The Birgitta Johnson Campership Fund for Fellowship Place

This year Fellowship Place established The Birgitta Johnson Campership Memorial Fund at the Community Foundation for Greater New Haven. As a long time Fellowship Place Board member and supporter, this fund was established in memory of Birgitta’s years of dedication to the agency, her commitment to philanthropy, and her love of travel and adventure. The fund will award three camperships annually, for Fellowship Place members to attend Camp CONNRI, an adult retreat and vacation center operated by the Salvation Army located on over 250 acres overlooking a lake in eastern Connecticut. The existence of a Campership Fund presents our members with an opportunity of a lifetime; most have never taken an overnight trip outside of the city, let alone an activity-filled vacation in the country fresh air. Camp activities range from swimming and boating to miniature golf, archery, arts & crafts, and theme dances. In March 2014, Fellowship Place’s Board of Directors conducted the first annual Campership contest. Interested members were asked to submit an essay or piece of artwork describing why they wanted to go to camp. Awards were given for Best Essay, Best Art Work, and Best Overall Entry. Our 3 campership winners joined 14 other Fellowship members and 3 staff at CONNRI from July 8-11. For most of the members in our group, the trip to CONNRI was their first overnight vacation. The opportunity to leave the inner city for a few days and enjoy the natural beauty of the camp builds confidence and recharges their batteries to cope with the many challenges they face at home.

]Post trip testimonials: “When I wake up in my apartment in New Haven, I hear constant noise from police sirens & emergency vehicles. At CONNRI, I woke up to peace & quiet. It felt wonderful.” “This was my first opportunity to go swimming in 15 years. I loved it.”  “The chance to get away to a peaceful place revived my spirits and makes me feel ready to deal with my many challenges.” “I have never had a vacation before. It felt wonderful to get out of the city.” “I loved the dance and meeting people from another agency. We all got along and it was so much fun.” “I loved shuffleboard. I have never played before.” “I hope I can go again next year. This was the best trip ever, everyone was so nice.”  Click here to make a Donation to The Birgitta Johnson Campership Fund for Fellowship Place Or mail a check, payable to The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven at 70 Audubon Street, New Haven CT 06510; please write Campership Fund in the memo line.

Fellowship Place’s Career Development Services Member Recognition Awards Ceremony

career devOn Tuesday, September 24, at the Fellowship Place Clubhouse, Fellowship Place’s Career Development Services honored members for their outstanding achievements in pursuing their individual career goals. Recognitions and awards included successful employment, academic achievement, volunteering in the community, completing an internship, and graduating from the Career Development Program.

The Career Development Department at Fellowship Place provides a continuum of prevocational & vocational services to help members develop the skills and confidence required to find and keep a job in the competitive marketplace. Services include on-site, paid internships in clerical services, food services, and maintenance, and placement in competitive employment at local businesses. Supported education services are available for those interested in returning to school. GED classes and literacy tutoring are also offered on campus as well as assistance with enrolling in post secondary education programs.

The Fellowship Place AllStars Softball Team Goes Undefeated and Wins the 2013 Mental Health Awareness Softball League Championship

On Saturday September 14, 2013, The Fellowship Place AllStars, defending champions, completed another successful season by securing an undefeated League Championship title. Congratulations AllStars, we are proud of your success! Coaches Kevin Scanlon & Ron Hazlett and the AllStars team worked hard all season to defend their title. An Annual All‐Star Awards Banquet is scheduled to be held on September 30

ArtShip, the Artists at Fellowship Place invited to exhibit their artwork at the Office of the Commissioner of DMHAS in Hartford

ArtShip photoOn Tuesday September 17th, the Artists at Fellowship Place attended a reception that kicked off a public viewing of their artwork, in the exhibit space at the Office of the Commissioner of DMHAS in Hartford. 10 ArtShip Artists have chosen to exhibit their original artwork in the lobby outside the executive offices through the month of December. Exhibiting artists include Max Clark, Pat Croke, Ken Grimes, Shari Hoffman, Deborah Hurley, Jon Singer, Beth Stannard, Randall Stanton, Roger Torpey, and Do Walker. At the kick off reception, the artists had a chance to highlight their talents by entertaining questions about their work from the public.

September is Hunger Action Month

Fellowship Place group photoTo support the CT Food Bank’s efforts to raise community awareness about hunger in our community, on Sept. 5 the members and staff of Fellowship Place Celebrated “Go Orange Day” by proudly wearing orange t-shirts and orange ribbons. Throughout the year, Fellowship Place receives ongoing support from the CT Food Bank, since last September we have been able to purchase over 27,000 lbs of food from them at a low cost to us. This is vital to our agency in helping us stretch our food budget and provide more than 150 free, healthy meals a day for people who attend programs on the Fellowship Place campus.

The people we serve are one of the poorest, most vulnerable populations in our community; their socio-economic status prevents them from eating 3 basic meals a day, let alone a heart healthy diet. They also struggle with unemployment, the constant risk of homelessness & poor physical health. The benefits of our campus meal program extend far beyond helping meet their immediate hunger; it also helps them focus on recovery and becoming more productive, as well as promotes the prevention of illness & improvement in quality of life.

Other community partners that have provided crucial support to our campus meal program this past year have included The Connecticut Health & Educational Facilities Authority, People’s Bank, Citizens Bank, The Suzio York Hill Companies, and First Niagara Bank Foundation. We gratefully acknowledge their generous support and are honored for their continued interest in our mission. Together we are building a stronger and healthier community.

To help raise funds for Fellowship Place’s meal program and the Connecticut Food Bank, our agency is hosting a month-long virtual food drive on the Connecticut Food Bank’s website. To make a donation or learn more about this important initiative:
1. Go to http://www.ctfoodbank.org/
2. Select “How to Help” tab
3. Select “Virtual Food Drive”
4. Select “fellowship place”

Fellowship Place receives donated Automatic External Defibrillator (AED) from Dragonheart Foundation

GuerreraThe Michael Vincent Sage Dragonheart Foundation has donated an Automatic External Defibrillator (AED) to Fellowship Place’s New Haven campus facility. Fellowship Place Executive Director, Mary Guerrera, who received the device from Lauren Rossi of the Dragonheart Foundation stated “We are grateful for the Dragonheart Foundation’s commitment to building awareness about sudden cardiac deaths and how immediate access to AED’s can make a big difference in saving the life of someone in mid cardiac emergency. Our staff, who have been CPR and AED trained, will now be equipped with the lifesaving technology to react within seconds of an incident.”

According to the Dragonheart Foundation’s website, www.defibandlive.org, early defibrillation with an AED (Automated External Defibrillator) and CPR can more than double chances of survival. The American Heart Association estimates that 20,000 to 100,000 Sudden Cardiac Arrest deaths could be prevented if defibrillation was readily available. Why is the donation of an AED so important to Fellowship Place? Recent studies have shown that cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of premature death among schizophrenia patients, who die from heart and blood vessel disorders at double the rate of persons without the mental disorder. Serving over 600 individuals annually who suffer from chronic mental illness in our community, Fellowship Place is thrilled to be the recipient of such a valuable piece of life saving equipment.

For more information please contact:
Melissa Holroyd, Fellowship Place Development Director at mholroyd@fellowshipplace.org
Lauren Rossi, The Michael Vincent Sage Dragonheart Foundation at mvs.dragonheart@gmail.com