Our Story
Fountain of Comfort is a community of people who came together to engage in brave discourse about the role of spirituality in the worsening social and psychological crisis of Western culture. Our guiding principles are community, diversity, inclusion, scientific competence, critical analysis, and historical awareness. We reject all forms of atomistic individualism, racism, and economic exploitation. We embrace education, progress, and reform.
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Our community is broadly inclusive of many different people from very different backgrounds. Fountain of Comfort was inspired by the teaching of Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson that "any meeting of two people should benefit a third." We recognize growing economic inequality, psychological alienations, and social isolation. We see that our attention should not be focused merely on ourselves.
Meet Our Board
Yosef Razin, Chair
Yosef Razin is Research Analyst at the Institute for Defense Analyses and is completing his PhD in Robotics at Georgia Tech. He is also an Orthodox Jew deeply concerned about the meaning crisis and is avidly seeking wisdom from his studies of Jewish wisdom, psychology, trust, AI, philosophy, liturgy, and history on potential approaches and solutions to it. Yosef lives with his wife and daughter outside of Washington, D.C. and attends Kehillat Pardes.
Timothy Burkhard, Treasurer
Timothy Burkhard, a Senior Mechanical Engineer with 18 years of experience in Silicon Valley's medical industry, brings deep insights into product development challenges. Timothy Burkhard's passion for making a difference led to joining the board of directors of a mental health foundation. In addition to Timothy Burkhard's professional expertise, Timothy Burkhard is a dedicated community leader with 12 years of service as a council member for the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, emphasizing the importance of quality mental health care for all. Timothy Burkhard is eager to collaborate and contribute to improving the lives of those facing mental health challenges through this foundation.
Tre Braswell, Secretary
Tre Braswell, a software engineer at Boeing in Los Angeles, California, is a multifaceted individual with a profound interest in philosophy and religion. Beyond his technical expertise, he dedicates his time to volunteering with the Salvation Army, providing crucial assistance to the homeless community in the area. His diverse pursuits reflect a well-rounded personality driven by both professional and humanitarian passions.
Jules Labatut
ules Labatut began work at a Faulk & Winkler CPA in 2021. Born and raised in Lafayette, Jules earned his bachelor's degree from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette in accounting. He’s an Orthodox Christian who attends Archangel Gabriel Antiochian Orthodox Church, under the spiritual direction of Father Stephen DeYoung.
Gage Murphy
Gage Murphy is a former secondary math and English teacher currently pursuing a Master of Social Work at the University of Connecticut. This unique background brings a blend of teaching skills and a passion for social change to Gage's approach in addressing the social and emotional needs of individuals and communities.
Our Mission
We are a non-profit organization dedicated to being a public resource for mental health. We currently do this by facilitating public discussions about mental health with qualified professionals. We hope to expand to training peer counselors and professional mental health providers in the near future. Our goal is to eventually provide quality mental health to people in need at no charge.
History
For almost a decade now there has been a growing awareness of the mental health crisis. While many of the conversations were being held in academia and professional venues, many people were using the Internet to disseminate new ideas. Much of the conversation was held in YouTube channels, blogs, social media posts, Discord servers, and Meetup groups. Some of these conversations resulted in conferences, real friendships, and even marriages.
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This discussion eventually created a small community of friends from diverse backgrounds as they discussed the intersection of religion, spirituality, culture, psychology, health, and community. The community increasingly saw mental health as a primary concern. The discussion concluded that we should act to create a reliable public resource for mental health that properly engages the latest developments with the oldest wisdom.
Fountain of Comfort was founded with the hope that these discussions would produce tangible results in helping people offline. The organization is much larger than any one person or group of people. It aims to be open to everyone who wishes to drink from its waters. We invite you to join in our effort to be a public resource for mental health.