Marlene Hauck Executive Director, Sunshine From Darkness She wants us to start having a conversation about mental illness - to learn more and not be afraid or ashamed - all in an effort to remove the stigma that clouds understanding and healing. Marlene has been involved with Sunshine from Darkness (a subsidiary of the Lee and Bob Peterson Foundation) as a volunteer since 2019. In February, she became the nonprofit’s first executive director. Marlene’s experience has been in fundraising and donor and community relations, having worked in the nonprofit field for more than 30 years, with 10 years of leadership experience for two nonprofits, Coastal Behavioral Healthcare and later First Step of Sarasota when they merged in 2020. 16 WEST COAST WOMAN OCTOBER 2022
My conversation with Marlene Hauck, Sunshine from Darkness Executive Director, is taking place at her cozy home in downtown Sarasota. She has surrounded herself with healing crystals, candles, fragrance, and spiritual iconography as well as amazing plants that are all - each and every one - flourishing under her care. The first question I ask this veteran professional in the mental health field is, why are we still struggling with having a conversation about mental health? She agrees, “Some people are still afraid of talking about it. Some are afraid of losing their jobs,” she notes, even in this day and age. “We need to normalize it,” Marlene explains and adds — thinking aloud — “maybe we should call it ‘mental health wellness.’ Maybe we should say that versus mental illness.” Her opinion is certainly worth noting since Marlene has been in the nonprofit mental health field for over 22 years and in the nonprofit field in general for 30 years. And yes, she’s heard that, “Pull yourself up by your own bootstraps” comment sometimes said insensitively to those not feeling mentally well. This spoken by someone who has seen mental illness up front through her work in the mental healthcare field. Marlene gives non-clinical, compassionate advice for those hesitant to seek help. “If the blahs continue, you need to seek help. That person will see your situation from a different perspective.” Nearly one in five U.S. adults live with a mental illness (52.9 million in 2020) according to the National Institute of Mental Health. Florida ranks last in the country in spending on treating mental health disorders and has the third-highest percentage of mentally ill individuals who are also uninsured. Marlene admits to not having an answer to either statistic except to offer that, “We [as people] are reactive, not proactive,” in terms of social needs like mental health care —waiting until things hit crisis levels before acting. Closer to home, “The behavioral health system in Sarasota County is in danger of becoming a system in crisis if steps to shore up and enhance the system are not taken. Services have been significantly underfunded for decades, with unmet needs now rapidly increasing.” This according to the Sarasota County Mental Health Needs Assessment Task Force in 2021. The problems are clearly vast and deep, according to those facts. For example, many don’t have health insurance. Marlene explains that the uninsured are, “too busy paying rent, they’re working two jobs and can’t afford care. That’s the last thing on their minds.” As for women, Marlene explains, “Women are identified by what we did and we always have to keep going, [thus] we don’t have time to look at our mental health.” She mentions Jennifer Holliday, the singing artist who will perform at the Sunshine From Darkness event in January 2023. “She talks about being a women of color and when she had a baby she was told ‘it’s just the blues, get over it.’ But she knew she had depression. It’s not wrong to say, ‘I don’t feel well.’” Marlene has gotten reports from professionals in the field that children as young as 5-6 years old are in treatment for mental stress. Children have been challenged by things like COVID, parents who have lost jobs and more. “We need to discus mental health with the whole family,” and obviously not forget that the very young can suffer from it as well. Marlene’s experience has been in fundraising, donor and community relations, client and vendor relations. She’s worked in the nonprofit field for more than 30 years, with 10 years of leadership experience for two nonprofits. She served on the board of directors of Coastal Behavioral Healthcare and made the transition to director of marketing and development for First Step of Sarasota when Coastal and First Step merged in 2020. Those nonprofit agencies provide addiction recovery programs and behavioral health services in Sarasota, Manatee, DeSoto, and Charlotte counties. Marlene became involved with Sunshine from Darkness as a volunteer, serving on the planning committee/event coordinator since 2019, while also working at First Step. Sunshine from Darkness is a subsidiary of the Lee and Bob Peterson Foundation. Marlene became its first, full-time executive director in February. Last year, Sunshine From Darkness Gala raised more than $170,000 during its sold-out “Inspiring Hope Dinner.” Proceeds from the dinner benefited the local mental health and addiction programs and services of First Step of Sarasota, and research funded by The Brain & Behavior Research Foundation. Jeffrey Peterson, the son of Lee and Bob Peterson and president of their namesake foundation who also asked Marlene to come on board, reinvigorated the Inspiring Hope Dinner and Journey to Wellness Symposium, events first conceived and presented by his parents. Over the course of 13 years, through Sunshine from Darkness, a nonprofit, volunteer-driven organization, the Petersons raised over $5 million going towards research, treatment, education and efforts to erase the stigma of living with mental illness. In a press release, he commented that, ”Through Marlene’s career service to the nonprofit community and her previous work with Sunshine from Darkness, I have seen firsthand her commitment and dedication to those whose lives have been impacted by mental illness,” said Peterson. “We must stop the adverse outcomes and the economic cost of untreated mental illness, we must move brain research to the forefront of funding, and we must fund mental health and addiction services, right here in our community.” Past symposiums had speakers like Patty Duke, Dorothy Hamill and Steve Ford (son of President Gerald Ford) and were free and open to the public with the Gala following in January. They’re changing things a bit — keeping the Gala in January, but rebooting the symposium. For now, Sunshine From Darkness has a unique collaboration on October 7 timed for World Mental Health Day (see below) at Art- Center Sarasota. Marlene recalls speaking with Hamill, the Olympic skating champion, who told Marlene that when she had cancer she got lots of flowers. When it was revealed she was hospitalized for depression, she told Marlene she got none. “What’s that old expression? It’s okay not to be okay. We’re all human and we’re not going to be okay all the time,” Marlene states. “We’re talking about it, it’s out there and there are lots of places where you can read about it. The more we talk about it the better.” STORY: IMAGES: Louise Bruderle Evelyn England Sunshine From Darkness Event: Sunshine From Darkness and Art Center Sarasota present “Off the Wall,” a fundraiser and interactive art event on October 7. Purchase tickets at www.artsarasota.org The Inspiring Hope Dinner is scheduled for January 13 at the Ritz-Carlton. Keynote speaker is Tony and two-time Grammy Award-winning actress and singer, Jennifer Holliday, who will not only share her story of overcoming depression but will also perform. For information, visit sunshinefromdarkness.org or call 941-504-6717. Fast Facts • 1 in 5 U.S. adults experience mental illness each year • 1 in 20 U.S. adults experience serious mental illness each year • 1 in 6 U.S. youth aged 6-17 experience a mental health disorder each year • 46.2% of U.S. adults with mental illness received treatment in 2020 SOURCE: NAMI National Alliance on Mental Illness The market is very difficult these days. Call me to see how we can work together to answer questions you may have at 941-914-1560. Amanda E. Stiff, MBA, Financial Advisor AccessAdvisorsLLC.com 941 914-1560 Astiff@AccessAdvisorsLLC.com 1800 Second Street Suite 895 Sarasota, FL 34236 1305 Langhorne Road Lynchburg, VA 24503 Securities are offered through Level Four Financial, LLC a registered broker dealer and member of FINRA/SIPC. Advisory Services are offered through Level Four Advisory Services, LLC, an SEC-registered investment advisor. Level Four Financial, LLC, Level Four Advisory Services, LLC and Access Advisors, LLC are independent entities. Neither Level Four Financial, LLC, Level Four Advisory Services, LLC nor Access Advisors, LLC offer tax or legal advice. OCTOBER 2022 WEST COAST WOMAN 17
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