NJCDC Receives Grant from Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey

Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey recently awarded NJCDC a grant of $25,000. The donation, made through The Horizon Foundation of New Jersey, will be used to fund mental health wellness programming at NJCDC's Great Falls Youth Center.

The funding from the Foundation will help us develop vital mental health and wellness programming for high school students at our Great Falls Youth Center. Both the federal Centers for Disease Control and the United States Surgeon General have declared that there is a student mental health crisis throughout the nation, and it is no less so in New Jersey.

Through programming supported through Horizon's grant, students will learn how to cope with stress through mindfulness and meditation activities. They will also participate in workshops on different mental health conditions, building and maintaining healthy relationships, strengthening self-esteem, avoiding peer pressure, and more. For students experiencing more acute mental health difficulties, the program will also help connect them to outside resources, including clinical staff at NJCDC's Teen Centers and Full Service Community Schools, the NJ4S Passaic County Hub, and clinical care providers in the community.

NJCDC Founder and CEO Bob Guarasci said, "We are enormously grateful to the Horizon Foundation for this award, which will help more Paterson youth improve their mental health. Youth in Paterson—and throughout the country—are currently experiencing significant mental health challenges, but this program will both address this topic head on and will also connect students to vital support services they need.

Horizon is pleased to support the important work being done by NJCDC to promote mental health and wellbeing among Paterson youth," said Jonathan R. Pearson, Executive Director of the Foundation. "The Great Falls Youth Center Health & Wellness Program aligns with Horizon's commitment to helping our members access the resources they need to manage their health and well-being. We are very pleased to support grantees—like NJCDC--who share our commitment to improving health within the communities we serve."