Trilogy News

Trilogy’s Changing Lives is a celebration of 50+ years of mental wellness.

Please join us for drinks, a passed selection of savory bites and sweet desserts, and a celebration of the lives Trilogy is changing thanks to supporters like you!

September 29, 2022

At Venue West
221 N Paulina St
Chicago, IL 60612

5:30pm: VIP Cocktail Reception
Pre-event drinks and mingling. Please note: a VIP ticket upgrade required.

6:30pm: Changing Lives Event Begins

Attire/Format: Cocktail Party

Mobile response crisis team addresses growing need for urgent mental health interventions, alternatives to 911

Contact: Jeff Fenwick
Jfenwick@TrilogyInc.org
Cell: 773.837.2916
Media Inquiries Only; call 800-FACT-400 for crisis support

Chicago, Evanston, Skokie –  Trilogy, a nonprofit behavioral healthcare organization that supports people in mental health recovery to build meaningful and independent lives, has launched a new mobile crisis intervention and response unit to address a growing need for mental health crisis support.  

The First-response Alternative Crisis Team (FACT) will respond to calls placed to Trilogy’s crisis hotline, 1-800-FACT-400. FACT is a type of crisis care in which clinicians respond to mental health emergencies in the community and provide appropriate supports. The program will operate in the neighborhoods of Rogers Park, Edgewater, West Ridge, and Uptown, as well as Evanston and Skokie. 

“Trilogy is proud to announce FACT, our First-response Alternative Crisis Team,” said Samantha Handley, LCPC, CSADC, Trilogy President & CEO. “It’s a fact that Trilogy is committed to helping people who are experiencing crisis get the supports they need, when and where they need it. A core part of our mission is helping people in mental health recovery to build meaningful and independent lives. FACT will help Trilogy deliver on that promise to the community.”

Why Mobile Crisis Response?
Locally, calls for mobile crisis programs have increased, mirroring national calls for action that have arisen due to an increase in overdose and suicide deaths related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, advocacy efforts around the disproportionate harms experienced by black and brown communities as a result of police interactions have pointed to an increase in mobile crisis response as one of the potential ways to reduce these harms. Using the model of crisis response outlined by SAMHSA, Trilogy clinical staff will respond in pairs to mental health emergencies. Trilogy’s First-response Alternative Crisis Team is funded by the Illinois Department of Human Services Division of Mental Health.

About FACT
Trilogy’s First-response Alternative Crisis Team began phase 1 operation in early January, 2022 and is responding to crisis calls received between 8:00AM – 4:30PM. We anticipate that FACT response will be available 24/7 in the near future. Responses to calls will consist of engagement and rapport building, an assessment, the creation of a safety plan and follow up/ongoing supports. FACT welcomes calls from individuals experiencing crisis as well as individuals concerned for the wellbeing of a loved one or community member. Call 1-800-FACT-400 (800.322.8400).

Relationship To Police
Trilogy’s First-response Alternative Crisis Team will address mental health crises independently of police, except for cases in which police presence is necessary for safety, or when police have referred clients and have positive relationships that can assist in supporting the individual in crisis. Trilogy’s FACT will support local police by reducing the volume of mental health calls . Additionally, local precincts will be able to refer people who are frequent users of emergency services to Trilogy so that they can receive additional ongoing supportive services to help prevent crisis. Trilogy’s First-response Alternative Crisis Team will play an important and unique role in the community to help stabilize people in crisis.

About Trilogy                                                                                                                                      

Trilogy is a nonprofit organization that provides comprehensive integrated care that enables people in mental health recovery to build meaningful and independent lives. For 50 years, Trilogy has supported people who struggle with significant mental illnesses like bipolar disorder, schizoaffective disorders, depression, and other issues, often in tandem with barriers like substance use or homelessness. Every day, Trilogy provides a full array of mental and behavioral healthcare to some of the most marginalized populations in Chicago. Last year, Trilogy helped more than 3,200 people move toward recovery. Learn more at TrilogyInc.org. (https://www.trilogyinc.org/) and our FAQ (https://www.trilogyinc.org/about/faq/)

Social Media:

Facebook @TrilogyBHC
Twitter @TrilogyBHC
Instagram @TrilogyChiBHC
LinkedIn @ Trilogy Behavioral Healthcare

Every year, Giving Tuesday serves as a day to encourage people to celebrate generosity and support organizations that make their community strong – and Trilogy has been making our community stronger for 50 years! This #GivingTuesday, November 30, we’re asking you to help Trilogy give the gift of warmth to people in need.

Every $50 raised on Giving Tuesday, November 30, will be used to provide a new winter coat for a Trilogy client who needs one.

Help Trilogy keep the people we serve warm as we head into the cold winter months.

Your tax-deductible donation will be transformed into a warm winter coat for an adult or child, and every dollar will help spread warmth! You can make your donation quickly and easily here.

Please note: The best way to support the effort to keep Trilogy clients warm this winter is to make a donation to our coat fund. Trilogy is not able to accept donations of coats at this time.

CHICAGO, IL – Trilogy, a Chicago-based nonprofit behavioral and mental health care organization that supports people to move toward recovery from mental illness, will present former Congressman and founder of The Kennedy Forum, Patrick J. Kennedy, with its Partner in Recovery Award on October 21 as a part of its 50th Anniversary Gala.

The Partner in Recovery Award is given to those who have supported the work of Trilogy by advancing public understanding of mental health issues, advocated for resources to support mental health, or worked to reduce stigma around mental illness.

“Patrick Kennedy embodies the ideas that are central to the Partner in Recovery Award,” said Samantha Handley, LCPC, CSADC, President and CEO of Trilogy. “For years, he has been at the vanguard of advocacy for mental health. His leadership on the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act, or Federal Parity Law, helped to safeguard the rights of some of our community’s most vulnerable residents in truly meaningful ways.”

During his time in Congress, Patrick J. Kennedy was the lead author of the landmark Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (Federal Parity Law), which requires insurers to cover treatment for mental health and substance use disorders no more restrictively than treatment for illnesses of the body, such as diabetes and cancer. In 2013, he founded The Kennedy Forum, a nonprofit that unites advocates, business leaders, and government agencies to advance evidence-based practices, policies, and programming in mental health and addiction. In 2015, Kennedy co-authored the New York Times Bestseller, “A Common Struggle: A Personal Journey Through the Past and Future of Mental Illness and Addiction,” which details a bold plan for the future of mental health care in America. In 2017, he was appointed to the President’s Commission on Combating Drug Addiction and the Opioid Crisis.

Kennedy is also the founder of DontDenyMe.org, an educational campaign that empowers consumers and providers to understand parity rights and connects them to essential appeals guidance and resources; co-founder of One Mind, an organization that pushes for greater global investment in brain research; co-chair of the National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention’s Mental Health & Suicide Prevention National Response to COVID-19 (National Response); and co-chair of the Bipartisan Policy Center’s Behavioral Health Integration Task Force.

“As Trilogy celebrates 50 years of service, we acknowledge that the work we do is made possible in large part thanks to others who are assertively advocating for the types of services we provide, both at the local and national level,” said Aimee Feuser, Trilogy’s Board Chair. “Trilogy is honored to present the Partner in Recovery Award to Former Congressman Kennedy in honor of his significant dedication and commitment to advancing the rights of individuals who live with mental illness and substance use issues.”

“To be recognized by an organization like Trilogy, which represents the very heart and soul of recovery in this nation, is a great honor for me,” said Rep. Kennedy. “I can’t wait to see what the future holds as we continue to fight, hand-in-hand, for mental health equity.”

Trilogy’s 50th Anniversary Gala, a celebration of the organization’s successes and the lives changed through its array of programs and services, is Thursday, October 21, 2021 at 6PM CST. More info, sponsorships and tickets here.

Every year, companies throughout the greater Chicago region compete to be named one of “Chicago’s Best and Brightest Companies to Work For®.” Only companies that distinguish themselves as having the most innovative and thoughtful human resources approach can be bestowed this honor. An independent research firm evaluates each company’s entry, based on various categories. These include Compensation, Benefits and Employee Solutions; Employee Enrichment, Engagement and Retention; Employee Education and Development; Recruitment, Selection and Orientation; Employee Achievement and Recognition; Communication and Shared Vision; Diversity and Inclusion; Work-Life Balance; Community Initiatives and Strategic Company Performance. With over 20 years of experience conducting the Best and Brightest competitions, the National Association for Business Resources (NABR) has identified numerous best Human Resource practices and provided benchmarking for companies that continue to be leaders in employment standards.

Trilogy has received this recognition six of the last seven years! We are honored to once again be placed in this prestigious category. Thank you so much to the employees of Trilogy who helped to make us one of Chicago’s Best and Brightest Companies to Work For in 2021.