Team Up for Hope

As a copywriter for the Green Team, one of my jobs is to do write-ups of the various webinars held by the company.  On October  10, 2018 a special webinar was held on Facebook.  Team Up for Hope: The Green Team Live with NAMI Orange County, NY.   For those unfamiliar with the organization, NAMI stands for the National Alliance on Mental Illness.   It is the largest grassroots organization in the nation dedicated to building better lives for the millions of Americans affected by mental illness.  It operates on national, state and local levels by volunteers who are themselves impacted by mental illness.  And these volunteers go through extensive training to offer education, support and advocacy to those of us who have had our lives turned upside down.

So why is a real estate company spending time talking about mental illness? Because the Green Team cares about what happens in the communities we’re part of and which we serve. Every year we raise money for a local charity. This year, our committee felt that we should do something more than hold a fundraiser. We decided to team up with NAMI for an initiative to help end the stigma surrounding mental illness and to provide much needed information to our communities. Thus, this webinar was held, featuring two members of NAMI Orange who presented the personal side of mental illness as well as information and the services NAMI offers.

About our guest panelists

Marcy Felter and Sheila Sutton are working with the Green Team’s Team Up for Hope Committee, educating us on mental illness and the services that NAMI offers.  We are also working with Annie Glynn, President,  and Jeri Doherty, Treasurer, of NAMI Sussex.  Marcy and Sheila volunteered to do the webinar on behalf of both NAMI Affiliates.

Marcy is Chair of the Education Committee, teaches the NAMI Basics and Family to Family Courses, is a Family Support Group Facilitator and serves as a volunteer for Families Helping Families at Orange Regional Medical Center.  She is also teaching a new NEABPD (National Education Alliance on Borderline Personality Disorder) class on Borderline Personality Disorder.  Hosted by NAMI, this is the first class of its kind being offered in Orange County.

Sheila is a member of the Board of Directors and manages the lending library.  She also teaches the NAMI Basics and Family to Family Courses, is a Family Support Group Facilitator and serves as a volunteer for Families Helping Families at Orange Regional Medical Center. In the webinar, Sheila shares her powerful story of the effects of mental illness on her son and her family and how NAMI  changed her life.

To write or not to write, that is the question

As I watched the webinar, I realized that I could not do justice to what I was hearing and seeing.  To do so would be to rob it of its power, its intent, and its ability to reach people.  So I am going to ask everyone reading this to watch the webinar.  Spend a few minutes learning about the lives many of you, your family, your friends and your neighbors are living.  There are people living in the shadows, afraid of discrimination, bullying, being deserted by friends and family… being judged.  Imagine living in fear for a loved one, not understanding what had happened, where that person went, what to do when things got out of control and scary…    And then being thrown a lifeline by people like the two women talking to us. And that is exactly what NAMI is, a lifeline.

Want to learn more?  Here are some facts and resources from NAMI.ORG

Mental Health Facts in America

Mental Health Facts Children & Teens

Mental Health Conditions

Navigating a Mental Health Crisis

Taking Charge of your Mental Health

Want to Know How to Help a Friend?

Where to go for help

Local Nami Affiliates:

Orange County, NY

Email:  namiorangeny@warwick.net

Website:  namiorangeny.org

Telephone:  845-956-NAMI (6264) or Toll-free: 1-866-906-NAMI (6264)

FaceBook:  @namiorangecountyny, NAMI Orange Discussion Group

Sussex County, NJ

Email: nami.sussex@gmail.com

Website: www.nami-sussex-nj.org

Telephone: 9793-214-0632

Facebook:  @namisussex

NAMI National Helpline:

1-800-950-NAMI (6264) or info@nami.org

Crisis Text Line:  Text 741741 from anywhere in the USA to text with a trained Crisis Counselor

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline:

Call 1-800-273-8255

Online Chat:  https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/chat

Mental Health First Aid Class – to learn how to identify, understand and respond to symptoms of mental illnesses and substance abuse disorders in your community

Website: https://www.mentalhealthfirstaid.org/