayne County Jail Mental Health Initiative, which is aimed at improving diversion efforts.
From serving 700,000 meals to 300 homeless people each year to operating free medical clinics and day programs for more than 100 adults with developmental disabilities, Cass Community Social Services is dedicated to helping those less fortunate in the community thrive.
“CCSS is a Detroit-based agency with a person-centered philosophy, dedicated to providing food, housing, health services and job programs,” says Erica George, deputy director at Cass Community Social Services. “CCSS truly embodies meeting the service needs of the community, fighting poverty, creating opportunities and building the community.”
In order to better serve the community, CCSS turned to the Flinn Foundation for two grants. First, CCSS received $100,000 for a two-year grant from January 2020 until December 2021, and then the agency received $50,000 for a one-year grant from January-December 2022. The most recent grant allowed CCSS to implement a Resident Peer Support Training Program, which includes the creation of a training workbook so that future staff can maintain the program within CCSS, George notes.
“Peer support programs are highly effective and more important than ever during the pandemic,” says Andrea Cole, executive director and CEO of the Flinn Foundation.
The support training helps clients adapt to the changes brought on by COVID-19 in a healthy way, George notes.
“The Flinn Foundation grant allowed CCSS to implement a Mentor Peer-to-Peer program, which starts with rating the levels of stress due to COVID-19 and any other stressors identified,” George says. “Throughout, the Peer to Peer experience, each client improved their stress level and their mental clarity over the period, along with learning techniques to assist each other. The Resident Peer Support trainer has implemented group and individual support, activities, daily card reminders, attends training, engage in conflict resolution and career development for staff.”
Each year, the Ethel & James Flinn Foundation provides grants to southeast Michigan organizations who are doing their part to promote mental health awareness, access and understanding.
Since 1883, Vista Maria has been helping youth and their families heal from abuse, neglect and trauma through specialty mental health treatment for females ages 11-18 and community-based programs for youth ages 0-24.
Vista Maria’s services include alternative education and after-school programs, foster care and adoption services, family wraparound support, and transitional living programs for young adults who are homeless or have aged out of the child welfare system. It is also the only licensed emergency intake and treatment housing program in Michigan for adolescent female survivors of human trafficking.
“Through our programming, we are working to help vulnerable youth and families in Michigan realize a life beyond trauma, ignite a life of possibilities and heal,” says Meredith Reese, Chief Integrated & Behavioral Health Officer.
In 2021, to further enhance its staff’s training, Vista Maria turned to the Flinn Foundation to apply for its Capacity Building Opportunities. The agency was awarded $50,000 (its second grant from the Flinn Foundation; its first was in 2019). This year, Vista Maria is utilizing the $50,000 grant to provide clinical competency building opportunities.
“This training support allows Vista Maria to implement trauma-informed practices throughout the agency,” says Andrea Cole, executive director and CEO of the Flinn Foundation.
Reese says there are four areas in which staff will be trained:
“Vista Maria shares in the Flinn Foundation’s advocacy efforts to build awareness of mental health issues and end the stigmatization of mental illness, especially for adolescent-aged youth,” Reese says. “We commend our partner, the Flinn Foundation, for standing up for those who may not have a voice or may not have the resources they need to heal and recover.”
Each year, the Ethel & James Flinn Foundation provides grants to southeast Michigan organizations who are doing their part to promote mental health awareness, access and understanding. Those interested in applying for a grant from the Flinn Foundation have until July 21, 2022 at 4 p.m. ET to submit their application.
Freddie G. Burton, Jr., chief judge of the Wayne County Probate Court, is on a mission. With the help of the Flinn Foundation, the Detroit Wayne Integrated Health Network and more than 80 stakeholders in Wayne County, Burton is aiming to end the cycle of incarcerating non-violent offenders with mental health disorders through the Wayne County Jail Mental Health Initiative.
Burton — who is a Detroit native, Michigan State University and Wayne State University graduate with 35 years of experience as a judge — is spearheading the initiative, which has been underway since 2018. And it’s a crucial one.
According to Urban Institute, a nonprofit organization that provides data and evidence to help with decision-making and improve the well-being of families and communities, roughly 56% of state prisoners, 45% of federal prisoners, and 64% of jail inmates have a mental health problem.
Instead of getting the help they need, many people end up in the criminal justice system and can’t seem to get out.
Many times, it’s due to a breakdown in communication between law enforcement and hospitals. For example, Burton may preside over a case and order hospitalization for 60 days in addition to 120 days as an outpatient. However, when that person is stabilized, they could be let out of the hospital in 2-3 weeks, “but the outpatient basis is where we find an incredible breakthrough,” he notes. In some cases, that person might stop taking their medication and ultimately end up back at square one — in the court room yet again.
“It’s a revolving door,” Burton says.
That’s why collaboration among hospitals, jails and police to make sure more people are getting into assisted outpatient treatment is key. Burton says, through the initiative, they are making some true headway.
“Through the Center for Behavioral Health and Justice, we have an opportunity to develop information and then share that information,” he says. This allows those involved with the initiative to get a better look at what they are doing right and what they are doing wrong, he adds.
Until the end of 2022, Burton’s docket will be filled solely with mental health cases for the county.
“As part of the pilot program, every time they enter a line treatment order, a case management folder must be prepared and filed to the court within 30 days or prior to the discharge of this person from the hospital,” Burton says. “They will communicate with the CMH, which is the Detroit Wayne Integrated Health Network. They connect with service providers to make sure that person has been connected with the services they need. If they don’t follow this, they are subject to be taken back to the hospital,” Burton notes.
There is a civil side of this and a criminal side to this initiative, he adds.
“On the criminal side, we have seen tremendous reductions on the number of people that have been placed in jails,” he says.
Another piece of this puzzle is the Behavioral Health Unit, which is the first of its kind in the state. The Behavioral Health Unit is located in the Wayne County Probate Court.
“When there is a problem, the Behavioral Health Unit is there. When there is training required, we provide training … and it’s through the Detroit Wayne Integrated Health Network. They have a legal and contractual responsibility to develop programs for providers, hire them, so they can take care of the individuals who are being released into the community,” he says.
The initiative has a long way to go, but those involved are committed — and the collaborations and partnerships are working.
“To me, it’s amazing how much we’ve been able to get people committed in the last 4 to 5 years,” Burton says. “It’s just a disgrace that we have so many people who just need some help, and we’ve not been able to do that, but I think we’re really moving in the right direction.”
It’s no surprise that Duane L. Tarnacki, one of the top nonprofit lawyers in Michigan, serves on the Flinn Foundation’s Board. He has a heart for service, something he cultivated in the 12 years he spent as a student at Dearborn Divine Child, and something he and his wife, Sheila, have instilled in their children. His son, Alec, works at Bethany Christian Services in Grand Rapids as housing director in their refugee family resettlement program, and his daughter, Alanna, is an ICU nurse in Marquette.
We asked him what specifically drew him to Flinn’s mission and some other questions to “get to know” our board chairman a bit better.
I have always been interested in mental health: I was a psychology major at the University of Michigan; my mother was a psychiatric nurse and my older sister is a social worker. I guess it runs in the family!
It is so often overlooked and carries way too much stigma. Positive mental health makes people’s lives better!
“If not us, who? If not now, when?” – John F. Kennedy
Playing golf (poorly) and bike riding around Kensington Metropark. I also do amateur yoga.
Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village
Neither. I prefer a “loosey” i.e., a loose hamburger on a hot dog bun with chili and mustard and onions
I like data.
The Ethel and James Flinn Foundation is pleased to announce that we are accepting proposals from non-profit organizations that deliver mental health care and services in southeast Michigan (Wayne, Oakland, Macomb and Washtenaw).
All applications must be submitted through our Online Grant Application Process which is accessible directly from our website
A tutorial is available to help familiarize you with the process
The deadline for all applications was Thursday, June 29, 2023 – before 4:00PM
Please click on the following Request for Proposals (RFPs) links for details:
EVIDENCE-BASED PRACTICES – ADULTS
EVIDENCE-BASED PRACTICES – CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE
CAPACITY BUILDING OPPORTUNITIES
MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS, EDUCATION AND OUTREACH MINI-GRANTS PROGRAM
Since the Flinn Foundation’s founding in 1976, the goal has been the same — improve the lives of children, adolescents and adults with mental illness. But we all know that a goal is only as good as the strategy behind it.
That’s why we created a Strategic Plan. Here are some highlights of how we are putting our mission into action and how you can help.
To improve the quality, scope and delivery of mental health services in Michigan.
To advance effective, well-researched mental health treatment, services and programs that meet the needs of people in Michigan.
As you can see, we have some lofty goals for the Flinn Foundation over the next few years. And it can seem like an uphill battle. But every effort — big and small — can add up to make a big difference in achieving that simple, founding goal: improve the lives of children, adolescents and adults with mental illness.
You can contribute to this cause in the following ways:
1. Care for your own mental health: One of the first things we can all do to help destigmatize mental health is taking ownership of our own mental health needs and advocating for what we need — whether it’s therapy and programs or mental health days and stress-relieving activities and habits. Start thinking about your mental health; take steps to care for it like you would your physical health. And, if you have children, model that mental health awareness and care are important.
2. Encourage others to change how they think of mental health. We all have friends or relatives who are afraid to get mental health care. Perhaps they feel a stigma around mental health care needs, or maybe they aren’t sure they can afford care. Whatever the reason, encourage them to ask for help and seek out support.
3. Consider the words you use — and how they impact mental health perceptions. We’ve all called someone “crazy” at some point in our lives. Or, perhaps you’ve even trivially said you “felt bipolar” or made that casual reference about someone else. These words and expressions aren’t as harmless as they may seem in the moment. These casual references to mental health can contribute to the stigma those with mental health challenges feel. It can also make people — including your kids — feel less inclined to ask for help if they need it.
4. Let policymakers and stakeholders know that mental health matters to you. Michigan needs more resources to help those with mental health care needs. And it needs more equitable access among racial and income groups. Make sure your representatives know this is an important issue to you. Make sure they see that the mental health of our community is an integral part of our overall health. Vote for representatives who value mental health advocacy and resources like you do.
5. Follow Flinn on social. Follow us on Facebook or Twitter to for notable updates, mental health tips and other information. If you’re part of the local mental health community, you’ll want to know when our annual grant application period begins. That will be announced first on our social channels. Be sure to “like” and share our posts to help us spread the word about our mental health mission.