Maryland Coalition of Families

Maryland Coalition of Families (mcf) is a statewide nonprofit dedicated to connecting, supporting, and empowering Families who have a loved one with mental health, substance use or problem gambling challenges. The organization advocates to improve services and systems that impact individuals with behavioral health disorders and to reduce stigma related to behavioral health. Mcf staff provides one-to-one support, resource connection and systems navigation at no cost to families.the impact of these programs in fy23 included: 4,603 Families who have a loved one with mental health, substance use, or problem gambling challenges received family peer support. These Families were connected with 5,980 community resources. Staff provided 708 support gorup sessions and 21 education workshops.in addition, mcf co-directed with the mental health association of Maryland the state's annual children's mental health awareness public education campaign, which reached 352 participating schools and 181 community partners throughout the state, reaching over 212,860 students. Mcf advocated for improving services in all systems of care for children, youth, adults and Families through system-level advocacy, and through participation on state-level, public policy committees.the 20th annual family day in annapolis was held to bring together family members, mental health service providers and system partners to learn about important legislation and best practices to meet with legislators. Participants then engage in appointments with their legislators. In fy 23 more than 200 family members from all over Maryland took part in the event. Mcf led efforts to bring the voices of Families with young people to work on improving crisis services in Maryland. Furthermore, mcf's statewide youth and young adult advisory council, taking flight, hosted activities that involved youth with behavioral health challenges and promoted acceptance, youth leadership development, and the reduction of stigma. In summary, mcf provided family peer support to parents and other caregivers in all 24 jurisdictions of the state.