ABOUT
FRIENDS OF LOUDOUN MENTAL HEALTH

MISSION & HISTORY.

For those with mental illness, and the family and friends who care for them, it is a night that has fallen in their lives. The mission of Friends of Loudoun Mental Health is to drive back the darkness afflicting so many of our fellow citizens in Loudoun County. We are an all-volunteer, community-based, non-profit organization that helps those disabled by mental illness better their lives by providing assistance for living arrangements, advocating on their behalf for improved care and resources, and promoting recovery and community awareness.

Serving Loudoun County citizens since 1955, Friends of Loudoun Mental Health continues to provide support and services to mental health consumers living in Loudoun County. The initial effort was as an advisory board responsible for bringing the first mental health services to Loudoun County and for providing specialized equipment and supplies to the earlier Loudoun County mental health centers on King Street and later on South Street in Leesburg. Friends of Loudoun Mental Health serves as advocates, educators, and service providers, which was expanded in the late 1980’s with the introduction of its representative payee program that continues to serve mental health consumers receiving SSI. In 1993, Friends of Loudoun Mental Health broadened its efforts to better address evolving needs of Loudoun County citizens living with chronic mental illnesses that were not being covered by federal, state, or local funding. A proactive public/private partnership was formed between Friends of Loudoun Mental Health and the Supported Living Services (Loudoun County Department of Mental Health, Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse Services) to address issues of homelessness among Loudoun County citizens living with chronic mental illnesses. This partnership and other successful collaborative initiatives thrive today as demonstrated through Friends of Loudoun Mental Health's direct services and community focused programs.

WHAT WE DO.

We foster community-wide relationships to:

Advocate for services that support recovery from mental illnesses;
Educate the public, using various venues, about the importance of good mental health and the challenges of living with chronic mental illnesses;
Help prevent homelessness among mental health consumers who are actively engaged in professionally provided therapeutic services through A Place to Call Home - our unique public/private partnership with Supported Living Services of Loudoun County’s Division of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services;
Identify gaps in Loudoun’s mental health services, guide efforts to deal with the identified problems, and enhance mental health services through collaboration with mental health service providers, agencies, organizations, advocates and consumers;
Raise funds to support direct service initiatives managed through a public/private partnership as well as additional collaborative programming with other organizations in Loudoun County.