About BCF
Making a Difference for Those Struggling
We thrive to support the supporters while, directly and indirectly, touching the people around the world who suffer from mental health issues; battered from domestic violence or sexual abuse, experienced cyberbullying, bullied at school, have disabilities with either mental or physical handicaps; plagued with poor health, deficient education, or living in poverty.
Your life matters to us!
Volunteer! There Are So Many Ways to Lend a Helping Hand
Do you have a special place in your heart for those hurting, the poor, or the weary? If so, then there is a place for you within our organization. We need event planners, social media guru, software developers, graphic artists, animators, business-minded people, financial managers, a CEO, board members, sponsors, celebrities, influencers, editors, writers, fundraisers, coders, and videographers. If you have love and joy and your soul yearns to give unselfishly, then there is a place for you in our organization.
Our Mission
Betty Clay Foundation’s mission is to empower healthcare providers, educators, and social service professionals worldwide with advanced, AI-driven technology tools that enhance their ability to support individuals suffering from mental health issues and social challenges. We aim to improve the quality of care, reduce response times, and provide data-driven insights that lead to better outcomes.
Our Vision
To be the leading provider of custom AI technology tools that enable front-line workers globally to make impactful, data-driven decisions in mental health and social services.
History
The Betty Clay Story
Betty Clay Foundation (BCF) is passionate about bridging the gap between technology, clinicians, and people suffering from mental and emotional challenges. The story which inspired the creation of the Betty Clay Foundation begins with one of these people, Betty. She and her son Clay suffered numerous mental health challenges all by themselves and at times with help that really was not help, but more of an obstacle to Betty’s recovery and Clay’s health outcome. Betty and Clay were abused multiple times throughout their lives, physically and emotionally.
Betty, unfavored and mocked by her mother and siblings, decided to leave her freshmen year of college to get married. She thought she would escape her family’s bullying and mistreatment to enter into a wonderful married life. She moved to a new state and began a family of her own. Altogether Betty carried five children with one miscarriage. Her second died of pneumonia at the age of 8 months. Soon after the funeral, Betty became a victim of domestic violence. After years of living with an adulterous husband and having two of their youngest children, Betty finally ended her marriage. With no education and no driver’s license, she became a single mother while trying to survive in poverty. Throughout the next 7 years, Betty had a hard time keeping the electricity and water bills paid; however, she managed to keep food on the table with her social service checks and food stamps (EBT). Despite her best efforts, an eviction note came. She could no longer rely on her neighbors for help; she needed a home. Her ex-husband stop paying the mortgage and planned to take the non-handicapped children so as to not pay child support anymore. With no more options, Betty and Clay packed a small u-Haul truck and paid her cousin to drive them back to her mother’s house, out of the state. To Betty’s dismay, she found herself going to the same home she ran away from; begrudgingly, her mother opened her doors. Betty endured her mother’s berating attitude towards her until she could save enough money to move on her own. Betty’s mother began to complain about Clay’s love for food and decided that she no longer wanted him around either. She mistreated him such as adding a lock on the refrigerator and cooking for only herself and eating in front of Clay. Clay, born with a mental handicap: intellectual delay, had the cognitive development of an 8-year-old. Clay was not only mistreated by his grandmother, but he was bullied throughout his school years. Clay has always has an uncanny ability to shoot 3-pointers in basketball, so much so people used to call him Larry Bird, the former Celtics professional basketball player from 1979–1992 was known for making 3-pointers. Despite Clay’s abilities, none of the teachers and staff paid attention to his gifts.
Betty came home after a long day at work, only to find her son Clay was gone. Betty suffered a nervous breakdown after Clay was kidnapped. Her mother, who was supposed to be watching him, said nothing about his disappearance. Betty was devastated; she faced many sleepless nights, tears only dried up by holding on to her faith and desire to have her son back. She was diagnosed with diabetes around the same time. Unfortunately, she was never reunited with Clay; he remains to this day in the custody of multiple mental health institutions. Clay experienced hardships of his own, passed around to different mental health housing facilities around other patients with a range of mental health diagnoses.
Clay was sent to prison on false charges, accused of a crime by a sociopathic adult roommate, a roommate Clay had no business being around because of his low cognitive level. Clay is an adult physically, but a child cognitively. He was acquitted of all charges, but sent to a rehabilitation facility for three years and released into a host home. Clay’s high physical functioning and the amount the government paid for his type of case made him a desirable client for a host owner. Even though Clay was better off within the institution that rehabilitated him, legally he had to be released to either his father or a host home owner. Instead of Clay’s father choosing to take Clay home, he elected to send Clay to a host home owner. Four years later, Clay had a emergency surgery; the surgeon reported he would have died within six days had he not had a complete removal of 1/3 of his flesh of his groin and his buttocks. The host home owners had neglected to properly treat an existing boil Clay contracted from one of the mental institutions where he previously lived. Patients confined to wheelchairs commonly contract boils due to improper cleaning environment and hygiene habits. Finally, rather than his father finding a new host home owner or taking him home, he was released back to the same host home owners.
Betty was in and out of homelessness, shelters and the hospital, until she finally was able to qualify for government housing for homeless seniors. Three years later, she died in her hospital bed after cardiac arrest, having been left alone until a nurse found her. One nurse reported she was left for 14 minutes without oxygen. In their haste, the nurses revived Betty, who lived 9 days in a coma, long enough for her two non-handicapped children to fly out to stay with her for her last 7 days in the hospital. To her children’s disappointment, she never woke up again. She wasn’t alive—the machines were breathing for her. The children ordered an autopsy, but this was denied. They were too hurt to fight for justice. After his mother’s death, Clay often asked if he could visit his mother; he did not understand what death meant.
How can a person experience so many mental health crises in one lifetime? Well, Betty and Clay are those people. They needed real help. Their devastating stories are echoed by many others living all over the world, those individuals and families seeking answers and hope. The Betty Clay Foundation exists to provide help for those experiencing mental health crises, who feel all alone or are being “served” by person/organization pretending to help. BCF finds and partners with those NGOs, businesses, and individuals who are truly helping the hurting.
Join Us in Making a Difference
If you have love, joy, and your soul yearns to give unselfishly, then there is a place for you in our organization. If you do not have time to contribute, consider donating to Betty Clay Foundation. Thank you for your support!