Meet the Schraders

In their five decades of public service, Sandy and Dennis R. Schrader have seen the struggles of those affected by mental health conditions. They’ve seen, too, the challenges health providers face in trying to help those individuals. 

Now, as they continue their service in the private sector, the couple considered what else they could contribute in addition to their professional efforts. They have continued to advocate for and support mental health services, including by making a bequest to Sheppard Pratt, the country’s largest private, nonprofit provider of mental health, substance use, developmental disability, special education, and social services.

“It’s evident to me that because of the way Sheppard Pratt operates and achieves outcomes, there’s something that Sheppard Pratt is doing that others don’t either have the capacity for or the inclination to focus on,” says Dennis. “We need more of what Sheppard Pratt does.”

The Schraders first became aware of Sheppard Pratt in their professional lives. 

For Sandy, that encounter happened after she was elected as the first female state senator from Howard County, Maryland, in 2001. In her previous role as legislative aide to Senator Martin Madden, Sandy had been exposed to the complicated issue of homelessness, witnessing firsthand how many of those experiencing homelessness have mental health conditions and understanding that traditional hospitals do not have the ability to meet their needs. 

But it was in her role as a state senator and as a member of the Education, Health, and Environmental Affairs Committee that she got a deep look into the field. “I dealt with many of the issues surrounding mental health–not only the resources and the money that were needed, but the compassion around, how do you handle this? How do you help families? How do you help the individuals? How do you work with the community?”

“That’s when I first heard of Sheppard Pratt,” she adds, “and I always felt that this was an amazing group of people that were trying so hard to address the issue.”

After her senate service ended, Sandy worked as the director for intergovernmental affairs alongside Allan Kittleman, then the Howard County executive. During this time, she met with two Sheppard Pratt executives, now both retired: CEO Dr. Steven Sharfstein and Senior Vice President of Strategy and Business Development Bonnie Katz, who were seeking support from the county for a new, larger, updated campus.

“The opioid crisis was coming in heavy at the time, and we were getting calls constantly from people and from the medical community, because local hospitals didn’t have the capacity to care for individuals that had issues, especially those in opioid crisis,” she says. 

Sandy helped develop a plan that provided county funding over four years to support the creation of Sheppard Pratt’s award-winning Baltimore/Washington Campus. 

By the time Dennis became Maryland’s first Homeland Security director in 2003, he had been aware of the work Sheppard Pratt was doing for decades through previous roles at University of Maryland Medical System, a long-time partner of Sheppard Pratt, but hadn’t had the opportunity to work directly with the organization.

Through his roles as Homeland Security director, the state’s chief operating officer and Medicaid director, and most recently as Maryland’s secretary of health, he became acutely aware of mental and behavioral health challenges and Sheppard Pratt’s crucial involvement in the field.

“I worked very closely with Sheppard Pratt for about three or four years and was incredibly impressed by their capabilities,” Dennis says. “Sheppard Pratt leads the nation in research and tertiary care.”

“It’s very clear,” he adds, “that there is a level of care at Sheppard Pratt that goes way beyond what’s available at acute facilities.”

Sheppard Pratt’s comprehensive continuum of care provides support throughout someone’s journey with the organization, whether that support takes place at one of its hospital locations, through a community clinic, or even at home. 

The Schraders hope their planned gift will help Sheppard Pratt continue to be a resource not just for individuals with mental healthcare needs, but for the broader behavioral health field.

“Where the work really needs to be done is the practice in the field,” Dennis says. “We’re providing a gift that we’re hoping will provide resources for clinicians to do deeper work in trying to advance the frontier of the field.” 

As much as their professional interactions with Sheppard Pratt convinced them of the organization’s value, the Schraders say it was when a family member needed mental health services that they gained a deeper understanding of the power of Sheppard Pratt’s work.