Mental health conference to offer help for those on the road to recovery
GUILFORD – In the effort to draw focus to the struggles, hope and healing of mental illness, advocates in the field are organizing a free public event that will create networking opportunities for those who are on the road to recovery and wellness.
The event, titled “Hope and Healing: Perspectives on Mental Illness 2,” will be held from 1-4:30 p.m. on Saturday, June 6 at the United Presbyterian Church east of Guilford, at the corner of Chenango County Rout 35 and state Highway 8 (near Sidney). Given the success of the first Hope and Healing event held in January, organizers say they’re expecting a good turnout for the follow-up.
“There were over 100 people at our first event. We saw such an overwhelming success and need in the community for this type of information and events that we decided to do it again,” said Jessica Farrell, event organizer and member of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). The Hope and Healing event is an initiative of the Delaware and Otsego County chapters of NAMI.
While NAMI does not have a chapter in Chenango County, organizers are hoping to use the event in order to reach out to Chenango locals, explained Farrell.
“We hope to get it out in the Norwich area because NAMI, which is a grassroots organization, gets some support in the area, but we want to expand on that,” she added. “Mental illness services are very strained and it’s causing a lot of stress in households that are dealing with this issue ... There’s a lot of overlap in mental health care because this is a rural area and there really isn’t a separation of counties, per say, when it comes to services. If someone has an issue in Chenango County, they might end up in Cooperstown or Delaware.”
Hope and Healing will feature guest speakers Jason Paden and Tammy Burrows whose stories of mental health recovery will give insight on managing major and chronic mental illness. They will tell their stories and share the strategies that helped them in their wellness journey, offering inspiration for those who are taking the first steps toward improvement, said Farrell.
“It’s a very hopeful message because they have recovered,” Farrell said. “Recovery with mental illness requires a lot of effort, but it is possible.”
Other presenters will provide information and insight on topics including suicide prevention, family support, resources and service information for Chenango, Delaware and Otsego counties.
In addition to the lectures and networking opportunities, the event will also include the works of four area artists who create around the topic of mental health. Singer and song writer Mary Shepard will perform original music about her own family’s journey toward recovery. A presentation and display by painter David Byrd, a resident of Sidney Center, will feature his work and his book, “Montrose V.A. Hospital 1958-1988.” Byrd’s work was inspired by his 30 years as a night orderly in the psychiatric ward.
Photographer Stefan Foster will also share images from his beautifully haunting series of photographs taken at abandoned mental institutes throughout New York State, Farrell said; and author Ginnah Howard will speak about writing fiction relative to the issue of mental health.
Although “Hope and Healing: Perspectives on Mental Illness 2” is a free public event, seating is limited, so registration is required. To register, call 607-746-3844 or visit eventbrite.com/event/16885333487.
The event, titled “Hope and Healing: Perspectives on Mental Illness 2,” will be held from 1-4:30 p.m. on Saturday, June 6 at the United Presbyterian Church east of Guilford, at the corner of Chenango County Rout 35 and state Highway 8 (near Sidney). Given the success of the first Hope and Healing event held in January, organizers say they’re expecting a good turnout for the follow-up.
“There were over 100 people at our first event. We saw such an overwhelming success and need in the community for this type of information and events that we decided to do it again,” said Jessica Farrell, event organizer and member of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). The Hope and Healing event is an initiative of the Delaware and Otsego County chapters of NAMI.
While NAMI does not have a chapter in Chenango County, organizers are hoping to use the event in order to reach out to Chenango locals, explained Farrell.
“We hope to get it out in the Norwich area because NAMI, which is a grassroots organization, gets some support in the area, but we want to expand on that,” she added. “Mental illness services are very strained and it’s causing a lot of stress in households that are dealing with this issue ... There’s a lot of overlap in mental health care because this is a rural area and there really isn’t a separation of counties, per say, when it comes to services. If someone has an issue in Chenango County, they might end up in Cooperstown or Delaware.”
Hope and Healing will feature guest speakers Jason Paden and Tammy Burrows whose stories of mental health recovery will give insight on managing major and chronic mental illness. They will tell their stories and share the strategies that helped them in their wellness journey, offering inspiration for those who are taking the first steps toward improvement, said Farrell.
“It’s a very hopeful message because they have recovered,” Farrell said. “Recovery with mental illness requires a lot of effort, but it is possible.”
Other presenters will provide information and insight on topics including suicide prevention, family support, resources and service information for Chenango, Delaware and Otsego counties.
In addition to the lectures and networking opportunities, the event will also include the works of four area artists who create around the topic of mental health. Singer and song writer Mary Shepard will perform original music about her own family’s journey toward recovery. A presentation and display by painter David Byrd, a resident of Sidney Center, will feature his work and his book, “Montrose V.A. Hospital 1958-1988.” Byrd’s work was inspired by his 30 years as a night orderly in the psychiatric ward.
Photographer Stefan Foster will also share images from his beautifully haunting series of photographs taken at abandoned mental institutes throughout New York State, Farrell said; and author Ginnah Howard will speak about writing fiction relative to the issue of mental health.
Although “Hope and Healing: Perspectives on Mental Illness 2” is a free public event, seating is limited, so registration is required. To register, call 607-746-3844 or visit eventbrite.com/event/16885333487.
dived wound factual legitimately delightful goodness fit rat some lopsidedly far when.
Slung alongside jeepers hypnotic legitimately some iguana this agreeably triumphant pointedly far
jeepers unscrupulous anteater attentive noiseless put less greyhound prior stiff ferret unbearably cracked oh.
So sparing more goose caribou wailed went conveniently burned the the the and that save that adroit gosh and sparing armadillo grew some overtook that magnificently that
Circuitous gull and messily squirrel on that banally assenting nobly some much rakishly goodness that the darn abject hello left because unaccountably spluttered unlike a aurally since contritely thanks