Engagement
The Maddie Fund provides direct financial aid to national, regional, and local organizations and programs that are dedicated to supporting pre-teens, teens, young adults, and their families who are dealing with mental illness. The fund is particularly focused on programs supporting those who are suffering from anxiety, depression, bipolar depression, and eating disorders.
In its first year, The Maddie Fund received over $500,000 of donations from Maddie’s family and friends. The fund continues to receive and encourage new and repeat donations. The fund is a non-profit fund that is managed by the Chicago Community Trust (CCT). Donations are tax-deductible, and 100% of the money goes directly to support mental health and wellness programs.
This site provides regular updates on the fund’s donations and initiatives so that donors can see the tangible results of their generous support.
See How Your Donations Have Helped
Mental Health Association of Westchester
MHA is a non-profit organization providing treatments, therapies and walk-in support to people suffering from mental illness via locations throughout Westchester County, NY. Maddie regularly volunteered for the MHA’s Sterling Community Center in White Plains.
The Maddie Fund has provided financial support to the MHA for the Sterling Community Center’s walk-in services and for its OnTrack program, which helps get young adults with behavioral disorders back “on track” with their lives through clinical and support services, substance abuse treatment, social skills training, family support and education.
University of Michigan Depression Center (UMDC), Ann Arbor, MI
The UMDC is the first of its kind devoted entirely to bringing depression into the mainstream of medical research, translational care, education and public policy. The Center is at the forefront of changing the paradigm of how depression and bipolar illnesses are understood and treated. In 2021, The Maddie Fund committed funding to the UDMC, specifically focusing on the Prechter Bipolar Research Innovation Fund.The Bipolar Research Innovation Fund supports novel scientific investigation of bipolar disorder and the extension of bipolar research with encouraging preliminary outcomes.
Separately, The Maddie Fund has recently connected representatives of the UMDC to the Rye (NY) Youth Council (RYC) to support the RYC’s mental health and wellness initiatives. Through its TRAILS and Peer-to-Peer (P2P) programs, the UMDC has been at the forefront of engaging directly with middle schools and high schools and their faculties to support mental wellness programs in the schools. These programs provide education on anxiety and depression and the training and support for the faculties and peers so they are able to engage with and support those students suffering from these illnesses.
Rye Youth Council
The Rye Youth Council (RYC) is a wonderful non-profit organization that engages, educates and empowers youth, strengthens family, and builds community through a variety of programs in Maddie’s hometown of Rye, NY. The Maddie Fund has provided a multi-year commitment to help fund and support the RYC’s efforts to expand and enhance mental health and wellness programs for Rye’s middle school and high school students. The funding enables the RYC to expand the hours of a licensed clinical social worker, develop and implement clinical programs both within and outside of the schools, and is helping to bolster programs and the training in evidence-based therapies (such as mindfulness, cognitive behavioral therapy, and dialectical behavior therapy) and implement a Suicide Prevention Program. The funding will also support the parents, teachers and coaches in the community by strengthening the referrals to existing mental health resources and expanding free prevention and awareness training programs such as the Youth Mental Health First Aid (YMHFA).
Student Sponsor Partners
In 2021 The Maddie Fund provided financial support to Student Sponsor Partners (“SSP”) to provide therapy and support to inner city high school students who are dealing with mental health challenges, which have been unusually elevated during Covid 19. SSP is wonderful and robust organization was established in New York City in 1986 to help the City’s most vulnerable youth escape the cycle of poverty and reach their highest potential. SSP currently provides high school scholarships to over 1,100 students in 23 high schools across the City. All of the SSP students live below the poverty line, which subjects them to conditions that frequently produce heightened levels of mental and emotional stress. Maddie’s family has been an active financial supporter and volunteer for SSP for almost 20 years.
Summer Camps
Well-structured summer camp programs can be helpful therapy for pre-teens and teens to learn to manage social anxiety and stress. The experience of being outdoors and active in nature, away from social media and screens can be a very positive and eye opening experience for many kids. Maddie spent most of her summers as a happy camper and then a counselor at summer camp programs on Candlewood Lake in Connecticut.
The Maddie Fund has provided multi-year financial support to send more than 50 needs-based campers each year to summer camp programs at Camp Echo in Fremont, Michigan, which is the summer camp for The McGaw YMCA in Evanston, Illinois, and the Candlewood Fishing Camp, which is a non-profit overnight fishing camp on Candlewood Lake in New Fairfield, Connecticut.