A new hub brings community nonprofits under one roof in Germantown to serve residents in northern Montgomery County.
The Sheppard Pratt Community Wellness Hub opened at 12850 Middlebrook Road on Tuesday with a ribbon-cutting event.
The hub is a collection of nonprofit partners serving residents’ health, social and workforce needs. It includes spaces for different organizations like EveryMind, Casa Ruben Foundation, Feed the Fridge and Sheppard Pratt’s Thriving Germantown.
Dr. Harsh Trivedi, President and CEO of Sheppard Pratt, said the facility is a “one-stop shop” for residents to access the services they need. He said the hub was made possible due to a $1 million bond bill from the State of Maryland, a grant from the county and money from the National Capital Presbytery.
Crystal Townsend, President and CEO of the Healthcare Initiative Foundation (HIF), one of the nonprofits in the hub, said HIF realized a cost-effective way for funders to bring organizations to communities experiencing “service deserts” was needed.
“Making it affordable for nonprofits to call Germantown their home. From here, the hub concept was born,” Townsend said.
Trivedi noted critical needs and hardships, particularly post-pandemic.
County Executive Marc Elrich said hubs like this one must open in other parts of the county.
“We need to provide enough mental health services, not just for kids, but for the breadth of our population because people are really coming unglued,” Elrich said.
Sheppard Pratt is a nationwide private, nonprofit provider for mental health, social services and other services.
Sheppard Pratt Community Wellness Hub opens in Germantown. @mymcmedia pic.twitter.com/TrPIXVKTqE
— Maryam Shahzad (@maryam_mcm) November 1, 2022
