Rural Minds partnered with the nonprofit Horses for Mental Health in the making of a video to help increase awareness and improve access to programs that incorporate horses for mental health in rural America. As a horse owner and avid equestrian, Rural Minds Founder and Chairman Jeff Winton was delighted to take part in this project.

Often times, rural communities are overlooked when it comes to addressing mental health. Whether it is proximity to care or a different mindset when it comes to mental health—mental illness affects every type of community. Our Facebook live will discuss topics addressing mental illness and the stigma around talking about it in rural communities. Matt Smith of PreventionFocus will be moderating a panel discussion including: • Connie Desmarais, Niagara County Community Collaborations Coordinator • Jeff Winton, Founder & Chairman, Rural Minds

Addressing Mental Health Care Issues in Rural America – Brownfield AgNews. From a weakening AG economy to financial instability, the stress factors that impact rural America are unique. Julie Lux with Rural Minds says the first step to addressing mental health in rural America is changing the mindset about mental illness.

Meghan Grebner Interviews Rural Minds' Vice President of Communications, Julie Lux – NCBA Cattlemen to Cattlemen. In recent years, many organizations have started to focus more on mental health – and mental health resources – for people living in rural America. Julie Lux discusses how Rural Minds is helping to improve mental health resources in rural areas.

Cyber bullying has grown into a crisis which adds immensely to the rate of suicide deaths. The fact that a beloved Bills player was victimized shows how far this has gone, way past politics! A front-page article in the Monday paper addressed how this has brought attention to how bad this problem is. Rural Minds is a national organization based here and founded by Mayville resident, Jeff Winton, who was compelled to speak on how “unconscionable and reprehensible” the Bass threats are. Coincidently, the local League of Women Voters had just hosted an online program in which Winton presented the problem of suicide that occurs in rural areas and how Rural Minds offers help.

The Rural Mental Health Resilience Program acknowledges the self-reliance and do-it-yourself mindset that are common among farmers and others living in rural areas by providing online access to free educational content that can be printed for distribution, links to mental health support services, and a toolkit for planning, promoting and leading community conversations about rural mental health.

“We are grateful to the American Soybean Association for their partnership with Rural Minds to introduce the Rural Mental Health Resilience Program,” said Jeff Winton, Rural Minds Founder and Chairman. “Attending Commodity Classic provides us with an important opportunity to provide potentially life-saving information to confront the mental health challenges in rural America and the stigma that surrounds mental illness.”

Rural Minds provides free information and services and launched the Rural Mental Health Resilience Program

MAYVILLE, N.Y. — National rural mental health nonprofit Rural Minds was selected as the 2023 STARR Coalition Advocacy Organization of the Year and received the prestigious STARR Award.

“This recognition is bestowed upon the advocacy organization that has demonstrated exceptional dedication to advocating on behalf of those living with mental illnesses, their efforts to fight the stigma of mental illness and support of the STARR Coalition’s collective efforts to expand mental health clinical research,” said STARR Coalition Director of Operations Erica Moore.

Jeff Winton, Rural Minds Founder and Chairman, discusses the mental health emergency impacting rural America.

The period after the holidays can be difficult for many people. Jeff Winton discusses how to give some extra support to friends and loved ones during this time.

Having grown up on his family’s dairy operation on the banks of Lake Erie in Chautauqua County, NY, Jeff Winton ’80 is acutely familiar with the plight of the American farmer. The isolation. The unpredictability of climate. The misconception that farm life is carefree and relaxing, when in reality it’s demanding and often backbreaking work. And, especially, the ingrained belief that farmers should be able to solve their own problems—even when it comes to internal struggles, which they seldom admit out loud.

In this STtalks episode, we discuss the topic of mental health in rural communities with Jeff Winton, CEO & Founder of Rural Minds. This non-profit organization works to provide the right resources needed in rural communities to assist those who are seeking help. With the Holiday Season upon us and while we are in the midst of our winter season, it was important to us to visit on the topic of mental health.

Growing up on my family’s multigenerational dairy farm in Chautauqua County, I knew local residents struggling with mental illness in silence, but it did not hit home until my 28-year-old nephew, Brooks, died by suicide, leaving behind 3-year-old twins. My late mother, Elaine Winton, and I made a commitment to talk openly about this tragedy, which led to me founding Rural Minds, a national nonprofit organization. The mission is to serve as the informed voice for mental health in rural America, and to provide mental health information and resources.

As the ag community continues working to address mental health struggles in farm country, a new online resource center is providing actionable information for rural residents. Founder of Rural Minds, Jeff Winton spoke with RFD-TV’s own Suzanne Alexander on the Rural Mental Health Resilience Program, what it has to offer, and the unique challenges that producers and rural Americans face.

The unpredictability that comes with farming is one factor that can influence the well-being of producers. Crop success is contingent on timing and moisture, and the prices farmers receive for their products are dependent on demand and other external factors.

“It’s an occupation where there is so much out of an individual’s control,” Rudolphi told Agri-Pulse.

Addressing mental health in rural communities comes with its share of challenges, according to Chuck Strand, executive director of the nonprofit Rural Minds. Shortages of mental health professionals can force rural citizens to travel long distances seeking care, and telehealth may not be an option for those who lack internet access. The stigma associated with seeking mental health care can be another barrier, Strand said.

The National Grange will hold its annual conference from November 14-18, 2023.  The annual convention serves to set national legislative policies for the organization and is also a major networking and social event for members from across the country. This year, partnerships will be elevating the National Grange’s work on behalf of all Americans. While most events during the week are for members-only, one event open to the public is presented in partnership with Rural Minds, a nonprofit focused on destigmatizing conversations about mental health in rural America, and NY FarmNet.

MORGANTOWN, Pa. — There’s a mental health emergency in rural America. People living in rural communities have much higher rates of depression and suicide than people living in urban areas. Though hidden away in the shadow for years, if not generations, this challenge is finally being brought into the light and has led to public discourse about the unspoken impact of mental health issues. The National Grange is partnering with Rural Minds to develop a Rural Suicide Awareness and Prevention program.

MAYVILLE — America’s mental health crisis became personal for Jeff Winton of Wall Street Dairy in 2012 when his nephew, Brooks, committed suicide. “It was very sudden and we had no idea he was struggling,” Winton said. “It caught us off guard. In rural America, we don’t always talk about our struggles.” A few years later, Winton became the founder of the nonprofit Rural Minds. He credited the idea for the nonprofit — with its main goal to help those in rural areas who are suffering with mental health needs — to his late mother.

The National Grange has partnered with Rural Minds, a nonprofit confronting mental health challenges in rural America, to develop a Rural Suicide Awareness and Prevention program that uses a grassroots, person-to-person approach to providing information and resources. This also dovetails with the National Grange’s efforts to provide broadband access to telemedicine through which rural Americans can better reach mental health experts and clinicians.

HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Kansas U.S. Senator Roger Marshall, M.D. spoke on Saturday at the Kansas State Fair about the importance of caring for your neighbors with mental health issues, especially those working in agriculture. "September is Mental Health Awareness Month," Marshall said. "Specifically, we're trying to educate folks about the challenges in agriculture. Farmers and ranchers have an almost four times higher suicide rate than the general population. The pressures are for real. Many of us, I'm a fifth-generation farm kid, many are six and seven generations out here. The pressure to keep that farm alive and well for future generations is enormous." According to Rural Minds, pre-pandemic in 2018, nearly two thirds of rural counties in America did not have a psychiatrist.