Touchstone Foundation

🎓 Building a career in mental health? Start here.

Join us for the 3rd Annual Touchstone Foundation Symposium — a day designed to help you explore your pathway, make professional connections, find mentors, and take your next step in Lancaster County’s mental health community.
Learn More:https://touchstonefound.org/student-symposium/

📅 Friday, October 16
⏰ 9:00 AM–3:00 PM
📍 IU13 | Lancaster, PA

What’s waiting for you:

✨ 3 FREE CEU sessions covering Youth Su***de Prevention, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, and Ethics in Clinical Supervision

🤝 Career Fair featuring local organizations, internships, employment opportunities, programs, and career resources

🧭 Career pathway sessions for high school, undergraduate, graduate/early-career, and licensed professionals

💬 Mentorship & networking with professionals and peers who understand the journey

📋 Licensure guidance covering supervision, clinical hours, and pathways including LSW, LCSW, LPC, LMFT, and more

🥪 Lunch + networking included

Whether you’re exploring your first mental health career, preparing for licensure, or already working in the field, there’s a place for you at the Symposium.

Registration is OPEN!
🔗 Register to attend:https://secure.lglforms.com/form_engine/s/VN7GN6dVjhe7LlksbuoBRg

Organizations: A limited number of Career Fair tables are still available!
🔗 Reserve your table:https://secure.lglforms.com/form_engine/s/4gb9BLXQliKdch-avDF_8g

Students—PA NEEDS to hear from you! 📣

What’s it really like growing up in a digital world? How are social media, technology, and being constantly connected affecting your life?

Bring your experiences and perspective to the 1st Statewide Listening Session: The Digital Generation.

📅 October 6
📍 YWCA Lancaster
Registration Required: https://ow.ly/Ngii50ZU9JT

This is a space to listen to YOU—what you’re experiencing, what matters to you, and what you think adults should understand about growing up in the digital generation.

Your experience matters. Your voice belongs in the conversation.

Are you 18-26? Meet us to build community at the Lancaster Public Library!

📅 October 17 | 9:30 AM–12:00 PM
🌱 Conversations about the Science of Hope + Mental Wellbeing
🥙 Plus an optional lunch opportunity at Silantra!

Real people. Real stories. Real conversations about what comes next.

Meet some of the facilitators joining us:

Samuel Soliman
Photographer. Director. Mental health advocate.
Sam uses visual storytelling to amplify underrepresented voices, explore resilience, and inspire change.

Anne Kinderwater Carroll, Ed.D.
Educator. Community builder. Hope Ambassador.
Anne has spent nearly 30 years building equity, community, and hope and helping emerging leaders explore hope-centered leadership.

Heather Rotella
Health & Wellness Coach. Educator. Community wellness advocate.
Heather brings a whole-person approach to wellness, using training, education, and integrative wellness coaching to help strengthen individual and community well-being.

Rise Above Collective connects young adults with mentors and community leaders who have something real to share—and want to hear what you have to say, too.

Come for the conversation. Find your people. Stay for lunch. See where it takes you.

Register now → https://secure.lglforms.com/form_engine/s/U-0IjRpvCdwmRrsM9dgJ4w

Give a gift. Support local. Fuel hope.

This holiday season, your gifts can do more. By supporting local nonprofits and artisans, you can celebrate the people you love while investing in the organizations and makers strengthening our community.

Join us at Gifts That Give Hope Lancaster on October 10 at the Farm & Home Center! 10am-3pm

Stop by the Touchstone Foundation table to meet our team, learn how your support helps elevate youth mental wellness in Lancaster County, and discover ways we can give gifts that give hope together.

This unique event allows gifts remotely if you are unable to attend, learn more and chime in: https://ow.ly/wlpM50ZTTvj

This holiday season, give locally. Give meaningfully. Give hope.

Figuring out what’s next? You don’t have to do it alone.

Rise Above Collective is a FREE space for young adults ages 18–26 to talk about mental wellness, explore goals, meet mentors, and connect with other people navigating this stage of life too.

And now, the connection doesn’t have to end when the session does.

After each session, participants have the option to grab lunch with the group using a provided lunch voucher—more time to talk, meet new people, and build real community.

Working, in school, taking a different path, or still figuring it out? There’s room for you here.

Come for the conversation. Stay for lunch. Build your community.

Learn more and join us:
https://secure.lglforms.com/form_engine/s/U-0IjRpvCdwmRrsM9dgJ4w

September may be over, but the conversation about su***de prevention cannot end with Su***de Prevention Awareness Month.

As we step into a new month, we’re carrying this conversation forward by sharing Jasper’s story.

In this deeply personal reflection, Jasper shares her experience as a trans woman—the challenges of finding belonging, the impact of stigma, the people who helped them feel seen, and why creating spaces where LGBTQ+ young people feel safe asking for help is an important part of su***de prevention. 🔗 Read Jasper’s full story on our blog: https://touchstonefound.org/more-than-crisis-prevention-creating-spaces-where-lgbtq-youth-can-belong/

Her story reminds us that prevention can begin long before a moment of crisis.
It can look like listening without judgment. Using someone’s name and pronouns. Checking in. Creating spaces where people feel welcome. Helping someone connect with support. Simply reminding someone: you belong here.

We invite you to read Jasper’s story with care, listen to their perspective, and consider:
What can each of us do to make it easier for someone to say, “I’m struggling,” and know they will be met with compassion?

Su***de prevention is not confined to September. Let’s carry awareness, connection, and care forward—together.

Need someone to talk to? Support is available:
🏳️‍🌈 Trevor Lifeline: 1-866-488-7386
Text START to 678-678
Free, confidential crisis support for LGBTQ+ young people.
🏳️‍⚧️ Trans Lifeline: 877-565-8860
Peer support by and for trans and questioning people—you do not have to be in crisis to call.
🏳️‍🌈 LGBT National Youth Talkline: 800-246-7743

These resources offer confidential support for conversations about sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, coming out, family, relationships, bullying, school, mental health, and more.

You do not have to navigate any difficult moment alone.

***dePrevention

FREE CEUs. New connections. Career growth.

Early-career mental health professionals—join us at the Touchstone Foundation Symposium and earn FREE Continuing Education credits while connecting with Lancaster County’s mental health community. Register Now: https://secure.lglforms.com/form_engine/s/VN7GN6dVjhe7LlksbuoBRg

This year’s CEU sessions:

Youth Su***de Prevention
Amanda Katchur, PsyD, MPH

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
Lakeesha Bair-Myers, LCSW

Ethics in Clinical Supervision
Valerie Minnich, PhD, LPC, NCC, CAADC, ACS

Plus, connect with local agencies about jobs, internships, career pathways, and community resources.

📅 October 16 | IU13
🎓 FREE CEUs
🤝 Networking + Resource Fair

Attend. Learn. Connect. Grow.
Space is limited—register today! https://secure.lglforms.com/form_engine/s/VN7GN6dVjhe7LlksbuoBRg

📣 We’re Hiring: Programs Manager

Touchstone Foundation is looking for a data-driven, collaborative Programs Manager to help lead and strengthen programs advancing youth mental wellness throughout Lancaster County.

We’re seeking someone who can see both the details and the bigger picture—managing multiple programs and team members while using data, outcomes, and evaluation to measure impact, strengthen programs, and support grant reporting.
If you have experience in program management, staff supervision, data and outcome tracking, grant implementation, and community collaboration and want to put those skills to work supporting youth mental wellness, we want to hear from you.

Join our team and help us turn programs into measurable community impact.

➡️ Learn more and apply on Indeed:https://www.indeed.com/job/program-manager-24d98cf84c817c59

Mental Health Monday: What do you need today?

Sometimes supporting your mental health starts with being able to say what you need out loud.

Fill in the blanks to practice self-advocacy:

I feel ______
when ______
because ______.
I need ______.

It can be as simple as:
“I feel overwhelmed when I have too much happening at once because I can’t focus. I need a few minutes to reset.”

Self-advocacy starts with noticing what you’re feeling—and giving yourself permission to communicate what you need.

Try filling in the blanks today. What do you need?

Join us for the annual Gifts that Give Hope Lancaster on Oct. 10 at the Farm & Home Center in Lancaster! Your gift supports youth mental wellness in Lancaster County! We welcome volunteers to help at our table. Please message us to help out. Thank you! https://www.facebook.com/661145036042572/posts/1523664823123918