“When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’” – Fred Rogers
You have probably seen this quote often in the last month or so. I have seen it too, but not just on social media. I have seen it alive, up close and in person at The Well Community. Continue reading
Volunteers are vital to the work of The Well! In 2018, over 200 volunteers gave countless hours of their time to serve, and without their help The Well Community wouldn’t be able to continue to provide a place to belong for those in the Dallas area who live with life-altering mental illnesses. Our volunteers make The Well a supportive community for our members not only through their tangible, measurable assistance—which they offer so generously—but through their compassion and friendship. Continue reading
Margy at the 2018 Well Community Christmas Party
Margy was already a regular volunteer at The Well Community, but she knew she wanted to do more. She first heard about the numerous ways The Well serves those living with serious mental illnesses at church as Vickie Fisk, who would eventually found The Well Auxiliary, regularly shared the need for donations and volunteers. Several times Margy answered the call as she joined others from the church to serve dinner at Thursday Night Life, The Well’s weekly worship service for members. Continue reading
The Well Community opens its doors every Thursday night for dinner, worship and fellowship. For members of The Well, who live daily with the challenges of severe mental illnesses, Thursday Night Life is the highlight of their week. Continue reading
Oscar Brown is in the kitchen of Cliff Temple Baptist Church in Oak Cliff, passing out paper plates filled with salad and pizza. He’s there to serve at Thursday Night Life, a weekly gathering when members of The Well Community are invited to worship and enjoy a hot meal together. Volunteers like Brown prepare the meal, then serve it to the members after a time of music and Bible teaching. Continue reading
A year ago this month a handful of people took on a huge challenge: to find new ways to provide support to The Well Community. The Well Auxiliary has quite a list of accomplishments in the first year of its fledgling organization, and already they have caused us to wonder what we’d do without them. Continue reading
Akintunde, on the far right
For 20 years, Akintunde worked as a Licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor in Dallas, Arlington and Grapevine, helping men and women who struggled with drug addictions receive appropriate treatment. When he retired several years ago, Akintunde quickly realized the copious amount of downtime wasn’t for him. He wanted to be active and productive, and despite a diagnosis of glaucoma that left him with peripheral vision so limited he qualified for medical disability, he decided to go back to school. Akintunde is now a graduate student working toward a master’s degree in social work with a concentration in mental health and substance abuse at the University of Texas at Arlington. As part of his graduate degree requirements, Akintunde interned at The Well for eight months. Continue reading
