SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – The Katz Amsterdam Charitable Trust and Foundation on Wednesday announced $2.46 million in mental and behavioral health grants to be awarded to community-based organizations in nine mountain communities across North America, including Lake Tahoe and Truckee. 

This is the fifth year grants were awarded, with aggregate funding of over $13.5 million, to help increase overall access to mental health care, reduce behavioral health stigma and improve community-developed services for communities of color and indigenous populations.  This year’s grants will benefit over 40 organizations.

“We are thankful for the Katz Amsterdam Charitable Trust’s continued support of local efforts to improve the health and well-being of Tahoe Truckee residents,” said Alison Schwedner, director of Community Collaborative of Tahoe Truckee. “As youth mental health needs skyrocket across the country, we now have the opportunity to address this crisis at a local level. The funds granted by Katz Amsterdam will be used to increase youth access to counseling, nature-based therapeutic mentoring and substance use treatment services. Funds will also address one of our region’s most significant gaps in mental health services by supporting bilingual, bicultural, certified peer counseling and suicide prevention services.”

“With this funding from the Katz Amsterdam Charitable Trust, we will be able to continue our work to create equitable access to behavioral health and substance use services in South Lake Tahoe and begin to truly engage and serve our BIPOC communities,” said Executive Director of Tahoe Youth & Family Services Brian Conway.

The Tahoe Youth & Family Services was awarded $100,000 and the Tahoe Truckee Community Foundation received $247,500 in funding.

Rob Katz, founder and chairperson of the Katz Amsterdam Foundation board, and his wife, Elana Amsterdam, New York Times bestselling author and founder of Elana’s Pantry, launched the Katz Amsterdam Charitable Trust in 2017 and the Katz Amsterdam Foundation in 2018 to be a catalyst for eliminating barriers to health, increasing access to opportunity, protecting basic rights and improving outcomes for all communities, with particular focus on communities of color.

“We continue to be amazed at the work happening in mountain communities to improve behavioral health systems,” said Rob Katz. “The creative efforts of these nonprofits make a difference in the lives of so many every day. We are encouraged that mountain communities continue to network, collaborate and learn with each other. We’ve seen impactful and innovative ideas become reality as a result and we look forward to seeing what is next.”