(WBBM NEWSRADIO) — A revolutionary mental health clinic in the northern suburbs continues to push the envelope.
Josselyn Center was founded in Waukegan in 1951. The organization treats mental health regardless of a person's ability to pay.
President and CEO Susan Resko said it was a dozen years ahead of its time.
"It was 1963 that John F. Kennedy signed the Community Mental Health Act into law, ushering in the era of mental health centers across the country," Resko said.
Today, Josselyn has locations in Waukegan and Northfield. It has a summer camp, therapy programs, and a room where you can just hang out and talk.
Call to Josselyn jumped at the start of the pandemic two years ago, Resko said.
"The pandemic has just created an enormous surge in demand for our services," she said. "It caused grief, trauma, job loss.”
While the pandemic may be fading into the background behind other crises, Resko said the volume of calls to Josselyn didn't return to pre-COVID levels.
She added the national conversation surrounding mental health since March 2020 is leading more people to seek help.
"The feelings of isolation and loneliness that people have experienced have really normalized these symptoms in a way that it's OK to talk about it and it's OK to get support," Resko said.
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