For Immediate Release — May 8, 2024
Press Contact: [email protected]
Southern Smoke Foundation Providing Access to No-cost
Counseling for Washington D.C. Food and Beverage Workers
A nonprofit is launching its Behind You Mental Health Program in Washington D.C. this summer
WASHINGTON, D.C.—To kick off Mental Health Awareness Month, Southern Smoke Foundation (SSF), a leading nonprofit organization dedicated to providing emergency relief funds nationwide and access to mental health services for food and beverage workers (F+B), is thrilled to announce that it's launching its Behind You mental health program in Washington D.C. and Virginia this summer in partnership with George Washington University. SSF is providing a grant to George Washington University’s Meltzer Center for Psychological and Community-based Services and member clinics of the GW Mental Health Training and Advisory Committee to provide no-cost counseling to F+B workers across Washington D.C. and Virginia through the Behind You program. A Behind You grant covers the cost of counseling for F+B workers who qualify through the SSF website and allows student clinicians to diversify their training by seeing a community of seasoned F+B workers with various backgrounds. Licensed clinical supervisors and the university program director coordinate training for and supervise all student clinicians. In addition, SSF requires university partners to provide telehealth services to increase accessibility for workers with demanding schedules or living in rural areas with limited access to in-person services.
“We are delighted to be starting a partnership with the Southern Smoke Foundation for their Behind You program,” Risa Broudy, Ph.D., Director of The Meltzer Center at George Washington University said. “This program will help bring evidence-based and culturally informed mental health services to a much-needed population: Food and Beverage industry workers in the District and Virginia, at no cost to them, while providing our graduate student clinicians with invaluable training opportunities in working with underserved members of our local community.”
Southern Smoke Foundation is looking forward to increasing its impact in Washington D.C. by offering the opportunity to receive no-cost counseling through the Behind You program to D.C. F+B workers. SSF has been serving the Washington D.C. F+B community through its Emergency Relief Fund program since 2017 and has distributed $15,985 in grants to help lift workers out of crisis. In partnership with George Washington University, Southern Smoke Foundation is projected to provide access to more than 500 no-cost counseling sessions to F+B workers.
Since Behind You launched in 2020, SSF has provided access to more than 5,100 counseling sessions at no cost to F+B workers, and they’re not hanging up the apron now. To drive awareness and funds to support Behind You, SSF is launching a “Million for Mental Health” campaign on May 1, in tandem with Mental Health Awareness Month. It will cost SSF roughly $1 Million annually to sustain programs in California, Illinois, Louisiana, New York, and Texas, as well as expand to Maine, Massachusetts, South Carolina, and Tennessee, in addition to Washington D.C. and Virginia this summer. This nationwide campaign will directly support the continued growth of the program with the goal of raising $1 Million by the end of the year. Local award-winning chef Angel Barreto of Anju, a contemporary Korean restaurant and pub in the D.C. metropolitan area, stands behind SSF and spoke on a panel with the nonprofit about “Addressing Worker Mental Health in the Food and Beverage Industry” at the American Psychological Association (APA) conference in D.C. in last August.
“Access to no-cost counseling for food and beverage workers in D.C. is a vital resource that acknowledges and supports the well-being of those who nourish our community,” Chef Barreto said. “It's a powerful testament to the value we place on their mental health and resilience.”
Southern Smoke Foundation has been instrumental in providing more than $11.6 million in emergency relief grants to F+B workers. SSF aims to alleviate the financial and emotional burdens individuals in the F+B community face due to unforeseen crises, medical emergencies, or natural disasters. F+B workers experiencing an unforeseen hardship can apply to receive an Emergency Relief Grant, and F+B workers residing in California, Illinois, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and Washington D.C who are interested in receiving no-cost counseling can apply for Behind You. Those who live outside of the Behind You service states can apply for financial assistance to cover mental health care needs through the Emergency Relief Fund. The Behind You program wouldn’t be possible without Love, Tito’s, Elijah Craig, Restaurant Giving Circle, and Athletic Brewing. To support SSF and learn more, visit the Southern Smoke Foundation website.
About Southern Smoke Foundation
Founded in 2017 by James Beard award-winning chef Chris Shepherd and Executive Director Lindsey Brown, Southern Smoke Foundation (SSF) provides national support to the food and beverage (F+B) community through emergency relief grants and access to affordable mental health services. To date, SSF has granted more than $11.6M to F+B workers experiencing an unforeseen crisis nationwide, and since 2020, has provided over 5,100 no-cost counseling sessions to F+B workers in California, Illinois, Louisiana, New York, and Texas through its mental health program, Behind You.
Southern Smoke Foundation Mission Statement
Southern Smoke Foundation’s mission is to create a healthier and more sustainable food and beverage (F+B) industry by providing emergency relief grants nationwide and access to mental health services to F+B workers. ###