The Bridge June Newsletter

Subject: The Bridge June Newsletter

Newsletter

June 2024

The Bridge's Annual Gala: A Night of Transforming Lives

Over 300 guests gathered at The Metropolitan Club on May 1st for The Bridge’s annual Gala. It was an unforgettable night spent celebrating 70 years of service to vulnerable New Yorkers.

The Bridge was proud to honor Jonathan Rosen, author of The Best Minds: A Story of Friendship, Madness, and the Tragedy of Good Intentions, and Mitchell S. Gelberg, Senior Managing Director of Multifamily Management at Rose Associates. In their speeches, Jonathan and Mitch commended The Bridge’s work and emphasized the importance of addressing the needs of people living with mental illness. Jonathan shared his friend’s experience living with schizophrenia, which was shaped by societal perception of mental illness. Mitch highlighted the dedication of The Bridge’s 600+ employees and said, “I know even more now, particularly after becoming acquainted with The Bridge, that people help people.”

Mitchell S. Gelberg (left) and Deborah Gelberg (right)

Bridge Client

Susan Wiviott, Bridge CEO (left) and Jonathan Rosen (right)

Bridge clients also took the stage to share their stories about how The Bridge has helped them transform their lives. When speaking about her counselors at The Bridge, one client said, “Because of them, I learned to have hope to live again, to give myself another chance in life, [and] to appreciate the beauty and the magic of life.”

Thanks to our generous donors and sponsors, we were able to surpass our fundraising goal. All of the proceeds from the Gala will support The Bridge in providing much needed services to our clients.

Warner L. Pinchback, III, Bridge Board Member (left) and Carol Buckler, Bridge Board President (right)

A Day in the Life of an SOS Team Care Manager

The Bridge launched four Safe Options Support (SOS) Teams in 2022, fully funded through the New York State Office of Mental Health (OMH). The multidisciplinary teams, comprising mental health professionals and Peers, work above and below ground to provide services for individuals at high risk for recurring shelter, hospital, and prison admissions. Using Critical Time Intervention (CTI), the teams focus on the transition to safe and secure housing, coordinating care between multiple systems, and providing referrals to services.

The SOS model begins with outreach, engagement, and attention to immediate needs, such as food or clothing. SOS Teams work with clients where it is most convenient for them, which may be on the street, subway, shelters, libraries, religious institutions, or other settings. Clients are not always in the same place week to week. Initial outreach and ongoing engagement are important steps towards developing a trusting helping relationship between SOS Teams and their clients.

Carlos Reyes, SOS Teams III and IV

Carlos is an SOS Team Care Manager at The Bridge who spends three days a week with clients. During their time together, he assesses their needs, assists them with booking medical appointments, links them to community services, and helps them explore housing opportunities—among many other important tasks. First, though, he must meet them where they are.

In one typical morning, Carlos will be scheduled to visit with four clients across Manhattan, beginning at the Grand Central Terminal food court, then in the streets and subway stations of Midtown, and ending at the Bellevue Men's Shelter. Finding his clients takes some investigative work: picking up context clues, recalling faces and encampments, talking to police officers and MTA staff, and retracing routes.

Carlos shares that being able to help his clients navigate different situations and improve their lives is worth it. “It’s great to be able to find solutions for my clients, but at the end of the day, they’re the ones who decide to show up and help themselves. When they thank me for helping them, I tell them, no man—it’s all you! Thank you for spending your day with me and trusting me.” It is due to compassionate and dedicated staff members like Carlos that clients at The Bridge can begin to envision a different life for themselves and access the tools and services to reach those goals.

Harm Reduction at The Bridge

At The Bridge, we meet our clients where they are. Our staff acknowledge the reality that some people are not ready to stop using their drug of choice and their goal is to ensure clients are as safe as possible if they choose to use. This approach to care is called harm reduction, and it is embedded in everything we do. Harm reduction is not just for substance use- this approach also applies to physical health and mental health.

The philosophy of harm reduction emerged in the United States in the 1990s during the HIV/AIDs epidemic with the legalization of syringe exchange programs. Providing sterile tools for people who use intravenous drugs helped to minimize the risk of transmission of HIV within this population.

Harm reduction remains essential in the New York City community today. Approximately 80% of overdose deaths in the city involve fentanyl, making it vital that New Yorkers know how to recognize signs of an overdose and are trained in how to use Narcan.

Jessica O’Neill, the Director of the Center for Wellness & Change, leads harm reduction trainings every month. At each training, Jessica provides an overview of the history of harm reduction and education on different types of drugs and their effects. She then describes how to recognize signs of an overdose and shows trainees how to use certain harm reduction tools, like Narcan, fentanyl test strips, and xylazine test strips.

The purpose of these trainings is to open the world of harm reduction to anyone, regardless of their level of knowledge on the topic. Harm reduction does not replace other models of care (e.g. abstinence) but can be another tool to add to your toolbox when engaging and working with clients. Trainings are offered monthly at The Bridge’s clinical headquarters on West 108^th Street and are open to the public. The next training will take place on Tuesday, July 30^th at 2:00 PM.

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Support The Bridge

At The Bridge, we are committed to meeting people where they are by providing accessible and trauma-informed mental health services, as well as permanent supportive housing. Your support is needed to help The Bridge continue to provide these services to those in our community who need it most. With your donation, you can help vulnerable New Yorkers build their own paths to healing, growth, and independence.

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Visit thebridgeny.org to learn more about The Bridge

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Subject: The Bridge June Newsletter