Be Well Circle, a Charleston startup nonprofit, wants to help people afford holistic health care, from mental health support to nutrition and energy healing, that insurance may not cover.
The organization brings together practitioners in conventional medicine, naturopathic care, nutrition and energy-healing to make their services more accessible. It also aims to help patients navigate specialists and other parts of the health care system that can become difficult to manage alone.
Dr. Shannon Kennedy, an internal medicine and pediatric physician at Remedy Wellness in Johns Island, said the idea grew after years of watching patients benefit from combining conventional medicine with holistic care. The problem was that not everyone could afford those additional services.
“We were seeing all of our less wealthy patients falling off because everything in this world has gotten so expensive that people can’t afford the extra,” Kennedy said.
For her longtime patient, 59-year-old Claude Wring of James Island, the kind of individualized care that Be Well Circle hopes to make more accessible has already made a difference.
“I was at the end of my ropes,” Wring said in an interview. “I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t have any real help there to listen to my story.”
Wring said he has dealt with chronic health problems for decades. As his care became more complicated, Kennedy and her staff helped him navigate specialists and referrals while advocating for his needs — a type of support Kennedy said patients often do not receive through insurance.
“She took the time with me, the time that nobody else took with me ever,” he said. “She listened to me. That meant a whole lot to me. It still does.”
A broader approach
Wring’s experience reflects the broader approach behind Be Well Circle, which brings together practitioners with different backgrounds rather than focusing on one form of treatment.
Kennedy works alongside naturopathic doctor and nutritionist Sherri Jacobs, combining conventional and naturopathic approaches to patient care. The team also includes Pavan Lennon, an energy healer and shamanic practitioner at Remedy who volunteers with Be Well Circle.
Kennedy said patients have sought Lennon’s services for chronic pain, anxiety, depression, burnout, grief and end-of-life issues. She recalled some patients returning from sessions and describing the experience as “life changing.”
But there are gaps in care, such as mental health care, organizers said. Many holistic mental health professionals that they refer patients to do not accept insurance, which they said can put treatment financially out of reach.
Wring said mental health was rarely discussed in the Black community where he grew up and was not something he had previously considered But after receiving mental health support, he said he began recognizing struggles he had carried without fully realizing their impact.
“It brought out a lot,” he said. “Stuff that I didn’t even know that I was dealing with.”
Another gap is end-of-life support. People can spend months or years living with terminal illnesses before entering hospice, while they and their families may still need help preparing for what comes next.
Kennedy said the nonprofit plans to fund resources that can offer physical and emotional support during that period, giving patients more preparation and comfort in the final chapter of their lives.
Turning those goals into services will depend on fundraising.
Debbie Kirby, Be Well Circle board member and treasurer who lives on Johns Island, said the organization currently relies primarily on private donations.
“We’re just right now ramping up the donation process,” Kirby said. “We’ve got a matching donator who is willing to match up to a sizable amount of money.”
Before the nonprofit was formed, practitioners sometimes treated patients for free or traded services with other providers in town. Organizers said rising costs made that model difficult to sustain.
Community donations would instead allow patients to receive services while compensating the practitioners providing them.
The organization held its first board meeting in February and eventually plans to pursue grants and partnerships with other nonprofits. It is also starting monthly community events, including an October donation-based dream circle featuring meditation led by Lennon.
The group’s long-term vision includes a physical center where practitioners could provide care, teach classes and bring different approaches to wellness together in one place.
For now, the focus is building the organization in Charleston, growing its network of practitioners and reaching people who might otherwise go without these services.
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