Who We Are
From our Founder and CEO Yaakov Barr:
Hello, my name is Yaakov Barr.
As a therapist and clinical supervisor who treats many young people across the community, I am alarmed at how many families are being affected by this epidemic of mental health problems. Our teens are the future and yet in today’s world of turmoil and crisis they are struggling emotionally more than ever before. Few will be lucky enough to access professional help or to manage with the help of loved ones, but the silent majority are left battling with their challenges and difficulties alone, which they may well take with them for the rest of their lives.
For years I asked myself what could be done to help all teens be able to easily access emotional support. JTeen is the answer.
JTeen provides a safe haven for all our teens no matter their emotional challenges and no matter their level of Judaism. The evidence is overwhelming in the effectiveness of early onset intervention for adolescent mental health problems. With this in mind, we are focussing on preventing the problems at the outset to ensure that no teen is alone. We have created an array of resources, programmes, and support tools to ensure that any teen, from any background, has the support they need to make it through.
In just one year we have seen the impact we have made across the community. As the number one resource teens, schools and parents are turning to, we know how vital we are in ensuring a viable, strong future for our community.
Teens are beginning to realise that they are not alone and that they have a new friend – called JTeen – ready to help. But this is just the beginning of a community revolution in our young people’s mental health.
Be a part of our journey.