Oct 23 Mental Health and Community at the “It’s Needed Conference”
(October 23, 2024)
On October 10, 2024, I had the absolute pleasure to attend the “It’s Needed Conference” which was hosted by the Hear Foundation. This dynamic day was presented by Breaking Barriers United which was founded by a seasoned police officer in Southern California, Ryan Tillman. Ryan started off the conference by sharing the story of meeting Leon Ford, who is the co-founder of the Hear Foundation. Ryan said Leon is “his brother from another mother.” The irony of the relationship between Ryan and Leon is that Ryan is a police officer and Leon’s life was unnecessarily, permanently altered by a police officer. At the young age of 19, Leon Ford was racially profiled and shot five times by a Pittsburgh Police officer in a case of mistaken identity. This horrific incident left Leon paralyzed. The brotherhood between individuals like Leon and Ryan is what brought together\so many people across so many different communities to partake in the It’s Needed Conference.
The conference flyer stated the following: “By attending the It’s Needed Conference, you will gain valuable tools and strategies for uniting people from all walks of life. Together, we will explore ways to overcome challenges, bridge divides, and cultivate an atmosphere of empathy and support.” I truly believe that this conference did just that. The Union Ballroom on the campus of Duquesne University was filled with a diverse audience. There were local and state police, social workers, community based organizations such as Gwen’s Girls, local government officials, mental health providers such as Center for Victims, educators, families impacted by violence, and more. Listening to Ryan and Leon’s story was quite powerful, particularly to me as a black woman who suffers from racial trauma and has witnessed first hand an absurd amount of racial profiling.
The panel discussions surrounding mental health and trauma were equally powerful. The panels were made up of mental health professionals such as Julius Boatwright, founder of Steel Smiling, and community advocates such as Calvin Murphy, or Coach Cal as he is affectionately known. A lot of the discussion around mental health echoed what we heard over the past year as we gathered data for our report, Bridging the Gap for Youth Mental Health, such as investing in key partnerships, building and retaining a trained workforce, and advocating for the appropriate resources needed to sustain programs.
During his remarks, Julius hit on something that was completely aligned with our report. He said, “We do not need to recreate the wheel. We need to invest in community centers such as the Kingsley Association, Macedonia Face, and Center of Life and work with their staff to get mental health support to people in these trusted spaces.” This statement mirrors one of the recommendations in our report: “Quality and sustainable partnerships.” We found that while partnerships can look very differently, when community organizations, schools, families, and providers team up, they are able to provide mental health support that surrounds the child and provides room for healing and growth.
Heather Wilkes, Allies for Children Policy Manager