COMMON GROUND MARKS 50 YEARS
Milestone comes amid virtual shift of crisis mental health care
Common Ground receives over 50,000 calls on its crisis hotline each year serving about 88,000 people annually. In 2020, the organization received about 3,000 more online chats than the previous year with a total of 10,726.
Mental health and crisis resource agency Common Ground is turning 50 years old this year.
In the age of coronavirus, the organization has like many others has spent the last year growing its virtual offerings and capabilities. Simultaneously, the need for mental health resources in Oakland County and across the nation has continued to rise as the pandemic wears on.
Common Ground receives over 50,000 calls on its crisis hotline each year serving about 88,000 people annually. In 2020, the organization received about 3,000 more online chats than the previous year with a total of 10,726. Jeff Kapuscinski, chief external relations officer for the agency, said call volume rose 50% last spring. It dipped to normal levels into this winter.
The agency kicked off its 50th year by beginning to offer new virtual support groups in January. Three free groups are open to the public covering issues for young women, domestic violence support and homicide loss support.
Once held in person, the groups are the first new virtual programming for Common Ground in 2021. They likely won’t be the last as the organization saw over 1,240 telehealth appointments also take place last year.
When Common Ground was founded in 1971, it brought together two agencies working on crisis management in Oakland County. Common Ground itself was created by a group of students and community leaders. It merged with The Sanctuary Inc. in Royal Oak, offering residential counseling to runaway youth, in 1974.
The Sanctuary has continued its work with youth throughout the pandemic. It’s a 24-hour shelter that offers residency and assistance to youth ages 10 to 17 for threeweeks. Counselors work with both the children and their families with the goal of reuniting them by the end of the program.
Dashamir Pettway, 22 of Sterling Heights, is one of the program’s graduates. She found herself homeless at 17 years old due to past traumatic experiences. In search of a place to stay, she turned to The Sanctuary reaching out for assistance. Pettway ended up in the A Step Forward program, which offers transitional housing for homeless youth up to two years.
Seventeen was a rough year for Pettway as she tried to figure out how to start her adult life.
“I felt like no one really understood me or understood what I was going through,” she said. “It took me a year to even open up to my therapist, I was just so closed off.”
But through hands-on work with Common Ground and the opportunity to live independently, Pettway said she ultimately
found a new type of support. She started to feel more like herself.
At 18, Pettway was eligible to apply for Common Ground’s Graduated Apartment Program. Young adults ages 18 to 24 who qualify can receive educational and employment assistance along with counseling. Common Ground helped her get an apartment, right about the same time she found out she was pregnant with her son.
“It wasn’t easy at first, but over time, I really felt like I was finding myself. Having connections, mentors I could be around, people who were helping me out and still reach to me today — I realized as I was being steered away from everything I was going through, I had to find a way to help my community.”
As a Black woman, Pettway said she often finds mental health can be stigmatized in the community.
From her own experience, she too felt walledoff from the world of therapy and counseling at the beginning of her journey. Which is why after several years with Common Ground, she became a residential care worker herself. She coaches young girls through Vista Maria, a Dearborn Heights-based social services agency.
“I just want young people to know that if I made it through, they can make it through too. That’s all I want to do with my life,” Pettway said. “I know there’s a lot of flaws in our national mental health care system, but getting out there and trying to make changes is what keeps me going.”
The Sanctuary can assist up to 12 children at a time. The Graduated Apartment Program can house up to 24 at a time.
For assistance with housing or mental health care, Common Ground’s resource hotline can be reached at 1-800-231-1127.