Our 2005 Awards The Jonas Fund awarded $27,000 in scholarships in 2004-2005 to five deserving youth who had recently graduated from Burlington County Alternative High School (BCAHS). Each one has overcome serious emotional challenges to earn his or her diplomas. One young man had been “a product of the psychiatric system”, but with some hard work and his own natural resilience is now looking forward to attending college. Another’s family had limited financial resources, and our scholarship gave him a “chance in life” that he would not have otherwise had.

The recipients of these scholarships were selected with the help of the staff of BCAHS and its founder and director, Vince Phillips. Three of our recipients used the scholarships to attend Burlington County College. Another appreciative student used the scholarship award to attend Camden County College, and one used the scholarship to attend a Trade School. We are thrilled to support the hopes and dreams of these young people.

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The Jonas Fund Supports Suicide Prevention Symposium

Board member Marlene Penn is a member of the planning committee for a conference on Suicide Prevention hosted by The Mental Health Association of Southwestern New Jersey on May 5th, 2005. The Jonas Fund is pleased to be one of the sponsors for this symposium. The keynote speaker for the event is Dr. Alfred Koplewicz, named “America’s Favorite Child Psychiatrist” by Parent’s Magazine. He is the author of the book Depression in Children and Adolescents (Harwood, 1993).

Marlene was able to secure the expertise of Dr. Carol Christian, Director of the Counseling Center at Rider University, as facilitator for an afternoon workshop entitled “Colleges and Suicide Prevention Strategies”. Dr. Christian will conduct two sessions on the multiple strategies that Rider has in place to sensitize staff and students on suicide prevention techniques. She will be presenting on “Question, Persuade, Refer”, a program at Rider that was sponsored by The Jonas Fund.

More information on the Symposium will be available on this website in future months.  

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Help for College Bound Students

The Jonas Fund is continuing planning discussions with the Rutgers University Graduate School of Social Work, Transitions for Youth Program, toward co-sponsoring an SAT test-taking strategy session for New Jersey students with special needs. Visit their website to learn more about this fine organization we plan to partner with: www.transitionsforyouth.org

The Jonas Fund has also obtained the services of a tutor for South Jersey students with mental health needs who would otherwise not be able to participate in an SAT preparatory program.

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Announcing our Support of a National Effort in Jonas’ Memory

“Systems of Care”, a national movement to reform mental health systems for children, holds bi-annual conferences attended by many youths in the system. In an effort to develop meaningful programs for these young attendees, the Burlington Youth Partnership in conjunction with the Technical Assistance Partnership for Child and Family Mental Health (a national organization) established the Jonas Penn Youth Involvement Fund. The Burlington Youth Partnership made an initial donation of $5,000 which was followed by donations from the Jonas Fund as well as Systems of Care organizations around the country.

Marlene Matarese, MSW, the Youth Coordinator of the Technical Assistance Partnership, wrote the following to all Systems of Care communities:

“I am very pleased to announce the initiation of the Jonas Penn Youth Involvement Fund. The purpose of this fund is to create meaningful, authentic youth involvement and opportunities for youth who are currently in or have been involved with Systems of Care.

Jonas Penn was a youth from New Jersey who was a strong advocate for youth involvement within systems reform. He was one of the founders of the Youth Partnership in New Jersey and the recipient of the Federation for Families Striving for Excellence Award.

Jonas experienced many challenges with his own mental illness, but kept on striving to make a difference in the lives of others. He attended his first Systems of Care Community Meeting in Puerto Rico where he was inspired to begin a youth movement in New Jersey. He realized there was a need for more structure, learning opportunities and activities for youth at conferences.

Sadly, Jonas committed suicide in November 2002. The Jonas Penn Youth Involvement Fund was created in his memory and has been developed with the goal of continuing Jonas’ work on a national level. In keeping with Jonas’ spirit of what his life represented, we want to ensure a quality youth track at conferences as well as contribute to the growth of a national youth involvement movement.”

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TJF Board Member Honored

Board member Marlene Penn (second from left) is honored by MHANJ

On May 26th, 2004 the Mental Health Association of New Jersey held its 5th Annual Evening of Excellence recognition dinner at the Basking Ridge Country Club. In past years, the MHANJ Golden Bell Leadership honorees have included distinguished individuals from the fields of mental health, the arts, and education, as well as corporations who have helped to further the MHANJ's cause.

This year, the MHANJ took the opportunity to thank three individuals and a corporation who have, each in their unique way, contributed to the public's understanding of mental health issues.

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With Our Gift, Rider University Helps So Many

The commitment of the Jonas Fund is to support youth with behavioral or mental health needs in their transition from high school to college or vocational training. This commitment forms the basis of our gifting to Rider University which now is in excess of $10,000. The importance of helping youth in this transition phase was recently underscored by an October 26, 2004 article in the New York Times about the need for mental health services on campuses. According to the research, “Some mental health services may be covered by a student’s tuition, fees or health insurance. Others – visits to a psychotherapist or medication specialist in the community, for example – may not.”

Rider University used the first award from the Jonas Fund to purchase medication and to provide psychiatric services for students who could not otherwise afford them. This coming year, Rider will also use our gift to implement a suicide prevention program developed at the University of Kentucky.

The following are excerpts from a letter from Carol Christian, Psy.D., Director of Rider University’s Counseling Center:

“Words cannot adequately express the gratitude I feel for the wonderful gift from the Jonas Fund…for the purpose of financially assisting students in need of interventions that they otherwise might be unable to afford. When a student realizes, perhaps for the first time, that medication could make the difference between suffering and surviving, not having the ability to purchase it can increase the feelings of hopelessness and helplessness. Similarly, if the opportunity to consult with a psychiatrist, who would recognize the challenges of medical and emotional issues, is denied a student, the symptoms of depression and anxiety maintain a powerful grip.  

“In the words of one student who benefited from your generosity, “It’s difficult for me to comprehend that there is someone out there who cares enough about my struggles with bipolar illness that they are willing to pay for medication for me.” Another student hoped that she’d be able to pass along the same gift to someone else. And a young man poignantly stated, “The Jonas Fund seems to value my life more than I do. Perhaps I need to reconsider my attitudes about life.”

Once again, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for the gifts you have given to us, the gift of helping others to address depression and suicidal behavior. Although I never knew Jonas personally, I got to know him through the eyes and memories of faculty and students who loved and respected him.”

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