MHCAN

MHCAN MHCAN of Santa Cruz is a peer-run mental health community center where we support each other through times of intensity & celebrate our lives♡

MHCAN’s Drop-In Center is available for people in Santa Cruz County who are mental health clients or consider themselves psychiatric survivors. We have many advocates and activists amongst us.

08/18/2026

Dear Friends and Neighbors,

The Board would like to update you on what we've been doing, what has been happening, and what will happen going forward with this organization. We appreciate your patience and acknowledge that silence for such a long period of time is frustrating.

We've been busy! Cleaning and clearing out the building has been a particular challenge, but we got it done just in time for renovations. The interior has been painted, and soon most of the flooring upstairs and downstairs will be replaced. After that the windows will be fixed/replaced and the whole building will get a deep clean. We hope and trust you agree that this is all necessary work.

On an organizational and funding level we have some news. The County of Santa Cruz, which provides the bulk of our funding, has aligned with our vision that we return to our original core mission of providing a drop-in center for peers receiving services from the county behavioral health system. That means that peripheral services like showers and laundry will no longer be available. In short, what was will not be going forward.

At this time we do not have a specific opening date. This is due to not having finalized our contract with the county currently. It’s being worked on now! We are very much hoping that we can open this year, but it may be early next year. Again, we deeply appreciate your patience and understanding, and we thank you for reading.

Sincerely,

Nina Stratton
Nick Bodsky
Suzanne Koebler
Yana Jacobs
Betsy Clark
Tracy Kennedy
Adrian Bernard
Wendy Crout

05/05/2026

Greetings MHCAN Family!

Not having the Mental Health Client Action Network since August of last year has been a tremendous loss for our community. We know that many of you depended on it as a place where you could find both community and resources. It is devastating that the doors were closed so abruptly and that they remain closed right now.

After months of uncertainty, a new MHCAN board formed in March. Since then, we have been working together to prepare to re-open MHCAN as a stronger, more stable organization. We hope we can do so by the end of the summer, but the exact timeline is still uncertain.

The board is working on several objectives simultaneously that must be achieved prior to reopening. One priority is getting MHCAN’s financial affairs in order, including paying outstanding debts and back taxes. We are also working to obtain liability insurance, without which we cannot run our program. Another on-going effort is to address deferred maintenance issues so that the building is once again safe to occupy. There is a lot to do, but as a board, we are making steady progress.

Beyond these activities, we have been meeting with representatives of the Clubhouse International model. This model aligns perfectly with MHCAN’s mission and activities. It has the potential to help MHCAN meet international standards for peer services. Furthermore, it will open an array of funding opportunities that we will need to sustain MHCAN over time. The board’s hope is that MHCAN will become an accredited Clubhouse program. The governance structures of Clubhouse programs vary widely, but the board is committed to ensuring that MHCAN will always be peer owned and operated.

The Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors and County Behavioral Health are supportive of our board’s efforts. They are collaborating closely with us, and they have agreed to carry funding from this year into next, which will give us the opportunity to relaunch a small program. In the next few months, we anticipate conducting an Executive Director search and hiring a small staff. As time goes on, we will seek grants to expand personnel and increase programming. Part of our agreement with the county is that we will prioritize those peers who are receiving services from County Behavioral Health. This requirement aligns with the board’s commitment to open MHCAN with services focused on mental health recovery. We aim to do so by prioritizing support groups and one-to-one peer support, while also continuing to offer drop-in space and access to computers.

We are deeply grateful that so many of you have offered to help. We will be taking you up on those offers as soon as we have the structure in place to do so. Please watch this page over the next few months where we will post requests for your input, descriptions of committee openings, and job announcements. Re-establishing MHCAN’s services will depend on the whole peer community working together.

We look forward to the day the doors open and we welcome one another once again to our healing peer community.

Sincerely,

Board Members: Adrian Bernard (chair), Betsy Clark, Nick Bodsky, Suzanne Koebler, Tracy Kennedy & Yana Jacobs

02/12/2026

Dear MHCAN Members & Community Members interested in being on the new MHCAN board,

First of all, I am so sorry for the inconvenience and heartache the closing of MHCAN has caused. We want to do everything we can to alleviate those heartaches. We need you now to help give you and us the power to do that. We want to provide you with an important update regarding the future of MHCAN and the steps being taken to reopen and stabilize our community space.

First and foremost, please know this: MHCAN belongs to its members. The peer-run structure and lived-experience leadership model are what make MHCAN unique and effective. Any decisions about its future must include the voices of those it serves.

Where Things Stand
We have formally notified the County that MHCAN members are organizing to stabilize and reopen the organization. A cease and desist letter has been sent requesting that the County pause any actions to transfer or replace MHCAN with People First or any other organization until members have had the opportunity to vote and reconstitute the Board in accordance with our governance structure.

This step was taken to protect the peer-run identity of MHCAN and ensure that decisions reflect member input.

Board Reconstitution Plan
To reopen our doors, we must first stabilize governance.

We are currently identifying potential board members who:

Support MHCAN’s peer-run mission

Understand nonprofit governance and fiscal responsibility

Are committed to protecting the member voice

Are aligned with reopening and strengthening services

However, the Board must be voted in by the membership.

Holding this vote is essential to:

-Reinstate insurance

-Pay outstanding bills

-Rehire staff

-Restore contracts and billing

-Reopen services

Without a legally voted-in board, MHCAN cannot move forward.

Member Meeting & Vote
We are planning to hold a membership meeting and board vote this Friday.

Your attendance is extremely important.

Board Nominations
If you or someone you know would like to serve on the Board, please let us know immediately.

We are especially looking for individuals who:

Believe strongly in peer leadership

Have nonprofit, finance, legal, or governance experience (helpful but not required)

Are committed to stabilizing and reopening MHCAN

Support the needs of our members first

If you would like to nominate yourself or someone else, please contact us.

Moving Forward
Our goal is simple:

Stabilize governance

Reinstate operations

Reopen the doors

Strengthen services

Protect MHCAN’s peer-run identity

We cannot do this without you.

MHCAN has served Santa Cruz County for over 30 years as a peer-run safe space. With your participation, we can ensure it continues to do so.

Please reply with your availability for Friday (or weekend preference), and let us know about board nominations. We are having a meeting this Friday for potential board nominations who will then be at the member voting meeting. Here is the link for that:

Please invite any potential new board member candidates and members of MHCAN as many as possible to this meeting for consideration of a new board.

Zoom Meeting invitation - MHCAN Meeting to discuss a New Board (Candidates)

6:00 PM - 7:00 PM

Fri, Feb 13, 2026

Join Zoom Meeting

https://us04web.zoom.us/j/71870370241?pwd=ZX1gnhqjO83pMhxBfVsQ29BhpTvHS7.1

Meeting ID: 718 7037 0241

Passcode: cHqW2w

We look forward to seeing you and moving forward together.

In solidarity,

Dawn Hightree and Alicia Kuhl
*On behalf of the MHCAN Reopening Team

09/05/2025

Greetings Community, MHCAN is temporarily closed. MHCAN and the County are working together to restore services asap. Thank you for your patience during this difficult time.

06/12/2025

Thank You for Helping MHCAN Secure County Funding

We’re proud to share that MHCAN has successfully secured funding from the county. This major milestone would not have been possible without the strength and support of our peer community.

This victory is a reflection of everything MHCAN stands for: empowerment through lived experience, mutual support, and the belief that recovery is not only possible, but powerful when it’s led by peers. Whether you advocated on our behalf, shared your story, or stood with us in spirit, your support helped make this happen.

With this funding, MHCAN will continue to provide essential peer-run mental health services, expand our reach, and build on the community-centered model that has helped so many find connection, healing, and hope.

To everyone who played a part we thank you. You’ve helped us take a bold step forward in sustaining the work we do and the people we serve.

In community and gratitude,
The MHCAN Team

Hi everyone-A sad thing happened:April 24th, we received the budget proposal for this year from Santa Cruz County.https:...
05/05/2025

Hi everyone-
A sad thing happened:
April 24th, we received the budget proposal for this year from Santa Cruz County.
https://www.mentalhealthsigns.com/archives/2743

https://kion546.com/news/top-stories/2025/04/30/mental-health-programs-at-risk-of-cuts-in-proposed-santa-cruz-county-budget/

Funding for MHCAN was completely cut. In case you don't know, MHCAN is the Mental Health Client Action Network. Provides effective support to our people who suffer from mental health issues- Many are unhoused and desperately need the services that MHCAN provides. This is the only peer run mental health facility in the county of Santa Cruz. The "Clubhouse" of MHCAN is a keystone to any county’s mental health services especially Santa Cruz

And the budget for MHCAN for a whole year is only a bit more than $580,000.

Many people who have benefited from MHCAN went to the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors meeting on Tuesday, April 29th and asked the Board members to reconsider- To try to find just a half a million dollars to keep MHCAN going.
Folks were there to support Gemma and a couple other important health programs that are also on the chopping block.

It felt like a Miracle when the Board of Supervisors unanimously voted to investigate whether they could find $0.5 million in their budget of over 1 billion dollars
($0.58 million is about 0.33% of the part of the budget designated for Behavioral Health- That’s less than 0.05% of the entire budget.)

But the Board of Supervisors only agreed to TRY to find the funds.

We need to call or email them to remind them that Funding MHCAN is a priority for many of our most vulnerable citizens in these uncertain times.

Please call or email the Supervisors (especially the one from your district)

Phone: (831) 454-2200
(you can leave a message with whoever answers the phone- They will keep track of how many people call in support)

Email the entire Board: [email protected]

(Emails to this address will go into the Agenda Packet for the next Board meeting on May 6th)

Or go to this link to email your individual District's Supervisor
https://www.santacruzcountyca.gov/Government/BoardofSupervisors/ContactUs.aspx

If you don't want to write your own email, you could just copy and paste the following- or something like it:

(It's very simple- All they need to know is that you want them to find the funds somewhere- Like from the "Rainy Day" Fund if necessary)
_____________________

Dear Supervisor, _____

Please restore funding for MHCAN in the County budget for this year.
It is a small amount to pay for this extremely important and effective organization that helps so many people to reconstruct their lives after (or before) a debilitating mental health crisis. Think how much more it will cost our community if people don't have this lifeline, they will end up in the emergency room or in jail increasing costs to the county overall.

Sincerely,
(your name- and address if you like)
____________________

Thanks so much!

Come join us for a Thanksgiving feast tomorrow at noon!
11/27/2024

Come join us for a Thanksgiving feast tomorrow at noon!

Address

1051 Cayuga Street
Santa Cruz, CA
95062

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 2pm
Tuesday 9am - 2pm
Thursday 9am - 2pm
Friday 9am - 2pm

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