In The News
LAREDO MORNING TIMES: PILLAR receives $4M in federal funds
Laredo Morning Times,
March 6, 2021
Rep. Henry Cuellar (TX-28) announced in a small ceremony $4 million in federal funds going to PILLAR on Friday, one of Laredo’s leading mental health clinics. The funding — awarded through the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s grant program — will be used to Implement Project Consolidated Treatment Services that will establish a Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic offering integrated behavioral health, substance abuse, primary care, and 24-hour Crisis Intervention Services. “We are here to announce $4 million for mental health for Webb County,” Cuellar said. “In the appropriations, we worked to add $1.7 billion to this agency that provided the $4 million, and the question then is how do we get this money down to the district? First of all, you have to have a track record, and if you have a track record, then that means that you will be able to get more monies. So after today, the track record that they had in the past means that they will more likely be getting more money in the future, and I am certainly going to make sure they are there for us.”
Cuellar stated that about $8 million has now been added to the area for services dealing with mental health, as just last week the congressman held an event where the same amount of money was provided to PILLAR by the Border Region Behavioral Health Center. The congressman stated, however, that this is one of the most prolific milestones done. Now many services that previously had to be sought out of town will now be able to be offered locally. “It's not only the folks that provide the treatment, but it’s also the folks such as the judge that had somebody from here that needed treatment. And if you are a policeman … this project will implement a service that will establish a certified community behavioral health clinic offering critical behavior health, substance abuse, and a primary care 24-hour crisis and prevention center, which is something we need critically here in Laredo,” Cuellar said. During the ceremony, the congressman congratulated the efforts of PILLAR co-founders Arturo Diaz and Manuel Sanchez, who with their small donations to start the clinic have now seen the organization grow exponentially.
“Today is a special day for PILLAR, because it affirms and confirms our efforts and hard work that they have not gone unnoticed,” Diaz said. “We continue to grow and expand our services. For those of you who might not know, PILLAR came into existence 10 years ago, as me and Manuel started PILLAR with $2,005 with the purpose of providing behavioral services. And now I am proud to say that our budget is in the millions, and we also have about 25 full-time employees.” Diaz outlined the goals that the clinic now has with the extra funds provided by the federal government. According to the co-founder, this means that they expect to curtail emergency health visits by 25%, which will help decrease incarceration by 30% and substance abuse by 50%. Sanchez focused on the importance of collaboration in relationships with the local community and how this has helped make the organization much larger and its assistance to the community more fruitful. This is especially true in terms of being able to reach out to community members around the city who might not know that such an assistance program exists for people that need help. “It really has a been a tough journey for us, but it has never been about ourselves as it has been about partnerships and relationships,” Sanchez said. “This is truly a community partnership that has now given us more of a stronger foundation than when I myself started. This has enabled us to grow and have the enough resources to expand our care to various members of our community who are people that for many years have been highly either marginalized or who have undisclosed mental health issues or suffer from substance abuse.”
One other thing that Sanchez added is that the monies will help achieve the expansion of primary care services to many individuals who do not have any type of health insurance. During the ceremony, testimony was offered by a local young girl on how the clinic helped her overcome her mental issues after suffering from a toxic relationship that caused her to suffer mentally from a form of addiction to sports and depression, as she did not communicate any longer with her family or friends. Now, she ultimately has moved forward, having good grades, being in sports at school actively and living a more balanced life. Examples like these are the ones that the clinic hopes to help achieve. The Laredo Police Department Chief of Police Claudio Trevino Jr. also acknowledged how the organization and its efforts are a great addition to help tackle many problems related to mental issues, crime and even substance abuse seen in the city. “We need funding for those that reach out for help and to reach out to those people that call who are in a crisis,” Trevino Jr. said. “Having these services and this facility here will help us in the regard in reaching out to those that need such services.” Looking to the future, Cuellar stated that there is still much to do for organizations like PILLAR. One of the other main goals that the congressman and several of the individuals at the event highlighted which they needed to focus on is finding and recruiting individuals who are interested in forming part of the field to help others in the community. “Because if you talk to anybody else like Gateway Clinic, trying to get someone with this background is hard to get,” Cuellar said. “So what do we do? Do we look at public loan forgiveness programs or look at how these individuals would like to join into these fields?” The congressman also stated that even more money may become available soon for the clinic as Congress takes on the American Rescue Plan, or the latest COVID-19 relief bill, which he believes will allow more financial support to come to institutions like these, as “Congress is coming to understand the importance of mental health.” PILLAR is located at 1403 N Seymour Avenue, and it can be contacted at 956-723-7457. |