Are you interested in being part of a new Key Ministry initiative? Learn how you can help us create and launch mental health small groups for families with disabilities, in collaboration with Fresh Hope for Mental Health.
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Transcript:
The intersection of mental health challenges and being a caregiver for someone with a disability may not be obvious if you’ve never experienced either situation.
But if you have a child or loved one with any kind of disability—whether visible or hidden—you know well how common it is for mental health challenges to become part of the equation, for the person with the disability, and for their care providers.
That’s why we’re partnering with our friends at Fresh Hope for Mental Health to create a new resource for families like yours.
And we’d love for some of you to join in!
During July and August, Key Ministry and Fresh Hope for Mental Health will be beta-testing a new small group curriculum called ‘Fresh Hope for Families with Disabilities.” If you’re not familiar with Fresh Hope, this ministry creates books and small group curriculum for individuals with mental health challenges. Fresh Hope small groups typically meet in a local church, but many groups now also meet online.
In their own words, Fresh Hope “provides those who are hopeless a safe place to process their pain and experience faith-filled hope modeled, shared, and given in support groups, classes, coaching, and resources that are led and written by peers who are living well in spite of their mental health challenge. This (faith-filled small groups and curriculum) serve as a bridge between someone’s diagnosis and living well in spite of their diagnosis. Our approach is based on seven mental health recovery principles and 25 years of clinical research on hope. And it works.”
Over the last few years, Fresh Hope has focused on tailoring their small group materials to the needs of specific challenges and related mental health experiences. Fresh Hope now offers a curriculum and groups designed to support needs such as trauma healing, the specific mental health needs of teens, widows and widowers, church leaders, individuals who are incarcerated, and couples with mental health challenges. Fresh Hope’s principled small group model has proven to be very effective for their group participants.
In late 2022, Key Ministry’s Dr. Steve Grcevich and Pastor Brad Hoefs, founder of Fresh Hope, agreed to collaborate to offer groups based on the needs of the individuals and families served by Key Ministry.
Here’s where you come in:
We are currently seeking individuals who are willing to be participants and/or co-facilitators of two online small groups. Groups will meet weekly online, from the week of July 10 through the week of August 28. Each week’s group meeting will be 60 - 90 minutes long. Group members and co-facilitators will have the opportunity to give feedback on the format and content of the study, to help shape the final small group curriculum.
If you are interested in being a co-facilitator, some online training will be required during the month of June to ensure that the group leaders will be properly equipped to lead and manage small groups. After the pilot groups are completed, the Key Ministry and Fresh Hope teams will refine the small group materials and hope to launch the first official Fresh Hope for Families with Disabilities groups this fall.
A few weeks ago, we held our annual conference, Disability and the Church 2023 in Cleveland, Ohio. We announced this project at the conference, and have already received about half the desired participants for this project. Space in the pilot groups is limited, and I need to hear from you on or before May 31, 2023 to be considered for the groups. Simply email me, catherine@keyministry.org to let me know you would like to be part of the pilot groups. If you’re listening after the end of May, stay tuned for details about how to join a Fresh Hope for Families with Disabilities group this fall.
If you can’t join a group this summer, will you pray for this project? One of Key Ministry’s core values is connection, as part of making disciples of Jesus.
We believe this project has the opportunity to further our mission and give much-needed caregiver mental health support.
