Maddox Lamme Winters

How did you first hear about the counseling center and what made you decide to support NFCC?

I first heard about NFCC through Scotty Finnegan, who has been a life-long friend of mine from St. John’s School and beyond. When his brother, Nick Finnegan passed, our class rallied together to be there for him, and the Finnegan family and I saw firsthand what mental health support in a community was like.

Later into high school and college, when the option to support NFCC in its foundation was presented to me, it was a no brainer. Throughout the years and awesome events, I’ve loved getting to know more about the amazing, affordable services that they provide and how NFCC has been able to impact the Houston community.

As a long-time supporter of our Crawfish Boil, tell us more about that event, and why you keep attending.

Mental health is so important and being able to provide access to mental health support and counseling in such a positive environment like NFCC is so needed in our world today – that’s why I love supporting! The NFCC Annual Crawfish Boil was the first philanthropic event that I was ever a part of and watching it evolve and grow throughout the years has been awesome. I love that the event is always so welcoming and continues to build up the NFCC community in a fun and educational environment, especially for a younger crowd that may not have the financial ability to support through a larger fundraising event!

How do you take care of your own mental health?

Mental health care for me manifests itself in a lot of different ways. I lean on my faith often for support and I have a great community around me through a local bible study where we discuss and reflect on a lot of struggles and triumphs! I tend to over-commit myself calendar-wise, so sometimes it’s just taking a step back and spending time with my husband or re-charging with a “me-night” that really helps. I also find that being outdoors and taking time to soak up some peace in our crazy and fast-paced world is so important! Memorial Park is such a happy place for me!

Mental health awareness has become increasingly important over the past few years. What would you like to see NFCC offer to meet the increasing need and continue to provide the Houston community with affordable and accessible care?

I think NFCC does such a great job of offering affordable, accessible, and positive care to all walks of life. I’ve seen firsthand how their services have impacted close family and friends, and I’m always in awe of the work the staff does. I think as the NFCC community continues to grow and reaches further into Houston; I would love to see more group sessions/events that allow people to discover what the counseling conversation may look like in an easier-to-digest environment than maybe a one-on-one session. I think taking charge of caring for your own mental health can sometimes be an intimidating thing, so opening a way people can dip their toes into the amazing benefits that NFCC can provide through group services would be super valuable for both the community and NFCC.

Being part of the NFCC community, even as an event host or volunteer alone, has been so helpful and encouraging. I love knowing that as much as our entire Houston community has a support system to always fall back on – so do I. I can’t wait for many more events to come, support to give, counseling to get, and crawfish to eat!