Working Together to Build Healthy Communities
Welcome to the Rooted Research family, where community well-being is our top priority!
Launched by Butterfly Dreamz, Inc. in 2024, our mission is to advance health equity in Lake County, IN, and Essex County, NJ. We work closely with local schools, community centers, and faith-based organizations to conduct community-engaged research and provide culturally affirming mental and behavioral support to students and families from high-poverty neighborhoods.
Applications open Sep 15 – Oct 31, 2026
We are investing in the people and organizations that teens in Newark, NJ, and Gary, IN, already trust and turn to for support. This grant grew directly out of our first cohort of Teen Mental Health Ambassadors—six months of research, 219 peer surveys, and 34 one-on-one interviews with teens across both cities.
Our Ambassadors’ research made one thing clear: teens are leaders in their own lives and mental health journey. They are quietly holding each other up, even as they say, “I don’t want to be a burden.”
To advance our Ambassadors’ outstanding work, we’re funding local, community-led solutions and mutual aid that incorporate a reciprocal care model into teen mental health support.
Apply for a $1K Youth Mental Health Mini-Grant
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Youth leaders, artists, educators/school staff, parents/caregivers, and youth-serving organizations based in Newark, NJ, or Gary, IN.
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$1,000 to fund a community-led youth mental health project
Strategic capacity-building support to co-develop a sustainability toolkit — long-term fundraising, operations, and policy plans
A local mutual aid network of fellow grantees, our Ambassadors, staff, and community partners to strengthen and support your project
Storytelling and visibility support to help share your work with your community, funders, and elected officials
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Applications open: September 15, 2026
Applications close: October 31, 2026
Applications reviewed: November – December 2026
Award decisions: Late December 2026
Projects begin: January 2027
Teen Voices on Mental Health & Social Connection
Since summer 2025, our Community Research Collaborative—made up of teen Ambassadors, family and community members, K-12 schools, community partners, and academic researchers—has been listening to what teens in Newark, NJ, and Gary, IN, have to say about their own mental health, well-being, and social lives.
From February through August 2026, our inaugural cohort of Teen Mental Health Ambassadors:
Completed 219 peer surveys across both cities
Conducted 34 one-on-one interviews with teens
Co-authored Real Talk Before High School, a peer support book and interactive website for rising 9th graders (butterflydreamz.org/realtalk)
Co-designed community events, workshops, and mental health resources with the people teens already trust
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57% of teens told us they held back what they were going through mental health challenges because they didn’t want to worry, upset, or burden the people around them.
Teens most often turn to close friends, family, and the trusted adults in their day-to-day lives, not formal mental health systems.
Music, movement, art, and time with people who love them were named again and again as the activities that support teen mental health and well-being.
Teens want spaces that are fun, relatable, affirming, and low-pressure—not clinical.
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On August 28, 2026, our Ambassadors shared these findings and introduced our $1K Mini-Grant to community members, families, and partners.
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We’d love to partner with you! Complete our Virtual Connect Card to get involved and collaborate with us on this work.