At 50 years, being thankful seems natural. You have lived enough life to appreciate and comprehend the value of the gifts and friends that have supported you and you also have the experience and knowledge to know what it’s like to go without and to go it alone.
Gratitude is the practice Crestwood Behavioral Health, Inc. is choosing to celebrate for our 50th Anniversary. According to Yale University Center for Emotional Intelligence, “Gratitude isn’t just an emotion that occurs, but a virtue we can cultivate. Gratitude is something you practice as you might a sport, piano or meditation. Gratitude practice begins by paying attention, being mindful. Notice all the good things and relationships that you normally take for granted.”
Gratitude means saying thank you, demonstrating appreciation, and sharing your gifts with others. Gratitude implies a relationship. You can be grateful to your higher power and that is relational. You can be grateful to someone who has given you a gift and that is relational. Relationships are central to gratitude. And so, for the past 50 years, relationships and partnerships have been at Crestwood’s core as a company.
Our Mission Statement begins with two statements related to relationships: Our mission at Crestwood Behavioral Health is to create a partnership with clients, employees, families, business associates and the community in caring for individuals of all ages affected by mental health issues. Together, we invest our energies to enhance the quality of life, social integration, community support and empowerment of mental health clients.
The relationships we have built during the past 50 years are what have enabled us to grow and support so many people in their recovery journey. These relationships are significant commitments; some are memorialized in contracts and others with a handshake and a smile. Our relationships are our investment in communities and they start with our county partners; local NAMI organizations; universities and colleges; Rotary Clubs; our employees and their families; peer-led recovery centers; statewide and national advocacy organizations; faith communities; and local businesses that all come together to support the people we serve. We are grateful for and have become a better organization because of these wonderful relationships.
We want to especially thank all of our amazing and supportive county stakeholders who we have been honored to partner with during the past 50 years. These partnerships have helped us to grow, so we now serve more than 5,000 people annually, in 22 communities, with 32 programs that are all dedicated to support recovery and resilience. We are grateful to be part of a team that is truly making a difference in peoples’ lives every day.
Contributed by: Patty Blum, PhD, Crestwood Executive Vice President
