The Kim Foundation Materials

The Kim Foundation

Who We Are

Established in 2001 by the Larry and Kathy Courtnage family, The Kim Foundation works to expand the advancement of mental health services, research, policy, and education, promote resiliency and recovery, and decrease stigma associated with mental illness.

What We Do

The Kim Foundation Advocates

The Kim Foundation advocates for people with mental illness, their caregivers, and their families. We work to reduce stigma through our “Not Alone” radio program and promote awareness through our website and advocacy efforts. We are committed to ensuring consumers and their families get the support and assistance they need to achieve recovery.

The Kim Foundation Educates

The Kim Foundation educates policy makers, health care providers, consumers, and the general public about mental illness and the transformation of behavioral health care from the past medical model to the new understandings of resiliency and recovery. The Kim Foundation helps publicize both local and national programs. Our goal is to help policy makers understand the impact of mental illness on individuals, families, and communities and the important role they play in bringing about change and promoting recovery.

To that end, this toolkit provides historical information, issue briefs and resources to assist policy makers, advocates and concerned members of the community to better understanding mental illness. Additional information and issue briefs will be made available on The Kim Foundation website at www.thekimfoundation.org.

The Kim Foundation Connects

The Kim Foundation serves as a link between the many individuals that must combine forces to improve the lives of those suffering from mental illness – consumers, family members, mental health service providers, legislators, and concerned members of the community. We recognize the power teamwork can have in the fight to overcome mental illness.

The Kim Foundation Supports

The Kim Foundation provides support to organizations across the state of Nebraska, with a special emphasis on those organizations that assist individuals challenged by mental health issues.

Not Alone Radio Program

The Kim Foundation and KCRO channel 660 AM have partnered to produce a live talk radio program focused on behavioral health and recovery. Not Alone airs every Tuesday from 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.

An opportunity for increasing awareness, providing public education, and decreasing stigma, Not Alone addresses a broad range of topics and issues. In addition to providing information on specific mental illness spectrum disorders, segments focus on related issues such as current legislation, community services, and state responses to system issues.

Listeners in a five state area can tune in to the program as the signal reaches north to Sioux Falls, South Dakota, south to St. Joseph, Missouri, east to Des Moines, Iowa, and west to Kearney, Nebraska. Listeners outside of the broadcast area can access the radio program through KCRO’s website at www.kcro.com. The program will rerun at off-peak hours for individuals who are unavailable during the four to five o’clock hour. Archives of past Not Alone broadcast are available on The Kim Foundation website at www.thekimfoundation.org.

Please join The Kim Foundation and KCRO for the Not Alone program each Tuesday to stay informed on current issues related to mental health.

If there are topics related to mental illness you would like to see addressed on future broadcasts, please send your suggestions to Diana Waggoner, Executive Director of The Kim Foundation at dwaggoner@thekimfoundation.org or contact her by phone at (402) 891-6960.

The Kim Foundation Initiatives

In addition to the Not Alone radio broadcast, The Kim Foundation also produces a monthly e-newsletter and hosts a website, www.thekimfounation.org, with additional information.

The monthly e-newsletter serves as an opportunity for The Kim Foundation to celebrate the work various organizations are doing throughout the state and well as familiarize individuals with other resources related to mental health care. The Kim Foundation’s website is currently undergoing renovations with plans for an updated site to be launched in 2009. Please visit The Kim Foundation site often as additional resources are being added on a continual basis.