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Be Better offers support for families, youth struggling with mental illness

The Holland Sentinel - 9/17/2021

Sep. 17—HOLLAND — The Ian Miskelley Be Better Wellness Center began offering its first services this month. The center, established by Ian's parents, Steve and Jill Miskelley, is now offering support groups for those dealing with mental illness.

Although there is a long way to go to reach the ultimate goal for Be Better, it was important to begin offering some support to area youth and their families.

"As we got comfortable and settled, we realized we've got some ability to do something right now," Steve Miskelley told The Sentinel. "I met with a friend of mine, we grabbed a coffee and I showed him around (our office space). He said 'Why aren't we doing this now? We can do this now.'"

The center began hosting support groups in person Thursday, Sept. 9. There are meetings for families who have a child struggling with anxiety and depression, for children ages 13 to 17 and young adults ages 18 to 24.

The Miskelleys were driven to start the center after their son Ian died by suicide at age 19 in September 2020. The family saw a lack of treatment availability for Ian and wanted to change that.

"We started offering this primarily for parents and families who maybe have a child struggling. We want to help them navigate the system," Miskelley said. "We really struggled with that with Ian. There were a series of handoffs that would leave gaps in the treatment process two and three months long."

Those interested in attending are asked to register on the Be Better website, bebetterholland.com. Miskelley said the group is working to add a virtual component to meetings soon. Mosaic Counseling is partnering with Be Better to provide consultations.

The start of the meetings falls during National Suicide Awareness and Prevention Month in September. Miskelley said this wasn't fully intentional, but September is an important time to discuss mental health and illness.

"Prevention to me is an active thing," he said. "It can't just be awareness. There has to be an element of treatment, of community coming together."

The overall goal of Be Better is to bridge the gaps that the Miskelley family felt when seeking treatment for Ian.

"We want to provide a central hub, if you will, to coordinate services under one roof," Miskelley said. "We're not trying to outdo anyone, we're just trying to bring existing services under one roof. I don't want to hand you off, I want to walk you from service to service and get you taken care of ASAP."

To reach that point, a lot of work remains. The organization has applied for a 501c3 nonprofit designation and is awaiting approval. The Miskelleys are also looking to establish a board for the organization.

The major remaining task, though, is fundraising. Miskelley said the goal is to have Be Better in its own facility soon, but that comes with a big price tag.

"Our next steps are fundraising, big fundraising," he said. "Our goal is to be in our own facility in two years. That's not a small task. It's going to take a $2 or $3 million pool of money to make that happen and operate it efficiently.

"We're looking to do some big fundraising and have deep discussions with our larger charitable organizations in the area to start helping us do that."

— Contact reporter Mitchell Boatman at mboatman@hollandsentinel.com. Follow him on Twitter @SentinelMitch.

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