Idexx founder David Shaw, Goldie Hawn team up on children's mental health
Dec. 9—David Evans Shaw, the Maine entrepreneur and founder of Westbrook-based Idexx Laboratories Inc., is teaming up with Goldie Hawn's philanthropy to provide mental health wellness services and training for young people in several Maine schools, Shaw said Friday.
Shaw is donating funds to bring Hawn's MindUP program to Maine, an effort that was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a statement by Shaw's investment firm, Black Point Group. The funding amount was not disclosed.
MindUP is an evidence-based program designed to spur pro-social behavior, decrease aggression and help young people form healthy relationships. Hawn's foundation started the initiative in 2003 to respond to the trauma of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
The program teaches students about how their brains work, how to regulate their emotions and to provide pathways to escape despair, according to the program's website. The curriculum is available to educators online.
In addition to launching Idexx, Shaw co-founded Vets First Choice, a veterinary technology company that later merged with a New York animal-health business to become Covetrus Inc. His investment business, Black Point Group, is based in Portland.
