Dr. Phil Bulone
LOSS Team (Local Outreach to Suicide Survivors)
Compassionate Support, Hope, and Healing After a Suicide Loss
The LOSS Team (Local Outreach to Suicide Survivors) is a specialized postvention program that provides immediate, compassionate support to individuals, families, friends, and communities impacted by the loss of a loved one to suicide. Mental Health America of Southeast Florida, through the Florida Initiative for Suicide Prevention, operates Broward County's LOSS Team to ensure that no survivor has to face this devastating loss alone.
The aftermath of a suicide can leave survivors experiencing overwhelming grief, shock, confusion, guilt, anger, and isolation. The LOSS Team is designed to respond during these critical moments by offering understanding, emotional support, practical guidance, and connections to ongoing resources that promote healing and recovery.
Peer Support When It Is Needed Most
What makes the LOSS Team unique is its combination of trained clinicians and volunteer peer supporters who have themselves experienced the loss of a loved one to suicide. This powerful partnership allows survivors to connect with individuals who truly understand the complex emotions and challenges that accompany suicide loss.
Through compassionate outreach, LOSS Team members help survivors:
- Navigate the immediate aftermath of a suicide loss
- Access emotional support during times of crisis
- Understand common grief reactions following suicide
- Connect to counseling, support groups, and community resources
- Reduce feelings of isolation and stigma
- Develop healthy coping strategies
- Find hope and healing through connection with others who understand
Immediate Outreach and Ongoing Support
Research has shown that survivors of suicide loss often wait years before seeking support. The LOSS Team model was created to bridge that gap by offering outreach and support immediately following a suicide, helping families access services when they are most needed.
Working collaboratively with community partners and first responders, the LOSS Team provides timely intervention and serves as a bridge to ongoing care. Survivors are connected to support groups, behavioral health services, grief resources, and other programs that can assist them throughout their healing journey.
Promoting Healing and Preventing Future Tragedies
Individuals who have experienced the loss of a loved one to suicide may face increased emotional and mental health challenges. By providing immediate support, compassionate listening, and access to resources, the LOSS Team helps reduce risk factors, increase connectedness, and foster resilience among survivors.
Our goal is to create a caring network of support where survivors can ask difficult questions, share their experiences without judgment, and find reassurance that healing is possible.
Restoring Hope Through Community
At Mental Health America of Southeast Florida, we believe that no one should have to navigate suicide loss alone. Through the LOSS Team, survivors are met with compassion, understanding, and practical support during one of life's most difficult experiences.
Together, we provide hope, connection, and a pathway toward healing for individuals and families affected by suicide loss.
For more information about the LOSS Team: 📞 (954) 746-2055 Ext. 134
Adult Services Director
Nicole Storrs
9musesArtCenter & Frame Shop
Recovery, Creativity, and Community
9Muses Art Center is a unique recovery-focused arts program that empowers individuals to heal, grow, and thrive through creative expression. Our welcoming and inclusive environment provides opportunities for participants to explore their artistic talents, develop new skills, and build meaningful connections with others.
Participants are encouraged to choose from a diverse range of visual, literary, and performing arts, including painting, drawing, mixed media, music, theater, dance, creative writing, and more. Whether someone is discovering a new passion or continuing a lifelong artistic journey, 9Muses offers a supportive space where creativity can flourish.
At 9Muses, art is more than a creative outlet. It is a powerful tool for wellness, self-discovery, recovery, and personal empowerment. Through artistic expression, individuals gain confidence, improve communication skills, reduce isolation, and find meaningful ways to share their stories and experiences.
The program also promotes community integration by bringing together people of all backgrounds and abilities. Through exhibitions, performances, workshops, public events, and collaborative projects, participants engage with the broader community while showcasing their talents and achievements. These shared experiences foster understanding, build relationships, and help break down barriers associated with mental health challenges.
Together, our members challenge stigma, celebrate diversity, and promote acceptance by demonstrating the transformative power of creativity. Through every painting, performance, poem, and project, participants help create a more compassionate and inclusive community where everyone is valued, heard, and inspired.
At 9Muses Art Center, creativity becomes a pathway to recovery, connection, purpose, and hope.
Information & Referral
Finding the right support can make all the difference. Broward Connections is a comprehensive community resource guide that provides information on a wide range of mental health, behavioral health, and social service programs available throughout Broward County.
The guide includes both public and private resources, helping individuals, families, caregivers, and professionals connect with services such as mental health treatment, support groups, crisis intervention, housing assistance, healthcare, substance use services, employment support, and other community-based programs.
Designed to be an easy-to-use referral and information resource, Broward Connections helps people navigate available services and access the support they need to improve their well-being and quality of life.
View the Broward Connections Guide online:
www.browardconnections.org
Connecting individuals, families, and professionals to the resources that strengthen our community.
Seth Line
A WARM LINE Offers peer support, information and referral. Telephone reassurance service is open to any person seeking a caring and supportive listener. Open to all callers. Contact is by phone only.
CALL: (954) 578-5640
Peer Support
Recreate Yourself. Redefine Your Life.
We offer a welcoming community where members can connect, grow, and thrive through a wide range of social, educational, and peer support opportunities designed to promote wellness, recovery, and personal empowerment.
Social Activities
Enjoy meaningful connections and engaging experiences through:
- Games and recreational activities
- Member outings and community trips
- Special events, exhibits, and celebrations
- Performances and creative arts experiences
- Health fairs and wellness events
- Fitness and wellness activities
Peer Support Groups
Find encouragement, understanding, and support in a safe and welcoming environment. Groups may include:
- Anger Management
- Bereavement Support
- Depression Support
- Bipolar Support
- PTSD Support
- Anxiety Support
- OCD Support
- Schizophrenia Self-Support
Educational & Life Enrichment Opportunities
Develop new skills, build confidence, and strengthen your independence through:
- Classes and workshops
- Marketing and self-promotion training
- Community outreach initiatives
- Employment and housing supportive services
- Self-advocacy and empowerment programs
Our programs are designed to help individuals build meaningful relationships, increase self-confidence, discover new interests, and create a fulfilling path toward recovery and personal growth.
Public Education
Depression and Anxiety awareness programs; Screening opportunities. Lectures on a broad range of mental wellness and mental illness topics. Call for information or schedule.
Public Policy Initiatives
MHA supports public policy issues and agendas consistent with its values of access, choice and empowerment. Interested advocates are welcome to voice their views and join with MHA in promoting our shared vision.
Forest Park Drop-In Center
Supporting Recovery Through Connection, Peer Support, and Community
Mental Health America of Southeast Florida is proud to partner with Recovery Solutions to operate the Forest Park Drop-In Center, located on the grounds of the state hospital. This innovative collaboration creates a bridge between inpatient care and community living by engaging individuals in recovery before discharge and helping them maintain meaningful supports as they transition back into the community.
The Forest Park Drop-In Center is built on the belief that recovery is strengthened through connection, hope, and peer support. By providing services while individuals are still receiving treatment, we help establish relationships, reduce isolation, and foster a sense of belonging that can continue long after discharge.
A Recovery-Oriented Approach
Our Peer Specialists, many of whom have lived experience with mental health recovery, offer encouragement, mentorship, and practical support to individuals preparing for their return to the community. Through peer engagement, participants gain confidence, develop recovery goals, and learn about available resources that can support their success after leaving the hospital.
Services and activities may include:
- Peer support and recovery coaching
- Wellness and recovery planning
- Social and recreational activities
- Life skills development
- Resource navigation and referrals
- Connection to community support services
- Educational workshops and recovery-focused groups
- Opportunities for creative expression and personal growth
Building Connections Before and After Discharge
One of the unique strengths of the Forest Park Drop-In Center is its continuity of support. Rather than waiting until discharge, individuals begin building relationships with peers and community-based supports while still receiving inpatient services. These connections help create a smoother transition to independent living and reduce the challenges often associated with re-entering the community.
After discharge, participants can remain connected to peer support services, recovery resources, and community programs that encourage ongoing wellness, self-determination, and resilience.
Advancing Hope and Recovery
The Forest Park Drop-In Center demonstrates the power of collaboration between behavioral health providers and peer-run services. Together, we are creating opportunities for individuals to build meaningful lives beyond hospitalization by promoting dignity, empowerment, recovery, and community inclusion.
At Forest Park, recovery begins with connection and continues through community.
Jail to Community Recovery Support Program
Building Hope, Wellness, and Successful Transition Through Peer Support
Mental Health America of Southeast Florida is proud to partner with Wellpath and the Broward County Jail System to provide recovery-focused peer support services that begin during incarceration and continue after individuals return to the community.
Through this innovative collaboration, certified Peer Specialists engage incarcerated individuals in recovery planning, wellness education, and personal empowerment before release. By establishing supportive relationships early, participants gain access to tools, resources, and encouragement that can help them navigate the challenges of reentry and build a foundation for long-term recovery and success.
Wellness Recovery Action Plan (WRAP®) Services
A cornerstone of the program is the implementation of Wellness Recovery Action Planning (WRAP®), an evidence-based, person-centered approach that helps individuals identify strengths, develop wellness strategies, and create personalized plans for managing life's challenges.
Through WRAP®, participants learn to:
- Identify personal wellness tools and coping strategies
- Recognize triggers and early warning signs of distress
- Develop action plans to maintain emotional wellness
- Strengthen problem-solving and self-advocacy skills
- Build confidence and personal responsibility
- Create a roadmap for achieving recovery and life goals
Peer Support That Starts Before Release
Many individuals leaving correctional settings face barriers related to housing, employment, behavioral health services, transportation, and community integration. Our Peer Specialists work alongside participants while they are still incarcerated, helping them prepare for a successful transition and connecting them with community resources before their release date.
Services may include:
- Peer mentoring and recovery coaching
- WRAP® groups and wellness education
- Reentry planning and goal development
- Resource identification and referrals
- Housing and employment support connections
- Behavioral health and recovery services navigation
- Benefits and community resource assistance
- Self-advocacy and life skills development
Continuity of Care Beyond Incarceration
The strength of this program lies in its continuity. Rather than ending support at the jail door, participants are given opportunities to remain connected to peer services and community-based supports after release. This ongoing engagement helps reduce isolation, encourages accountability, promotes recovery, and increases access to resources that support long-term stability and wellness.
By maintaining these connections during the critical reentry period, individuals are better equipped to rebuild relationships, pursue employment and educational opportunities, access treatment and recovery services, and become active members of their communities.
A Pathway to Recovery and Community Reintegration
Through our partnership with Wellpath and the Broward County Jail System, we are helping individuals move beyond incarceration and toward lives defined by hope, purpose, and recovery. By combining the power of peer support, wellness planning, and community engagement, this program creates pathways to healing, resilience, and successful reintegration.
Recovery does not begin at release. It begins with connection, continues with support, and thrives within the community.
HEAL Trauma Program
Empowering Families, Promoting Healing, and Building Resilient Communities
Funded by the Children’s Services Council of Broward County, the HEAL Trauma Program supports youth and families in Deerfield Beach, Pompano Beach, and Coral Springs who have been affected by trauma and adversity across generations. Through a compassionate, family-centered approach, the program helps families build resilience, strengthen protective factors, and develop the skills needed to achieve lasting wellness and stability.
At the heart of the program are our highly trained Community Mental Health Workers (CMHWs), who provide outreach, support, advocacy, and connection to vital community resources. Grounded in a strengths-based model, CMHWs work alongside families to identify their unique strengths, address barriers to well-being, and create pathways toward healing and success.
Supporting Youth and Families Through Trauma-Informed Care
Our Community Mental Health Workers understand the profound impact that trauma can have on children, families, and communities. With specialized training in trauma-informed practices and deep roots within the communities they serve, CMHWs provide culturally responsive support that recognizes each family's experiences, strengths, and goals.
Services may include:
- Individualized support for youth and families affected by trauma
- Connection to behavioral health, healthcare, educational, and social service resources
- Family wellness planning and skill-building
- Care coordination and service navigation
- Ongoing encouragement, coaching, and support
- Advocacy within schools, healthcare systems, and community programs
- Crisis resource identification and referrals
- Strengthening family resilience and coping strategies
Bridging Families to Resources and Opportunities
Community Mental Health Workers serve as a critical link between underserved families and the services available to support them. They help identify needs, connect families with appropriate resources, and provide a "warm handoff" to ensure individuals feel supported throughout the process.
Beyond referrals, CMHWs remain engaged with families, helping them overcome obstacles, navigate complex systems, and build confidence in accessing the services they need. Their goal is not only to connect families to resources but also to empower them to become strong advocates for themselves and their children.
Centering Equity, Culture, and Community Voice
The HEAL Trauma Program is committed to advancing health equity and ensuring services are responsive to the unique cultural needs of the communities we serve. Through partnerships with local leaders, residents, and community stakeholders, the program continuously seeks input and guidance to strengthen service delivery and foster trust within the community.
By engaging families as partners in the healing process, the program helps create sustainable solutions that reflect the voices, values, and lived experiences of those it serves.
Creating Pathways to Healing and Hope
Healing from trauma is possible when families have access to support, resources, and opportunities to thrive. Through education, advocacy, connection, and empowerment, the HEAL Trauma Program helps youth and families develop the tools they need to overcome challenges, strengthen relationships, and build healthier futures.
Together, we are fostering resilience, promoting wellness, and helping families transform trauma into hope, healing, and growth.
Parent And Family Services
Anger Management
Offers anger management classes for Child Net referred clients, those on Probation and self-referred from the community.
Listen to Children
A school and community based mentoring program. Children meet with screened, trained, professionally supported Listener volunteers for 30 minutes weekly. Parent permission is required. Post-vention services are available for children who have suffered a crisis or teachers refer children grades K-5 to the program.
I’m Thumbody & Thumbody, Too
Self-esteem program for 2nd grade (I’m Thumbody) and for Kindergarten/pre-school (Thumbody, Too). These school-based programs encourage students to respect themselves, respect others, be responsible for their behavior, and reinforce sources of safe help. Open to school and community program sites.