Bridges Community Center offers help for people with mental illness, substance abuse disorders - Kenosha News

This week’s featured community group is Bridges Community Center. Grant and Development Director Mary Beth Lindqvist provided the answers.

Q: What is the mission of your organization?

A: The mission of Bridges Community Center is to provide peer-to-peer support for anyone living with a mental illness or substance abuse disorder. We believe that recovery is possible given the right support, and our goal is to be a safe, welcoming place where people who are seeking support for their recovery will find others who understand their journey and celebrate their success. We don’t focus on the negative — the relapse, the setbacks which are inevitable in both mental health and substance abuse recovery — but rather, we offer positive, caring support to keep people motivated to move forward to live their best lives. We are not a treatment facility. We are community center providing peer-run support groups and activities to support and teach skills to people who need it.

Anyone who joins Bridges Community Center is a “member”. The members meet once each week, and they are responsible for the rules, though we have paid staff (who are also peer mentors). The rules are quite simple – attend at least two support groups per week, help keep the place clean by volunteering for a chore, and absolutely no drug or alcohol allowed.

Members who are active and attending groups receive free lunch every day and can participate in many great planned outings throughout the year. Recently we’ve gone to a Milwaukee Admirals game, a Brewers game, the Lakeside Players, the Pumpkin farm, bowling and more.

We also informally link people to other community services when we see a need. Someone may, through a conversation, let a peer mentor know they are facing homelessness. We would immediately refer them to Coordinated Entry at Kenosha Human Development Services to see if they qualify for help. Or if someone tells us they need food, we have days when peer mentors take Bridges members the Shalom Center food pantry to stock up.

We try to connect people with what they need as they tell us they’re needs.

Most of all, we try to support them in their recovery and help them understand that mental illness and substance abuse disorders are chronic illnesses which can be managed lifelong and those who live with them do not have to live in fear or branded with stigma.

Q: Who are the leaders of your organization?

A: Bridges Community Center is unique in that it is fiscally managed by Kenosha Human Development Services, but maintains its own board of directors separate from the KHDS Board. Bridges’ board of directors consists of President Mary Jane Landry-Wilkins, Vice President Jason Free, Treasurer Bernard Vash, NAMI representative Jack Rose and board members Nicole Beranis, Evette Rowley, Joe Cardinali and Fran Coleman. Mary Beth Lindqvist (who is employed by KHDS) provides part-time oversight/supervision to Bridges staff and the program there.

The staff at Bridges are all peer mentors — people who have lived experience with mental health and/or substance abuse and who are trained to work with others in recovery. They are Carrie Szulczewski, Sabrina Northern, Martha Christophersen, Julie Shilavy, Mike Topel, Mike Mariferen and Dave Hauenstein.

Q: How and when did it get its start?

A: Bridges Community Center began over 20 years ago. It was very different in its original formation with a small group of mental health advocates and people living with mental illness meeting to form a group focused on offering a supportive place and fighting the stigma often associated with mental illness. Over the years, it evolved and grew and went through a few program directors and locations until it reached its current location.

Q: What kinds of support do you need from the community?

A: The community has been outstanding in its supports of Bridges Community Center. In 2018, we had several fundraising activities, and people in Kenosha stepped up and made them successful. We also were granted funds from the Kenosha Community Foundation. We received money from the CDBG fund for staff and a new computer for a Wellness Action Recovery Plan program project.

The Kenosha Firefighter CARES group made us their “pet project” for their annual golf outing and gifted us with $11,000, which went toward our general operating costs. Lastly, Cordeck Builders came in and completely renovated our back “patio” area. They graded it to make it flat, made new seating areas, new tables, new grill and gave us new office chairs.

Of course, having said that, this is a new year and will be fundraising again. We are always running at a deficit no matter where we cut costs. So, any monetary donation is welcome for sure.

But we would also like to support the community, too. We are always willing to get out there and help out in any way. Our members are eager to pitch in. We sign up for the downtown clean up each year and anything else we can do, please let us know! We are your neighbors and that’s what good neighbors do!

Q: What’s your next event or effort?

A: We’re currently planning a big event that will happen later this year. I don’t want to give out too much info now because we don’t have all the details, but we’re hoping to host an art show here in Kenosha, featuring a Chicago artist who is originally from Kenosha. The show will be focused on recovery/mental health and substance abuse. Bridges artists will be showing their work, and we’d like to open it up to local Kenosha artists who might be interested, too. We hope to have live music, food, maybe even some silent auction items.

Q: How can people get in touch with you and get involved?

A: I can be contacted at mlindqvist@khds.org or 262-764-8550. If anyone is interested in becoming a member of Bridges Community Center, we are located at 5718 Seventh Avenue. We are open Monday through Friday 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and Saturday 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Would you like your organization to be featured in Community Connection? Email us at community@kenoshanews.com.

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