HANCOCK COUNTY, Ohio — A new program aims to make sure Hancock County residents in need of behavioral health or addiction recovery counseling have their basic needs met first.
The Family Resource Center received grant funding from the Findlay-Hancock County Community Foundation to launch a 'Basic Needs Bag' program.
The bags will be filled with a variety of items that are usually essential in an emergency situation.
Christina Christensen, the criminal justice program supervisor at FRC, said when basic needs are met, those who are in need no longer have to make choices out of desperation.
"Obviously, they're more likely to make healthier choices if they do have a place to sleep, or they do have warm socks on, they do have food in their belly," Christensen said.
The items include sleeping bags and inflatable pillows, clothes, a first aid kit, food and a flashlight. The items were chosen after current FRC clients who used to be in similar situations were surveyed.
"To see what are things that we're not thinking about that maybe we would need to put in there," Christensen said. "So, we have a really large diverse amount of items in this bag."
One of the items they were surprised to hear was the highest in demand was actually a cell phone charger.
The bags will be given to members of FRC's community-based services like the Law Enforcement Assistance Diversion Program, and will be handed out as case workers see fit.
The hope is that by offering a little more stability, people in need will be more open to exploring mental health or addiction recovery services.
"This gives a moment for the brain to kind of breathe and think about something other than surviving for the next 10 minutes, Aeryn Williams, FRC's chief clinical officer, said. "And allows them to make some stronger decisions and to connect with other humans in a real way."
Meeting basic needs is crucial to a healthy life.
"If individuals don't have their basic needs met, it can be difficult to make healthier choices in life," Christensen said. "We see increased mental health symptoms like; depression, suicidal ideation, that kind of thing."