Managing mental health: Kendall County governments, nonprofits work to build local mental health network

Still, community networks help ll the gaps in service. Serving 19 counties, Hill Country MHDD is one of 39 agencies that deliver mental health and developmental disability services in communities across Texas.

“While it can certainly be logistically challenging, I think the challenge is a worthwhile one, and it is one that we are happy to meet the opportunity of,” he said.

Two-minute impact

Around five years ago, the Boerne Police Department hired its first mental health officer, Rebecca Foley. Since its inception, the department has expanded to a second position, held by Eric Gomez, due to increased demand.

Mental health officers respond to calls involving potential mental health crises, such as suicide calls, paranoia, psychosis or other challenges.

Gomez said mental health challenges affect all age groups, and the police department is focused on serving the community and public safety personnel with peer support, household resources and other assistance to improve mental health.

“I would say the majority of what we actually respond to are those crisis calls when people are in a crisis, and they require an emergency detention where we show up, and we do our evaluation to determine whether they need that inpatient stay at a hospital,” he said.

Through partnerships with Kendall County, Fair Oaks Ranch, Hill Country Family Services, Boerne ISD and other organizations, the community has access to mental health resources and support.

These organizations have come together to develop a network that highlights the process of getting mental health resources to adults and children.

Foley said one goal is to have someone from the mental health authority embedded in the police department, allowing mental health evaluations on site.

One of the primary challenges of providing services to the community is the lack of inpatient facilities, which means that people in need of professional care often have to seek support outside of the county, said Krista Pomeroy, chief of student support services at Boerne ISD.

“Anytime we have a student who’s in a serious crisis, we’re having to transport to San Antonio, to either Clarity [Child Guidance Center] or Laurel Ridge [Treatment Center] or San Antonio Behavioral Health,” she said.

Pomeroy said the district has a share-and-care center open to all students who say they are in need. This center offers clothing, food and other household items, helping fill an immediate need while utilizing other resources to get students the proper care.

Bryce Boddie, executive director of Hill Country Family Services, said the organization has hired a social worker for the county jail, which is the county’s largest mental health facility. The new role will help inmates access professional assistance and ideally reduce the number of people detained.

“The number of folks that we have in the Kendall County Jail with an undiagnosed, unmedicated mental illness is huge,” Boddie said.

Assessing the need

Kendall County is similar to the surrounding rural communities in lacking mental health-focused facilities. Winn said Kendall County is in line with a national increase in demand for mental health. In a fiscal year 2024-25 needs assessment, Hill Country MHDD served more than 13,000 individuals across its 19 counties. The Boerne location accounted for around 562 of those cases.

“We have seen an increase over the last few years in the need of crisis services, as well as routine services,” Winn said. “In Kendall County, we have seen the trend going up like each of our other counties.”

What else?

While many mental health resources are focused on the community, police departments in Kendall County also support public safety officials’ mental health initiatives.

Following the July 4 flooding in the Hill Country, more focus was placed on existing mental health support for first responders.

Gomez said the stigma of mental health and the fear of losing a job have prevented first responders from having mental health conversations, but peer groups and other initiatives have opened the door for more conversations.

“Some people may just need to talk; other people may need some more professional help,” he said. “So, we’re kind of like that guideline of, ‘Hey, this is where we can help you out.’”

Zooming out

According to data from Texas Health and Human Services, adults age 75 and over have the highest risk of suicide compared to other adult age groups, at a rate of 19.5 per 100,000 population in the state.

Between 2012 and 2022, adults ages 18-44 have gone from the lowest suicide rates to the second-highest rate. Data from Texas HHS shows a need for mental health support across all age groups.

While children are not listed in the data set, they are susceptible to mental health challenges, leading school districts like Boerne ISD to offer support, especially post COVID-19 pandemic.

“We noticed, especially coming out of the pandemic, that a lot of our kids were experiencing, for example, anxiety or depression, or not able to connect because their social awareness was off,” Pomeroy said.

Looking ahead

Todd Smith, Fair Oaks Ranch police chief, said there are plans to start a wellness check program for residents age 60 and above, allowing volunteers to help older adults with everyday needs.

Smith said one of his goals as police chief has been connecting law enforcement with the community and ensuring residents know police are available for mental health and wellness checks.

“We’re hoping with a program like that we can really get under the hood a little bit more of our community to see what problems they’re facing and to see if we can help them,” Smith said.

Keep in mind

Regardless of mental health needs, county organizations are dedicated to getting residents available resources.

“I think what we have been doing is trying to fill in the gap so that people have long-term counseling solutions, psychiatric access, psychiatric med access, and then overall on a kind of macro level, making sure the whole county understands what trauma is,” Boddie said.