Countybank Foundation donates $1,000 to Gateway

The Countybank Foundation recently donated $1,000 to Gateway, a Clubhouse Model rehabilitation program.

Marko Huttunen, Vice President of Professional and Executive Banking for Countybank, presented the check on behalf of the foundation to Gateway.

The COVID-19 pandemic has hit non-profit and charitable organizations like Gateway hard this year, preventing them from hosting many important in-person fundraising events. For this reason, donated funds were especially important for Gateway this year. “Originally the funds were intended for Gateway’s annual fundraiser, Beautiful Music for Beautiful Minds,” said Martha Armstrong, Director of Development for Gateway. “The donation will now support the Clubhouse’s general operating needs.”

Gateway was established in 1984 in response to a community-wide Needs Assessment Planning Study that demonstrated the dire need for day services and housing for adults with serious mental illness in Greenville County. The organization operates from a Clubhouse Model of rehabilitation modeled after Fountain House in New York City, the oldest and most effective psychiatric rehabilitation program in the United States.

“Gateway is the main resource for the adults suffering from mental illness in Greenville, and Gateway House provides an important support system and a safe place where the members can feel encouraged and valued as participating members to the entire community,” said Huttunen, who has served on the board for Gateway since 2018. “Countybank can feel proud of being associated with a global organization that has a great reputation and community support.”

Since it was founded, Gateway has served more than 1,400 members and trained more than 2,200 colleagues on the Clubhouse Model. Gateway is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with the mission of improving the quality of life for adults with mental illness in Greenville.

To learn more about Gateway, visit gateway-sc.org.