While holding a highly stressful job in advertising and media, I had my own personal experience with mental health challenges. I never had a conversation about mental health with anyone, but I reached out to a professional for support, learning the tools that led me to a fulfilling path and eventually to BeWellPBC.

Therapy was a wonderful experience and took away the stigma of mental health for me.  It made me understand the value of learning processes and how to think of things differently.  It really blessed me.

I later became involved with Healthier Neighbors in my home community of Riviera Beach, a community-led initiative to improve behavioral health.  I wanted to be able to be a part of it so my community would understand it wasn’t a failure—there were root causes for many of our issues that centered around behavioral health. 

I want to be a liaison, a connector, a voice so that no community is forgotten.  That’s what BeWellPBC’s lofty goal is all about, ensuring that every person in Palm Beach County feels hopeful, supported, connected and empowered.  As a member of the BeWellPBC Launch Team, my mission is to make sure that residents are always represented in our behavioral health system of care and have access to resources to experience their own recovery.

That’s why the ‘BE’ that resonates most with me is Be You.  It’s about being whole, being complete.  Like a phoenix rising out of the ashes, behavioral health recovery gets you back to YOU.

-Katrina Blackmon, BeWellPBC Stewardship Council and Launch Team member.