Sweetser joined with NEWS CENTER Maine for Let’s Talk About It Night at the Maine Mariners Hockey game on Friday, April 12th at Cross Insurance Arena in Portland. The goal of the night was to spread mental health awareness while enjoying an evening of fun! A portion of each ticket sold via a special link supported Sweetser’s programs.
Sweetser Senior Director of HR Holly Hall took the ceremonial first shot:
Check out photos from the night:
When someone is in crisis, it doesn’t always happen in a convenient place or near services. That’s where mobile crisis specialists come in; responding to crisis calls 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Sweetser is the state’s largest provider of these mobile crisis services. Sweetser’s Director of Crisis Services, Alyssa Pelchat, discusses why the program is so critical.
Sweetser Medical Director Dr. Marc Kaplan joined a panel at Deering High School in Portland for a discussion on “Emotional/Mental/Behavioral Health for High School Students: What Families Should Know” on April 9th.
The event was hosted by Deering High School’s Family Teacher Organization, and aimed to answer questions on how teenagers are doing with their emotional, mental, and behavioral health in 2024 and how families can support their youth.
This has been a year of transformation for Sweetser.
We’ve been laser-focused on making our organization a highly sought after leader in behavioral health for media stories, legislative advocacy, and new programs to best serve Maine people.
Check out our 2024 Annual Report to see some of our major highlights.
Are men in a friendship recession? According to polls conducted by the Survey Center on American Life, only 1 in 5 men reported receiving social support from guy friends in the week prior, versus 2 in 5 women. More than half of all men report feeling unsatisfied with the number of friends they have and 20 percent of single men don’t have any close friends. Sweetser’s Medical Director Dr. Marc Kaplan discusses on this Mental Health Moment segment.
Thousands of Mainers are on waiting lists to access various mental health services. One potential solution to that problem is encouraging more individuals to fill open positions with behavioral health providers. Sweetser’s Human Resources Director Carol Mundigler talks about the open positions in the field.
WMTW TV SEGMENT
In our latest Mental Health Moment TV segment on WMTW Channel 8, our Senior Director of Public Relations and Advancement, Justin Chenette, breaks down what a special purpose school is and the impact our Saco K-12 school has on the students we serve.
MAINE PUBLIC RADIO STORY
Powerful story featuring a Sweetser family about the positive impact our school-based therapy services have in over 100 schools across our state and why it’s so important for this program to continue.
Rebekah Strasburger, a parent from Brunswick, whose child is accessing support from a Sweetser school-based clinician, talks about the positive impact of the program and the need for services to continue.
Brandon Somes and Douglas Weaver
Sweetser recently welcomed Brandon Somes and Douglas Weaver to its leadership team.
Brandon Somes joined Sweetser in March 2024 as the Director of Quality. He is responsible for working with teams at all levels of Sweetser programs and departments to improve key client outcomes, identify opportunities for improvement, and build systems and processes that ensure safe delivery and thorough documentation of care/services.
Brandon began his career in youth residential behavioral health, and has extensive experience in direct care and day school treatment programs, as well as staff training and development. He has also worked in an improvement role focused on reducing use of restraint and managing organization accreditation-related activities. Since moving to Maine in 2020, Brandon has been responsible for oversight and development of improvement programs at SMHC and InterMed.
He is driven by a desire to help care teams and direct care staff improve client outcomes, while making their work easier and safer. Originally from rural Western Mass, he and his wife moved to Maine to be closer to the ocean and Portland. He has two rescue dogs and loves to hike, swim, run, bike and do pretty much anything outside.
Douglas Weaver is the Clinical Director of Adult Residential. He joined Sweetser in 2023 as the Clinical Supervisor for the Behavioral Health Home program in Brunswick. Douglas has extensive experience working with clients suffering from severe and persistent mental illness, and he has worked in the mental health field since 2010.
Douglas’ background includes positions in residential treatment, daily living supports, Assertive Community Treatment, Home and Community-Based Treatment, inpatient psychiatric and detox in a hospital setting, and outpatient counseling. He earned his MSW from the University of New England in 2018, and is an LCSW and a CCS (Certified Clinical Supervisor). Douglas is an eight-year veteran of the United States Army and served in Iraq.
Join Sweetser for ‘Careers & Conversations’ an event at the Auburn Hilton Wednesday March 27th from 4-6PM. Drop in for fun music, door prizes, drinks, and appetizers.
Sweetser staff will be available to conduct onsite interviews for various positions including Outpatient Clinician, Clinical Supervisor, School-Based Clinician, and more! Some with $10,000 sign on bonuses.
The first 50 people will receive a $25 gift card to Hannaford. Additional door prizes will be available with the Spin the Wheel game.
FRANK FM will have their live truck providing music and giveaways.
Join us Wednesday March 27th from 4-6 at the Auburn Hilton to start your compassionate career with Sweetser.