With Black Friday, Small Business Saturday and Cyber Monday behind us, it’s a great time to give the gift of mental health to the kids and families of Long Island!

Today is Giving Tuesday, a global celebration of generosity that provides an opportunity for people around the world to come together by sharing acts of kindness and giving their voice, time, money, goods and advocacy to support communities and causes.

Giving not only supports important causes; it also has benefits to both your physical and mental health!

A National Institutes of Health study showed that when people give back, whether through monetary donations, volunteering or other methods, it releases the “feel-good” chemicals in the brain, creating a positive feeling known as “helper’s high.” It also lowers blood pressure, leading to longer lives.

Whatever your reason for giving back, we are hoping that you show your love and concern for the young people in our community by donating today to North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center, where our mission to bring hope and healing is more important than ever before.

In the nearly two years since the pandemic struck, we’ve seen a tremendous increase in calls from schools, hospitals, ERs, pediatricians, parents and others, all reaching out for our help because the children and teens in their care are experiencing heightened levels of anxiety, depression, suicidal thoughts and other serious mental health challenges.

With your donations, we are able to make a real difference in the lives of the kids and families in our care. Here’s just a sampling of your dollars at work:

• $50 covers a crisis intervention.
• $85 covers one child’s group therapy session.
• $125 covers one child’s individual therapy session.
• $250 covers one child’s emergency assessment.
• $500 covers one month of individual therapy for a child.
• $1,000 covers eight therapy sessions for an entire family.

Whether you can give $10, $10,000 or somewhere in between, your generosity means the world to kids who are struggling to find help during these difficult times.

So, on this Giving Tuesday, be part of the worldwide movement by donating to the Guidance Center at www.northshorechildguidance.org/donate.

Thank you for caring about kids!