STAMFORD, Conn., Dec. 09, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ReachStrong, a new nonprofit that aims to serve as a source for empowerment, well-being and suicide prevention, announced the launch of its website today.
The site, reachstrong.org, is an online resource that contains curated content, including articles and videos, focused on fostering and supporting mental health and emotional well-being. Its materials are frequently updated.
The launch of the nonprofit by Chris Meek, a philanthropist and financial services executive who lives in Stamford, comes at a time when more Americans than ever face mental health challenges, stresses and setbacks during the COVID-19 pandemic. He said web data analysis and anecdotal evidence indicate many Americans are also looking for a resource like ReachStrong that provides tools and communities to support brain healthy lives and reduce the stigma surrounding mental health, one of the main barriers to seeking professional treatment.
“Despite a number of current resources, a pressing need for accurate, helpful mental health information remains,” Meek said. “We’re not trying to replace or overshadow any organizations in this area. We just want to provide another helping hand to people across the country who need it.”
Meek is no stranger to the world of nonprofits. In 2009, he founded SoldierSocks, which evolved into SoldierStrong, an organization that helps veterans take their next steps into life after service. Now serving as chairman, the non-profit donates revolutionary medical technologies to VA Medical Centers across the country.
“Sadly, 113 Americans commit suicide each day and I think that as a society we are tasked with the responsibility to rectify that,” said Meek. “That starts with offering resources that are available right at people’s fingertips on how to maintain good mental health. These resources also need to place an emphasis on the advancements that have been made, especially regarding technology, and what services may be readily available to them. It’s common and often disheartening when people tell me that it took them a long time to discover the resources, technology or information that they could have accessed had they known they were there. We need to make sure that Americans have access to immediate information and are aware of the mental health services and treatments that are at their disposal.”
Fostering better mental health through revolutionary technology is an area that Meek has previously focused on through his work with SoldierStrong. The organization has provided 16 virtual reality hardware and software systems to aid in treating veterans experiencing post-traumatic stress (PTS).
The idea for ReachStrong was born out of SoldierStrong’s latter focus on mental health, as well as Meek’s role as an advisor on The President’s Roadmap to Empower Veterans and End a National Tragedy of Suicide (PREVENTS) task force. As an advisor on the task force, Meek is charged with helping to establish a definitive roadmap to prevent veteran suicides across the country and assist the VA in outlining how it will implement sweeping organizational changes needed to optimize new technologies and innovations, while providing veterans with modern services.
Through his work with SoldierStrong and as an advisor on the PREVENTS task force, Meek has “seen firsthand the urgent need, not only for our country’s veterans, but for all Americans, to have access to resources that empower them to take care of their mental health. Good mental health truly begins with empowerment, which can sometimes be lacking in a lot of conversation surrounding emotional well-being. It is my goal for ReachStrong to be a source of empowerment for those who need it.”
As engagement with the online resource increases over time, Meek hopes to expand the website to include original content and to ultimately evolve into a leading resource in “encouraging Americans to find and utilize the resources and methods that work best for them in maintaining good brain health and to ultimately contribute to a lower rate of American suicides.”
About Chris Meek
Chris Meek is a financial services executive for S&P Global Inc. in New York City. Meek is the co-founder and chairman of SoldierStrong, a charitable organization that is committed to supporting and improving the lives of United States service members and veterans by providing revolutionary medical technology to VA medical centers, including exoskeleton suits to help paralyzed veterans walk again and virtual reality equipment to help treat post-traumatic stress. Meek also serves as an Adjunct Professor at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University. He and his wife, Christine, have three children.
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