United for Mental Health & Wellness

Since 1988, United Way of Broward County’s Commission on Behavioral Health and Drug Prevention has provided the nonprofit leadership and resources necessary to unite our community against a shared trauma. And 35 years later, we’re still standing -United. Let’s travel back to the year it all began and hear directly from the trailblazers who were there.

United Way of Broward County's Commission on Behavioral Health & Drug Prevention is a broad-based substance misuse prevention and mental health promotion coalition dedicated to reducing negative consequences on individuals, families, and communities. Today, its primary role is to serve as a coalition-building organization that brokers partnerships between federal, state, and local agencies to foster, develop, and enhance integrated behavioral health efforts throughout Broward County while searching for innovative and effective ways to address the issue of substance misuse.

Anchoring Hope: The Power of Prevention is a United Way of Broward County project. Visit www.drugfreebroward.org to learn more about our work and how to get involved. 

Follow us on Instagram @unitedwaybroward to see us in action. 

Producer/Host/Editor: Latrice Sampson Richards of Eden Roc Productions

Executive Producer: Angela Ventura

Production Assistants: Ruth Stennett and Nathalie Collado

Scriptwriters: Latrice Sampson RIchards and Dominic Lawson of OWLS, Inc.

Special thanks to United Way of Broward County’s Commission on Behavioral Health and Drug Prevention team.

This podcast is made possible through funding from Broward Behavioral Health Coalition and the Florida Department of Children and Families.

Childhood trauma can negatively affect our well-being in many ways throughout life, but we have the power to prevent this. Hear from our guests: Dr. Gail Rizzo, a licensed mental health counselor (Women in Distress), and Ricardo Torres, who uses his experience in foster care to support others (South Florida Wellness Network).

The inaugural episode of our podcast features guests Eleanor Weekes, licensed mental health counselor, and Ryan Perodeau, adult peer specialist, as we discuss crucial topics within mental health: stigma, when to reach out for help, types of providers, and local Broward resources.