Our Story

Building Emotional Wellness

The Toll of Continuous (and Ineffective) Therapy on a Family

For over five years, behavior therapists, counselors, and social workers came into our home 3 to 5 hours at a time, five days a week. My neuro-typical daughter flipped out one day and said, “Mom, can we just have one dinner alone without somebody watching us?” I remember sobbing uncontrollably at church, away from the watchful eyes of my kids, feeling crushed between the multimillion deals I had just made, with people who staked their careers on me, and the crumbling, suffering mess at home. Despite every available help from the government, healthcare, and school systems, I eventually almost lost my daughter. I’ll give my daughters, who are both thriving now, the choice to share what happened when it’s no longer so raw and when they’re ready.

The Birth of a Nonprofit Driven by Conviction

When I started developing curaJOY, many savvy investors, close friends, and even family asked me why I made curaJOY a nonprofit when there’s clearly a desperate need (thus a strong business opportunity) for what we do. It is because of this conviction: Family emotional wellness is too important to be dragged down by business interests, personal egos, and bureaucracy! Supporting families’ social and mental health is the only reason why curaJOY exists, the basis of all our decisions, and I wanted it to stay that way forever.

The Need for a Movement Beyond Personal Gain

Our emotional wellness affects every aspect of our lives and each other’s lives, from physical health, academic performance, career stability, and productivity to substance abuse, crime, disability, and violence. curaJOY needs to be a movement and needs to be bigger than me. It may seem like the world runs on money, but it is people that make the world go round. People matter! Let’s build them.