Trilogy mental health support center aims to expand services on Chicago's South Side

CHICAGO (WLS) -- A mental health support center on Chicago's South Side is expanding.

Trilogy Behavioral Health Chicago said they are pouring millions into Black neighborhoods that are in dire need of help.

Trilogy described their current offices in the Chatham neighborhood as "little honey combs," and that's why they are quite literally breaking walls down to expand their services so Chicago's South Side will no longer be a mental health desert.

"It's not them helping you get your track back on life, it's them giving you the opportunity to figure out the reason why you're in the situation," Trilogy patient Keith Fields said. "But this point in our life is critical."

Keith said he was formerly incarcerated, and he used to be afraid of walking into health clinics until he understood that help was necessary.

Suicides for Black young adults have increased, with nearly 80% of Black women and more than 76% of Black men surveyed saying they felt hopeless about their future, according to a study done by the Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities.

"What I see is a beacon of hope," Sixth Ward Ald. William Hall said. "We don't have enough of this. This building was once nothing. What we hope to accomplish in this building is a place people can go before they end up in jail."

Trilogy purchased the 24,000 square foot building in Chicago's Chatham neighborhood, which has higher rates of anxiety, depression, and PTSD. They said more renovations are on the way.

"We have additional space we can grow into to take on more services and more individuals providing them the necessary mental health platform that they need to be well in our community," Trilogy board member Kim Casey said.

Trilogy said they are looking to raise $1.5 million for their efforts at a November fundraiser. To learn more, click here.

"Don't be afraid anymore," Fields said. "Fight for yourself."