Searching for resources and support during her first trimester, Jada “Jae” Stewart ran across Goodwill Nurse-Family Partnership® (NFP), a program that pairs registered nurses with first-time parents. Experiencing very severe morning sickness (hyperemesis gravidarum), Jae wanted to have another set of eyes to identify what was abnormal and ensure her pregnancy was progressing smoothly.

When Sam Harmeson left high school, they were coping with the death of their mother from a drug overdose and struggling with undiagnosed autism. Shortly after, the COVID-19 pandemic swept the globe, and Sam found it difficult to secure a job, especially without a diploma. In 2023, when Sam and their caretaker and aunt, Bettina Hapney, visited a local Goodwill retail store, Sam learned about an opportunity that would change their life. 

Goodwill Nurse-Family Partnership® (NFP) pairs first-time parents with registered nurses to ensure they have the resources and support they need during their child’s most developmentally critical years. This support includes connections to invaluable community resources that can assist with food access, employment, housing – and mental health, an important aspect in a parent’s wellness.

At Goodwill of Central & Southern Indiana, our mission is to empower people to increase their independence and reach their potential through education, health, and employment. We not only strive to do this with Goodwill Nurse-Family Partnership® (NFP) parents or students of The Excel Center® – but also much of our mission supports employees within our organization.

Each year, International Mentoring Day is observed on January 17. This observance is an opportunity to recognize mentors and the impacts they’ve had on their mentees. For those who we employ, educate and serve at Goodwill, coaches often act as mentors, providing the essential guidance to employees, students and program participants who want to increase their independence and reach their full potential.

Goodwill Nurse-Family Partnership® (NFP) pairs first-time, expectant parents with a registered nurse for ongoing visits to support families so they can provide the very best start for their children during the earliest, most developmentally critical years. 

Every year, Goodwill of Central & Southern Indiana hosts Goodwill’s Education and Mission Conference (GEM), a one-day professional development event. Mission and education professionals throughout Goodwill’s central and southern Indiana network have the opportunity to learn from one another and share best practices in their work through presentations and panel discussions.

When Johnny Manson joined Goodwill in October 2016 as a part-time donation attendant, he had been struggling to secure employment due to past legal issues and a lifelong history of depression. 

After the loss of her husband, Bunmi Oloke, along with her two young sons, made the decision to leave their homeland of Nigeria and seek asylum in the United States in December 2018. Overwhelmed by grief and grappling with the weight of her new reality, Bunmi found herself confronting not only the challenges of adapting to a foreign land but also the formidable task of preserving her mental well-being.

As part of our One Goodwill Strategic Plan, launched in 2022, Goodwill of Central & Southern Indiana developed a number of initiatives aimed at improving the mental health support provided to the people we employ, educate and serve. One of these initiatives included hiring a Mental Health Strategist, an entirely new role created to support the organization as we sought to create a culture that removes the stigma surrounding mental health. 

Learn more about Sarah Ash, Goodwill’s Mental Health Strategist, and how she envisions making an impact in her new role.

Tell us about your background and experience in the mental health care field.

I am a licensed clinical social worker (LCSW) and have worked in settings such as schools, child welfare, health care, emergency services and private practice therapy. Depending on the role, my support of individuals’ mental health may have looked like barrier removal (much like Goodwill’s mission and life coaches offer to Goodwill employees and graduates), legal advocacy or traditional talk therapy. Fortunately, this sort of varied experience gave me a tremendous amount of insight into the way we approach “care” for others and how much more creative and expansive our care can be!

Describe your current role at Goodwill.

Currently, I serve as Goodwill of Central and Southern Indiana’s Mental Health Strategist. This role was created in alignment with the Strategic Plan, which has a strategic objective dedicated to supporting the mental health of the individuals Goodwill employs, educates and serves. So far, this has looked like forming relationships across the organization to understand the unique challenges different areas face before partnering with them to develop ways to address those challenges. It has been exciting to think through the nuanced support we can implement in such a broad and diverse organization.

What are some of the challenges employers are grappling with in terms of mental health in the workplace?

The World Health Organization defines mental health as, “a state of mental well-being that enables people to cope with the stresses of life, realize their abilities, learn well and work well and contribute to their community.” Even if we can all more or less agree on what mental health is, what we each need as individuals to achieve it can be vastly different! For employers, this can be a really challenging reality to navigate because it means that each employee needs something unique. So attempting to build something that is both equitable and adaptable is very difficult, but important work. 

How is Goodwill responding to these challenges?