The Vermont Association for Mental Health and Addiction Recovery

The Vermont Association for Mental Health and Addiction recovery was founded in 1939 by a group that was surprisingly visionary: The Montpelier Ladies Garden Club. These women saw the need for radical social change in the way that mental health was treated. They believed that we should treat mental health for what it is — a health issue. Nothing more, nothing less. No different from any other aspect of human health. In their honor, the public face of our organization is “PEAR.” One of the great gardening trends of their era was the cultivation of pear trees. A symbol of health, growth and bounty. Over the years, we have grown to become the state's oldest and largest public health organizations working on some of the most critical issues facing Vermont. As a non-profit, we are lucky to have such generous support from the community, the state and philanthropy.