Powell Brown, a friend of Skyland Trail participating in the 2019 Race Across America, has raised more than $1 million for Skyland Trail’s evidence-based mental health treatment programs and financial aid scholarships. This is the largest gift Skyland Trail has received to-date through an individual fundraising effort. Through generous donations from individuals and organizations, Brown has raised the funds in only three months.
On June 15, 2019, Brown and a team of seven other cyclists will begin the grueling 3,100-mile bicycle race starting in Oceanside, California, and ending one week later in Annapolis, Maryland. The group expects to travel more than 450 miles per day. Brown is racing with Team FSHD Skyland Trail, which aims to raise awareness and donations for two nonprofit organizations – Skyland Trail and the FSH Society, a nonprofit focused on facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD).
“We are raising awareness, helping to erase the stigma associated with mental illness and raising money for education, research, and treatment of these serious disorders which affect so many of our friends, family, and colleagues,” says Brown.
Funds raised by Brown will directly support comprehensive programs at Skyland Trail’s J. Rex Fuqua Campus for adolescents. Currently under construction and scheduled to open in the fall of 2019, the new facility will provide mental health treatment to adolescents ages 14 to 17.
“This incredible gift will have a tremendous impact on the clients and families that Skyland Trail is able to help through holistic, evidence-based treatment, integrated medical care, research, and education,” says Beth Finnerty, President and CEO of Skyland Trail. “We are so thankful for Powell—and those who donated on his behalf—for their commitment to Skyland Trail and its mission.”
Donations are still welcome. Click to donate to the cause.
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Located in Atlanta, Skyland Trail is a nationally recognized nonprofit mental health treatment organization serving adults ages 18 and older with a primary psychiatric diagnosis. Through our residential and day treatment programs, we help our clients grow, recover, and reclaim their lives. Skyland Trail is focused on individuals with complex mental health issues through expert, evidence-based psychiatric care alongside a compassionate, holistic path to wellness. Our integrated mental, medical, and social model helps clients develop strategies to improve mental health, physical wellness, independence, and relationships with family and friends. Unique therapies include music, art, and horticultural therapy; workforce and school readiness; primary care services; family therapy; pastoral counseling; and healthy living and nutrition coaching. Learn more at www.skylandtrail.org.
The FSH Society, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation, is the world’s largest research-focused patient advocacy organization for facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy. Based in Lexington, Massachusetts, its mission is to accelerate the development of research on treatments and a cure; to education, empower, and active individuals and families with FSHD; and to increase support for FSHD research and patients through effective engagement of government and private sector organizations. For more information, visit www.fshsociety.org and facebook.com/fshsociety.