Victor and Lynne Brick Presented With Award by Global Wellness Summit

The Global Wellness Summit recently presented Victor and Lynne Brick with the Debra Simon Award for Leader in Furthering Mental Health Wellness. The Global Wellness Summit is an international gathering of leaders in the worldwide wellness industry.

The Bricks, who operate Planet Fitness Growth Partners, LLC, were given this award because of their work in establishing the John W. Brick Mental Health Foundation, Inc. The Foundation was formed in honor of Victor Brick’s brother, John, who had schizophrenia and died of complications from the illness.

The aim of the Bricks’ foundation is to promote a holistic approach in treating and helping people who are facing mental health issues – this approach includes things like exercise, nutrition and mind-body wellness techniques. The Bricks believe that adjustments to John’s physical health could have greatly aided his mental health. The administrative costs for the Foundation are self-funded now, so every dollar of fundraising can go directly to research and programs geared toward changing the way mental health is treated and addressed.

At the 14th annual GWS, Victor Brick said, “My brother’s passing was tragic at the time (and) I never cried so hard in my life. But … if his life is an agent for change, then it was a successful life. And I have a feeling that this is how we’re going to look at the pandemic and the coronavirus, as an agent for change.”

The Foundation is dedicated to supporting mental health research worldwide, but it also allows for exercise to be brought to those who are affected by mental health issues. They bring opportunities for exercise to community organizations and mental health care facilities. Some of the ways the group has made a difference include…

  • Donating exercise equipment to Johns Hopkins Pediatric Psychiatric Inpatient Ward
  • Donating exercise equipment to create the John W. Brick Memorial Fitness Center at Arundel Lodge Outpatient Mental Health Clinic
  • Giving support for Catch-A-Lift, which helps combat wounded veterans
  • Giving support for mental wellness during COVID-19 through the Never Alone Summit and the Move Your Mental Health Initiative

Lynne Brick, president of Planet Fitness Growth Partners, explained that there are several initiatives that the JWB Foundation is working on. First, they are teaming up with the National Center for Healthy Veterans to develop fitness programs for military veterans suffering from PTSD. Second, they are working on developing an app that will help with early detection of mental health disorders; it will then recommend holistic and movement-based programs to address specific mental health issues. Third, they are developing a mental wellness trainer certification for fitness trainers based on the latest research and recommendations of the Mental Wellness Initiative of the Global Wellness Institute. “Our hope is that one day, a mental wellness certification will be required for all fitness trainers,” Brick said. These projects align with the Foundation’s goal of changing the way the world treats mental health.

And in addition to all of this, the Foundation is doing a review of current research about nutrition, exercise, and mind-body techniques when it comes to treating mental health conditions.

It is wonderful to see the good work the Bricks are doing to help those who deal with mental health issues, and the Planet Fitness family looks forward to seeing how the John W. Brick Mental Health Foundation continues to support efforts to research mental health and well-being.

To learn more about the John W. Brick Mental Health Foundation, please visit their website at https://www.johnwbrickfoundation.org/.