Posts by Together Rising

For almost two years, frontline healthcare workers have endured relentless trauma that has impacted their mental health in devastating ways. What they have been through has been indescribably difficult and extraordinarily heavy. Yet so many of them are shouldering that weight alone. In a survey from Mental Health America, 86% of healthcare providers—more than 8…

The onslaught of collective trauma we’ve experienced these last twenty months has been absolutely catastrophic for our mental health, especially for essential workers. When others could stay home, they could not. They continued to show up—risking every day potentially exposing themselves or their loved ones to COVID—to teach, to deliver, to harvest, to nurse, to…

For ten years, our Holiday Hands program made the holidays brighter for more than 6,800 families. We are so proud of that legacy. This year, during these extraordinary times, we are carrying that same light from Holiday Hands into a new initiative: supporting essential workers and their families via trusted partners. For twenty excruciating months,…

What follows is the story of how you helped 31 veterans who were unhoused or at risk—all of whom were women—not have to choose between securing or maintaining safe housing, keeping the lights on, or feeding themselves or their babies. On Veteran’s Day last year, we invested $50,000 in our long-trusted partner, Kline Veterans Fund.…

Needing a place to turn, Sam trusted us with what was weighing on her: “I can see my husband losing hope, and I’m trying to keep a brave face for our kids.” At the time, Sam and her husband had fallen three months behind on rent. Before the pandemic, her husband’s general contracting job brought…

Needing a place to turn, Krysten wrote to Together Rising: “This is a big ask. I am asking you to see Ashley as I see her…She is remarkable.” Ashley was first diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis several years ago. She has since become an advocate not only for herself but also for others who experience chronic…

We cannot let the fact that we can’t fix everything keep us from helping how we can, as illustrated by this story of Spencer and Kelley. Spencer and Kelley are from Portland, Oregon. They welcomed Kai, “the light of their lives,” in February of this year. Shortly after his arrival, Spencer was diagnosed with Myelodysplastic…

Today, Indigenous Peoples’ Day, we are sharing the story of how we—in collaboration with and under the leadership of Navajo Nation leaders—have provided mental health support for Navajo nurses and medical staff through a $365,000 investment. Like it has for so many, COVID-19 has taken an unimaginable toll on Navajo nurses and medical staff who…

We have invested an additional $175,000 to support Afghan families who are resettling in California, Texas, Washington and Florida. Together, we are supporting: Access California Services, whose team is uniquely equipped to meet families’ most immediate needs, including housing, food, immigration process and documentation, English classes, employment assistance, youth support and mentorship, and trauma-informed mental…

We know that much of life is deeply complicated, but we believe this is clear: Newborn babies should not be ripped from their parents’ arms. Yet for decades, that’s exactly what happened in prisons nationwide—as early as 36 hours after birth—until this summer. After witnessing how pregnant individuals* in Minnesota prisons received virtually no support…