The Bereishis Foundation was established from personal experience, acknowledging the challenges of accessing mental health care at critical moments. Our founder, Azriel Boymelgreen, faced his own mental health difficulties as a teenager. While the specifics are private, the message is evident: many young individuals are in distress, and the available support is insufficient. For numerous families, therapy costs pose a significant obstacle, a barrier that can distinguish between crisis and healing.

At just 20 years old, Azriel initiated the Bereishis Foundation with a fundamental goal: to ensure high-quality mental health care is available for children and teens, regardless of their financial circumstances. Today, we facilitate funding enabling families to choose their therapy providers, without limitations or restrictions. We emphasize the importance of finding the right therapeutic match, believing that financial constraints should never dictate the quality of care for a child.

The name “Bereishis,” meaning “beginning,” embodies our commitment to new opportunities, providing every child the chance to restart with the necessary tools and support to flourish. We are dedicated to dismantling barriers, instilling hope, and investing in brighter futures.

- Bereishis Foundation Team

Our Story

Our Mission

To remove financial and cultural barriers to mental health care for children in crisis within underserved communities-by providing funding for therapy, advocating for early intervention, and empowering healing with dignity. We also partner with schools to build awareness, reduce stigma, and create environments where students’ emotional needs are seen and supported.

Our Vision

A world where no child is denied therapy because of cost, stigma, or silence-and every family, school, and community has the tools to support emotional well-being, from the earliest signs of struggle to full healing.

Our Core Values

Access
We believe therapy should be a right, not a luxury. We fund direct access to licensed clinicians-no red tape, no delay.

Dignity
Every person deserves help without shame. We protect privacy, honor each family’s story, and reject the stigma surrounding mental health.

Prevention
Early intervention saves lives. We act quickly, before breakdowns become emergencies.

Empowerment
We support healing that respects personal agency and family structure, rooted in both clinical excellence and cultural sensitivity.

Awareness & Education
We work with schools to foster emotional literacy, train staff in mental health awareness, and create a culture where students feel safe asking for help.

Transparency
As a grassroots nonprofit, we maintain open books, publish our impact, and treat every donated dollar like a sacred trust.

Collaboration
We partner with therapists, educators, rabbis, and community leaders to build a care network stronger than any one system.

Compassion
Born from lived experience, our work is driven by empathy, not ego. We meet people where they are, and stand with them until they can stand on their own.