Grand Rapids, MI

Mental Health Foundation of West Michigan

EIN 38-2822359

Health & Wellness Mental Health & Counseling

Mission

The Mental Health Foundation of West Michigan equips individuals with knowledge by inspiring people to recognize, understand, accept, and take action.

IRS-recognized 501(c)(3) public charity Contributions are tax-deductible

Claim this page Visit www.benice.org

About Mental Health Foundation of West Michigan

The Mental Health Foundation of West Michigan (doing business as be nice.) is a donor-facing 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provides mental health awareness, suicide-prevention education, and upstream intervention training for schools, businesses, faith communities, athletic teams, and broader community groups. The organization’s flagship be nice. Action Plan (Notice, Invite, Challenge, Empower) delivers curricula, training, toolkits, and implementation support designed to increase recognition of mental-health changes, reduce stigma, and encourage timely help-seeking. Independent researchers have evaluated the program and reported measurable improvements in protective behaviors and mental-health referrals when the program is implemented effectively. The Foundation operates at scale with sustained fundraising and program-service revenue (fiscal year figures show recent revenues and multi-million-dollar assets), delivering both in-person and virtual programming and forming partnerships to expand be nice. across schools, workplaces, and athletics beyond Michigan.

Notable achievements

Evidence-based validation

An independent multi-year evaluation conducted by university researchers found be nice. increased behaviors that prevent suicide, increased mental-health referrals, and contributed to more positive school culture when implemented with fidelity.

Large-scale school reach

In recent program reporting, be nice. programming was delivered across more than a hundred schools—reaching tens of thousands of students and staff—demonstrating sustained, broad adoption in K–12 settings.

Program diversification and partnerships

The Foundation expanded delivery into businesses, athletic teams, and faith communities and established regional partnerships and funders to support scaling and capacity-building over the past 2–3 years.

At a glance

Total assets: $2.9M
Annual revenue: $829K
Tax status: 501(c)(3)Public charity
EIN: 38-2822359
Location: Grand Rapids, MI
Website: www.benice.org
On Mahalo since: May 2026

Financial figures from the IRS Business Master File, the IRS’s registry of tax-exempt organizations.

Recognition

Financial transparency and accountability metrics reported by independent charity data organizations indicate strong disclosure practices and routine public tax-form availability.

The Grand Valley State University evaluation and related academic communication have been cited publicly as evidence of the program’s effectiveness.

Local and regional partners and health organizations have publicly highlighted the be nice. program as a useful resource for mental-health awareness and suicide-prevention education in community and school settings.

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