I am so grateful to read this long-awaited result. Kudos to Supervisors Simitian, Chavez, and the rest of the board for this thoughtful vote. Special kudos to the parents who trudged down to these meetings for months. I know Sarah Gentile from her leadership on this issue in Mountain View. She and Trudy Palmer have been giants in this effort. Thank you to all!

Thank you to Elena and the Palo Alto Weekly for educating the community on this important issue. I am blessed to have gotten to know all the members of our community who have been hard at work much longer than I have at improving mental health care for everyone. I especially want to thank Michael Fitzgerald, the Director of Behavioral Health at El Camino Hospital, for his presence at yesterday's meeting and Dr. Tom Tarshis of BACA who has been so responsive to requests to help from families who have contacted me in desperation. I am also grateful that Supervisors Simitian and Chavez as well as Toni Tullys (SCC Behavioral Health Director) care so passionately for our children who are in crisis. I believe that we are at the beginning of an inspiring and rewarding journey in Santa Clara County.

I am so grateful to Supervisor Simitian, Chavez and the rest of the Board for moving ahead to have in the new year a Santa Clara County residential treatment center to help our children get the proper care of severe depression and other severe mental health issues. Going into residential treatment often saves lives. As a therapist I have had to send my adolescent suicidal clients to St. Mary's in San Francisco and to Freemont.
Many thanks to Sarah Gentile, Trudy Palmer and all the moms who have worked hard to get to this successful point!

Such an important issue for our county's children and youth. Having local resources that will allow parents to support their children in crisis is an important "upstream" strategy that will make a difference by increasing the likelihood that youth with mental health issues will grow into adults who are stable and able to thrive in the community. It is a strategy that should prevent later engagement in the adult justice system. Thank you to the parents who raised this issue and to the BOS for being willing to invest the resources to address it.

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