NEWS & NOTES

For Karen Glotzbach, the day started like any other. But within hours, everything changed. Forever. Glotzbach’s granddaughter, Autumn, was killed in an accidental shooting on September 22nd. Autumn, the youngest child of Chance and Megan Smith, died six days before her second birthday at the home she shared in Lawrence with her parents and brother. “It was the worst thing you could ever imagine,” Glotzbach said. “That was the worst 24 hours of my entire life.” Not that there

Since the program was initiated 20 years ago, WRAP (Working to Recognize Alternative Possibilities) has impacted hundreds if not thousands of Lawrence students and their families. But due to confidentiality reasons, some of the program’s greatest successes can be difficult to measure, or even discussed publicly. One thing is certain, WRAP saves lives. “It absolutely does, all the time,” said Susan Chase, the team leader of the WRAP program. WRAP is a groundbreaking Bert Nash

What I’ve learned in my first 100 days: I have an amazingly talented, well-educated, passionate team to work with here at Bert Nash. They told me before I got here that that is the kind of team we have, and it’s been proven to me repeatedly. We’re here to serve people. The reason I do this work is because when I was in junior high my family struggled and we ended up getting the kind of services provided here at Bert Nash. The individual and family counseling we received made

Sometimes in life a person needs help getting from Point A to Point B. That’s where Bridges comes in. Bridges is a transitional group home in Lawrence for people with mental illness, owned and operated by the Bert Nash Mental Health Center. “This is for residents who are transitioning from hospitalization or jail or substance abuse treatment and need some additional support for stabilization before they can move into independent living,” said Eddie Velez, lead residential cas

How do you feel about joining the Bert Nash team? “I am thrilled, excited and honored to be joining the Bert Nash team. I feel like it is a perfect fit. The center has a long, proud history in the community — working to better people’s quality of life. My whole career has been dedicated to that same type of work.” What attracted you to the position? “Simple. I have a deep respect for Bert Nash’s mission and a great love for our community. In addition to that, I have a lot of