Radez Mental Health Resources

The counselors at Radez Elementary are committed to providing care and supporting the social-emotional well-being of all our students. We provide classroom social emotional learning lessons, individual and group counseling, crisis counseling and linkage and referrals to outside agencies.

Contact us

Radez Elementary main office: 518-294-6621 

Max Tochterman, School Counselor: t[email protected]

Melissa Bynum, Mental Health Counselor: [email protected]
Lori VanDeValk, Classroom Support Teacher: [email protected]

Mental health resources

The Family Room at Ellis
The Family Room is a first of its kind in New York State. The Family Room provides youth and adolescents (ages 10 to 17) with mental health services in a safe, comfortable, calming place within a healthcare setting. The Family Room is where young people facing mental health crises can seek help as an alternative to the Emergency Department. This new community resource is open Monday through Friday 10 a.m. to - 6 p.m. and seeks to break down barriers to mental health care. Guests have access to counseling, social supports, and social and medical referrals, or they can simply use the visit to calm themselves in a safe, comfortable environment and leave when they are ready.

Social Emotional Support/Learning Lessons
Everfi:Social Emotional Learning Lessons K-12 
Overcoming Obstacles : Social Emotional Learning Lessons K-12

Anxiety DIY Self-Care Kit/Box
Fidget Toy (DIY: You can take two simple key rings and put them together; or, take a key ring and put soda-top tabs on the ring.)
Weighted blanket
Essential Oils & Diffuser: Try lavender (calming, helps aid in sleep) and ylang ylang (relieves tension and stress).
Your favorite lotion: Your favorite smelly one, or unscented with added essential oils.)
Small sketch pad/coloring book and pencils/crayons/markers: doodle, color, draw
A list of things that you know make you happy
A book of inspirational quotes, your favorite book, book of poems, etc.
A gratitude journal or just a positivity journal (a notebook works the same): Helps keep your thoughts positive.

Talking to children about COVID 
● 
Psychology Today: COVID Fatigue related articles
  Autism Speaks COVID resources: COVID 19 Information and Resources
Wilma Jean The Worry Machine: A read aloud book to help children cope with their worries.
● 
ChildMind.org COVID and Kids’ Mental Health 
●  The National Child Traumatic Stress Network: Parent/Caregiver Guide to Helping Families Cope with Coronavirus (English, Spanish, and Chinese versions available)
Understood.org: Talking to your child about social and emotional issues

Apps for Meditation
Headspace: This app is simple and approachable for meditation beginners. Most of the free sessions work on teaching the user how to meditate and easing them into the practice, while also acknowledging that meditation can be difficult.
Insight Timer: The sounds featured in this app set it apart from the rest. Insight Timer offers a multitude of meditation bells and calming musical notes to listen to during self-guided meditations.
10% Happier: This app was created by Dan Harris, author of the book 10% Happier and a former news anchor who turned to meditation after suffering a panic attack on live television. The 10% Happier app offers some free basic meditations and daily reminders.
Mediation Studio: Meditation Studio conveniently groups all of its free meditations together, so it’s easy to use the app without paying. These meditations run from five to 30 minutes and are available for download.
Simple Habit: The app offers on-the-go meditation for specific moments, like during your commute, after an argument, or before a big presentation.
Stop, Breathe, Think: This app immediately has you take 10 seconds to self-assess, asking you to rate your physical and emotional state and list five emotions you're feeling at that moment. Stop, Breathe, and Think then recommends meditations based on this assessment. While you could still explore different options, this mood-based scale takes away the stressful decision-making process of selecting a meditation.
Breethe Meditation and Sleep: A nice feature about Breethe is the calming background music that plays the entire time the app is open, even without opening a meditation or background music. Breethe offers a lot of sleep content, including visualizations and bedtime stories, and also features hypnotherapy sessions (only via premium, though).

Community Resources

 Schoharie County Dept. of Public Health (for Covid-19 updates)
● 
Schoharie County Community Mental Health Clinic and Chemical Dependency Clinic: 518-295-8336. Please call for crisis assistance 8:30 a.m. - 5 p.m. weekdays. After-hours and weekends, contact the Mobile Crisis Assessment Team (MCAT) at 1-315-732-6228 or 1-844-732-6228. 
● 
Schoharie County Department of Social Services: 518-295-8334. Please visit https://www4.schohariecounty-ny.gov/departments/social-services/ for additional information regarding access to information. 
● 
For eligibility for NYS Benefits, individuals in need can create an online account through https://www.mybenefits.ny.gov/mybenefits as a prescreen for eligibility for the following supports: HEAP, SNAP, Assistance Programs, Health Insurance, Tax Credits. 
● 
The NYS COVID-19 Emotional Support Helpline at 844-863-9314 is staffed 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., 7 days a week.

Food pantries

COBLESKILL

Catholic Charities of Schoharie County (CCSC) – 489 West Main Street, Cobleskill By appointment ONLY – Mon 9:00am to 4:00pm, Tue & Wed 1:30pm to 4:00pm 518-234-3581 Contact Person: Allison Briggs *Please note: This pantry’s services are limited to residents of Schoharie County only. 

First Baptist Church – 492 West Main Street, Cobleskill By appointment ONLY – Thursday Morning (call by Wednesday) 518-234-2729 Contact Person: Mary Robinson @ 518-234-3135 Call for an appointment: leave your name, phone number, number of people in the household. 

Cobleskill United Methodist Church – 107 Chapel Street, Cobleskill Fridays only 9:30am to 12:00pm 518-234-3671 Call for an appointment: leave your name, phone number, number of people in the household. 

Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church – 615 E. Main Street, Cobleskill Open for walk-ins last Saturday of the month 9:00am – 12:00pm 518-234-3381 Emergency Pantries - Call for an appointment: leave your name, phone number, number of people in the household. 

Schoharie County Community Action Program – 795 East Main Street, Suite 5, Cobleskill Open Monday through Friday 9:00 am to 3:00 pm 518-234-2568 Please call in advance to ensure staff will be available to assist you.  Emergency assistance only.

St. John’s Monastery – 151 Heron Road, Cobleskill Open for walk ins Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday 10:00am-12:00pm 518-254-7283 Contact Person: Fr. Nicholas Clinkingbeard Emergency Pantries – Call for an appointment.

RICHMONDVILLE

St. Paul’s Lutheran Church – 265 Main Street, Richmondville Open for walk-ins last Saturday of the month 9:00am to 12:00pm 518-294-6656 Emergency Pantries - Call and leave your name, phone number, number of people in the household. *Please note: This pantry’s services are limited to residents of Richmondville, Summit and Warnerville.

SUMMIT

United Methodist Church – Rt 10, Summit Open for walk ins third Saturday of the month 10:00am to 11:00am 518-287-1828 Contact Person: John Korbel Emergency Pantries - Call for an appointment: leave your name, phone number, number of people in the household.

CENTRAL BRIDGE

Bethany Evangelical Lutheran Church – 177 Church Street, Central Bridge By appointment ONLY 518-868-2868 Contact Person: Rev. Steffen Zehrfuhs Call for an appointment: leave your name, phone number, number of people in the household.