Flora Jones,45, is finally beginning to find what she calls balance in her life.

“I stand here today as someone in recovery and on the journey to healing my mental health,” she said in a room of mental health and substance use advocates.

Jones said the trauma she experienced as a child kept her stagnant throughout her life until she discovered peer advocacy.

“Through this opportunity I learned more of my strengths,” she said. “I’m standing-up for myself, I’m gaining my own resource list that I can use for myself and those who I will help in my community.”

Monroe County announced on Thursday that it received a $265,000 federal grant to help train more peer advocates like Jones to help others with mental health and substance use challenges.

The goal of the county’s new peer training program is to certify more individuals who are Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) as peer advocates. Monroe County’s Office of Mental Health chose the House of Mercy to facilitate the program.

“This BIPOC program represents a significant step towards closing the gap towards a more inclusive and supportive community,” said Tammy Butler, House of Mercy executive director.

According to the New York State Office of Mental Health, peer advocacy has been found to “significantly enhance the treatment process” for people who are dealing with mental health troubles.

“It will help diversify the peer advocate workforce, create job opportunities, contribute to the economic and social well-being of BIPOC communities, and dismantle barriers to equitable access to care,” Butler said.

Butler and her team have already trained about a dozen peer advocates. The next cohort will have almost 30 more trainees.