Just a reminder that in recognition of Mental Illness Awareness Week, MHAM is hosting the Celebrating Recovery education event on Tuesday, October 5 at the Ramada Plaza in Minneapolis. The event will begin at 9:30 a.m. and conclude at 3 p.m. We would love to see you there! If you register before October 5, admission is $15. At the door admission is $20. Your admission includes presentations, a Wellness Fair, a Steps To Wellness self-care kit, and lunch.

This will be a great event for individuals living with mental illnesses, their family members and friends, and mental health providers. Michael Trangle, MD will speak about holistic care and staying healthy and Minnesota 10 x 10 and the DIAMOND program. Kim Lutes will share her experiences with the mental health system and the importance of self-advocacy. Brain Doran will discuss ways in which family members and friends can support a loved one who is living with a mental illness. Brett Dumke will provide an overview of the brand new Steps to Wellness self-care kits. Ed Eide will give examples of how individuals can share their stories to influence public policy.

The Steps to Wellness kits have been developed with support from an educational grant from Lilly USA, LLC, a charitable contribution from Janssen, Division of Ortho-McNeil-Janssen Pharmaceutical, Inc., a grant from Park Nicollet Foundation Healthy Community, and a grant from Pfizer Healthcare. The kits contain tools to help individuals manage their health and learn skills to advocate for themselves when working with medical professionals and social service providers. After the event, the kits will be available for order from the MHAM website.

Tickets to this event are still available. Please see the Celebrating Recovery page on our website to register online. Scholarships are available. To arrange for a scholarship, please contact Ed Eide at 612-843-4868, ext. 1 or edeide at mentalhealthmn.org.

By Ed Eide

While many mental health services are delivered through county or private providers, State Operated Services (SOS) forms an important part of the mental health system in Minnesota. Recent legislation and unallotments from the Governor have created uncertainty around the future of SOS. What started out as a partial reorganization has turned into a far-reaching redesign intended to cut around $15 million from the budget.

While we agree that these services could be provided differently, we strongly believe that such significant changes must be vetted through dialogue and shared decision making with those affected by the decisions, including consumers, family members, community providers, counties, hospitals, and other stakeholders.

We’ve pressed hard to make sure that consumer voices are heard when these changes are considered. In response, SOS has agreed to hold a series of meetings around the state to gather information and hear feedback. We hope that many of you will take the opportunity to attend these meetings.

Dates and locations have been set to receive community feedback, although some details are still pending.  To find out more, please visit our calendar of events or call us at 612-331-6840 or 1-800-862-1799.

We’re attending as many meetings as possible, but we also need feedback from consumers and family members so that we can work to ensure you’re being heard. If you go to a meeting, and have comments or information on how it went, please contact me. I can be reached at the phone numbers above or by email: [email protected].

-Ed

Thanks to all of you who have celebrated 70 years of mental health education and advocacy in Minnesota with us this year! We are grateful for your ongoing support!

2009 has been very productive:

• In January, we introduced new vision and mission statements and established new principles of service.
• In February, we introduced a new newsletter, The Voice, published 5 times per year.
• In May, we hosted the first event of the Gloria Segal Education Forum, Taking the Lid off the Black Box of Mental Illness.
• In July, we launched a brand new website.
• In August, we hosted the second event of the Gloria Segal Education Forum, Managing Stress During Tough Times.
• In September, we welcomed two new staff members, Ben Ashley-Wurtmann and Anna Raudenbush.
• In November, we celebrated our 70th anniversary with a Birthday Gala.
• Throughout the year, we continued to provide individual advocacy to people living with mental illnesses and to participate in issues advocacy through our work on the Mental Health Legislative Network and with Local Mental Health Advisory Councils throughout Minnesota.

If you are interested in making a year-end gift to MHAM to help us continue our work in 2010, here’s an easy way to do it! MHAM has its own page on GiveMN.org. Click on the button to visit our page to make a quick and easy online donation. All proceeds will come directly to MHAM.

We will be taking a little time off during the holidays. Our offices will close at noon on Thursday, December 24 and reopen at 9 am on Monday, December 28. We will also close at noon on Thursday, December 31 and reopen at 9 am on Monday, January 4. Advocates will be available all other days throughout the holidays. If you need to speak to an advocate, please give us a call at 612-331-6840 or 800-862-1799.

We hope you are having a healthy and joyous holiday season, and we wish you a very happy new year!