Who We Serve
Church-Based Mental Health Services provides compassionate mental health assessments to adolescents and adults from all walks of life, regardless of religious affiliation. We believe that lack of insurance, insufficient insurance or acute financial stress should not be barriers to timely, professional mental health support.
Program History
Church-Based Mental Health Services was started by Dr. Carol Turner, who saw a gap in mental health services for low-income clients, and wanted to find a way to address this issue during her retirement. In 2015, Carol and her then-intern, Bonnie Gordic, conducted a community needs assessment and built the CBMHS program to address the needs identified by pastors and their communities. During this year, they also piloted the idea of sliding scale community mental health care at the Reformed Church of Highland Park.
In January 2016, CBMHS hired Program Director, April Humes, and began seeing clients at five additional church sites: Middlebush Reformed Church, The Church in Brielle, The Community Church of Keyport, South River Reformed Church, and Colts Neck Reformed Church. In 2017, CMBHS expanded to Ocean Community Church, and hired counselor Lorrie McGough. Sonya Johnson became Program Director in 2019, followed by Lorrie McGough in late 2020.
Our Why
Faith communities have the opportunity to play an important role in fighting the stigma associated with seeking treatment for mental health concerns. CBMHS allows those who would delay or go without important treatment due to lack of funds or misinformation about available resources to receive professional, compassionate care and education in a setting where they feel comfortable asking for help.
Carol J. Turner,
Doctor of Education & Psychologist
Dr. Carol Turner is an Elder of the Reformed Church of Highland Park and a has been a member of the Board of Trustees of Churches Improving Communities. Recently retired from a full-time private practice, Dr. Turner was a founding member of Church-Based Mental Health Services at RCHP with the Rev. Seth Kaper-Dale and Dr. Bonnie Gordic. Dr. Turner continues to volunteer as Consulting Psychologist to the program.
Sonya Johnson, LPC, NCC
Past CBMHS Clinical Director
Sonya Johnson is a Licensed Professional Counselor in the state of New Jersey with an strong professional background in working with children and families, and individuals with a broad range of mental illnesses and general counseling needs. She has volunteered with Church Based Mental Health Services to provide low-cost counseling since 2017 and continues to have a passion to help people become their best selves as they cultivate and grow healthy relationships with others.
April Humes, MA, LPC
CBMHS Past Clinical Director & Program Consultant
April Humes is a Licensed Professional Counselor in the state of New Jersey whose clinical interests include managing anxiety and depression, coping with trauma and loss, and building healthy relationships. Her decision to pursue a career in mental health was fueled by her fascination with the mind-body connection, and a desire to unite her faith and vocation.
Lorrie McGough, MA, LPC, LCADC, NCC
CBMHS Clinical Director
Lorrie McGough is a Licensed Professional Counselor and a Licensed Certified Alcohol and Drug Counselor. Her experience includes working with individuals and families with situational mental health issues, co-occurring issues, and substance abuse addictions. Lorrie is compassionate and committed, and believes in the power of hope and rebuilding lives through therapy.
Bonnie Gordic, Psy.D., M.P.P.
CBMHS Consulting Psychologist
Church-Based Mental Health Services is a program of Churches Improving Communities (CIC), a non-profit community development corporation that pools the resources of faith communities – including volunteers, money, and professional expertise – to transform lives through creating and supporting effective social justice and community service programming in central New Jersey. All CIC projects are non-discriminatory and are open to the public.
Learn more at ImprovingNJ.org.