Alexander Children's Foundation

🧠💚 Mental Illness Awareness Week is here! From October 6 – 12, culminating in World Mental Health Day on October 10, Alexander Youth Network is proud to be part of this global movement to raise awareness and understanding of mental health. We recognize the importance of discussing mental health year-round, and this week, we’re amplifying those conversations. We are proud to support NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) in advocating for stronger mental health policies and creating supportive spaces for open dialogue. We aim to break the stigma and foster compassion for those affected by mental health challenges through engaging in activities and discussions. Interested in making a difference? Learn how you can volunteer with the Alexander Youth Network and help support our mission. https://buff.ly/3NdkKSU #MentalIllnessAwarenessWeek #WorldMentalHealthDay #BreakTheStigma #MentalHealthMatters #NAMI #AlexanderYouthNetwork #AdvocacyInAction

We hope you will join us on our Charlotte campus for a tour this October or November! Tours are 30 minutes and give you the opportunity to ask questions and hear from a member of our staff. To learn more about tours, contact Crissy Humble at chumble@aynkids.org or visit our website to sign up. https://lnkd.in/eVcH_z7J #alexanderyouthnetwork #childrensmentalhealth

Last Monday was the annual Chipping In Fore charity golf tournament. We are so thankful that they selected Alexander Youth Network as one of the beneficiaries this year. They raised $15,000 to support Alexander! If you would like to learn more information about Chipping In Fore, please visit their website: https://lnkd.in/g9_nMDJZ Thank you for supporting the mission of Alexander Youth Network and the work we are doing with children across the state! #alexanderyouthnetwork #childrensmentalhealth

On Saturday, our kids in our Transition House program got to attend the Charlotte FC game! ️⚽️ They had so much fun cheering the team on to a huge win! Thank you to Charlotte FC for providing tickets so our kids and staff could have this opportunity 💙 #alexanderyouthnetwork #childrensmentalhealth

The Young Men's Service League joined us recently for our Bright Blessings birthday party! The kids had so much fun designing their own puzzles and celebrating our two September birthdays🎉🎁🎈 Thanks for spending the evening with us! 💚 #alexanderyouthnetwork #childrensmentalhealth

Our Charlotte Day Treatment kids had a wonderful time with volunteers from Bank of America last week! They had so much fun playing capture the flag and soccer on our brand new mini pitch 💚 Thank you for spending your afternoon with us! #alexanderyouthnetwork #childrensmentalhealth

Next week is the annual Chipping In Fore charity golf tournament. We are so honored that Alexander Youth Network was selected as a beneficiary this year! If you would like to learn more information about the golf tournament, please visit their website: https://lnkd.in/g9_nMDJZ Thank you for supporting the mission of Alexander Youth Network and the work we are doing with children across the state! #alexanderyouthnetwork #childrensmentalhealth

We are so excited that our Bark and Heal program has returned as part of our therapeutic treatment model at the Transition House! Bark and Heal is an amazing program that pairs our kids with rescued dogs that are in need of training prior to adoption. Our kids teach the dogs basic obedience and house training skills over the course of an 8-week program. This process also helps our kids develop valuable skills like patience, trust, and empathy. Recently, we completed our first Bark and Heal session. At their graduation the other week, the kids got to show off their hard work and Mozzie's new skills to his forever family! While they were sad to see him go, they were so proud of what they had been able to accomplish during training and were happy to see him off to a good home 💚 #alexanderyouthnetwork #childrensmentalhealth

On Tuesday, we celebrated the opening of our new mini turf pitch on our Charlotte campus! ️⚽️ The pitch was generously provided to Alexander Youth Network by Charlotte FC from their Pitches for Progress program and Daimler Truck North America. We are so incredibly grateful for their kindness and support of the children we are serving at AYN! Staff from both Charlotte FC and Daimler Truck joined us on campus to celebrate with our PRTF and Charlotte Day Treatment kiddos. Before the fun began, we heard from Natalee Jarrett (Vice President of Business Operations for Charlotte FC), Jeff Allen (Senior Vice President of Operations & Specialty Vehicle of Daimler Truck North America), Joe LaBue (President of Charlotte FC), and Lynn Crutchfield (President of Alexander Children's Foundation) about this partnership and the impact they hope the mini pitch has on our kids in encouraging physical activity and an interest in playing sports. Then it was time for the "First Kick" to commemorate the opening of the pitch! Our PE teacher, Coach Dan, also led several of our kiddos through some soccer drills and a quick game to finish off the event. We had a wonderful time getting to celebrate this exciting new addition to our campus! The kids have already enjoyed getting to use it to play soccer and other activities. We truly can't thank Charlotte FC and Daimler Truck enough for thinking of Alexander and our kids for this great opportunity! 💚💙🖤 Check out our Facebook for more pictures from the celebration! #alexanderyouthnetwork #childrensmentalhealth #charlottefc #pitchesforprogress #daimlertruck

Last week one of our board members generously donated dinner for our 2nd shift PRTF staff! The staff work so hard to take care of our kids and were very appreciative of this kind gesture and recognition 💚 #alexanderyouthnetwork #childrensmentalhealth