Munson Healthcare Grants $10,000 to Boost Youth Mental Health Programs in Northern Michigan

Munson Medical Center in Traverse City operates 17 inpatient behavioral health beds, reserved for the most acute adult psychiatric emergencies, with stays typically running three to eight days. For a Grand Traverse County child whose crisis doesn't clear that threshold, the options narrow quickly: a therapist who may not be taking new patients, a school counselor carrying an average Michigan caseload approaching 600 students, or an outpatient appointment that may be weeks out.

A $10,000 gift from Munson Healthcare to the Behavioral Health Initiative, announced Thursday, directs funding toward two programs designed to reach children long before they approach that breaking point. The grant flows through the Northern Michigan Community Health Innovation Region and supports two specific initiatives: the MIFamily Resources Network and a newly forming program called Therapy Corps.

MIFamily is a digital navigation platform built through more than 30 partner organizations and community-led parent focus groups. It connects families with children from prenatal through age 17 to local services including developmental screening, home visiting, parenting support, early assessment pathways, and guidance on the first warning signs of mental health concerns. The platform was built around a problem that runs through smaller markets: knowing that help exists and knowing how to reach it are often two entirely different obstacles.

Therapy Corps targets the supply side. Northern Michigan lacks enough licensed clinicians willing to accept Medicaid, and one driver of that shortage is structural. Clinicians working toward full licensure need thousands of supervised clinical hours. Without a coordinated local pathway for earning those hours, many trainees complete their requirements elsewhere and do not return to the region. Therapy Corps is designed to create that pipeline, developing a northern Michigan workforce capable of taking on more young patients.

"Strengthening tools like MIFamily Resources Network and Therapy Corps helps ensure that children and families have access to meaningful, effective support well before a crisis arises," said Pennie Foster Fishman, Ph.D., who leads the Behavioral Health Initiative.

Munson Healthcare Chief Operating Officer Laura Glenn framed the donation as part of the system's nonprofit mission, pointing to youth behavioral health as a need identified through its Community Health Needs Assessment. At $10,000, the gift is seed capital; BHI presents it as a catalytic investment intended to attract larger funding and formalize existing partnerships, not as the full budget for either program.

The Grand Traverse Mental Health Crisis and Access Center, which opened at 410 Brook St. in Traverse City on Jan. 5, 2025, and expanded to around-the-clock operations in July, includes Psychiatric Urgent Care and six pediatric crisis residential beds still planned for a later phase. The BHI investment is aimed at reducing how many families ever need to reach that address.

How to get help in Grand Traverse County: For a child in immediate crisis, call or text 988, the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. For in-person psychiatric urgent care, the Grand Traverse Mental Health Crisis and Access Center at 410 Brook St., Traverse City is open around the clock. For early support and family navigation covering children from prenatal through age 17, contact the Behavioral Health Initiative through the Northern Michigan Community Health Innovation Region. NAMI Grand Traverse offers peer support, local mental health education, and resource connections at (231) 944-8448 or namigt.org.