Swansea City shareholders donate £10,000 to Jac Lewis Foundation
Swansea City shareholders Steve Kaplan, Jason Levien and Jake Silverstein have donated £10,000 to the Jac Lewis Foundation to assist with their mental health service in the local community.
The preventative wellbeing and mental health service – which was set up last year and funded by the club’s ownership group – offers supporters and members of the community the opportunity to attend weekly drop-in sessions facilitated by qualified counsellors to receive professional help and support for mental health difficulties.
The Mental Health One Stop Hub operates at the Swansea.com Stadium every Friday and has gone from strength to strength with more than 475 people across the city getting the valuable mental health support they need in the past 12 months. The hub also provides access to other organisations that specialise in support with issues such as finance, legal, housing, education, training and employment.
As well as providing a central location within the community, the set-up of the hub allows people to walk in and receive immediate support without the requirement for long waiting lists or appointments.
The Jac Lewis Foundation was set up in 2019 following the death of 27-year-old Jac Lewis, a popular and much-loved player for Ammanford AFC and a huge Swansea City supporter.
The local community came together to find a way to ensure no-one would go through any mental health struggles alone in the future and sought to prevent people from attempting to take their own life.
“The Jac Lewis Foundation has been working closely with the club for some time now and the work they do with the local community is making a huge difference to people’s lives,” said Silverstein.
“As a club we always want to support the community wherever possible, and we will continue to strive to make a difference and ensure people have the support they need in the community
“We are conscious that we have tragically lost several supporters in recent months due to mental health challenges and we want to make a difference to anyone who might be struggling. We are grateful for the opportunity to play a part in providing tools and resources to support mental health and psychological wellbeing in the community.”
Liz Thomas-Evans, director of services at the Jac Lewis Foundation, said: “Being able to work together with Swansea City to provide the Mental Health One Stop Hub for the local community has removed barriers to accessing quick mental health and practical support and has helped to save lives.
“As we are currently facing a cost-of-living crisis, access to the hub is even more important. The Jac Lewis Foundation is extremely grateful for the ongoing support from Swansea City which has been critical in providing this to the local community.”
The hubs take place every Friday at the Swansea.com Stadium between 10am and 3pm. For more information on the Jac Lewis Foundation and to book onto training days please call 07368828515 or email jaclewisfoundation@gmail.com.
Jac Lewis has been nominated for the National Lottery Community Project of the Year. Voting closes on Wednesday October 12 and supporters can vote here.