NAMI Pine Belt

Greetings to all NAMI family and friends! This year has seen us “digging out” from the pandemic trauma. Our affiliate continues to produce meaningful moments through our monthly meetings and our interactions with many members of our community. We collaborate with law enforcement officials and with the professionals from our community mental health center, Pine Belt Mental Healthcare Resources, to increase the awareness of police and sheriff departments on ways to help people experiencing mental health crises. Our most recent Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) class was held in Purvis in July, cosponsored with our Region 12 Community Mental Health Center.

Our membership is steadily growing—in fact, we’ve tripled it to 50 active members. Our Affiliate President, Mavis Creagh, has challenged us to collaborate with other community agencies to strengthen the overall impact of our mission. There is much to learn in the mental health arena, and our monthly guest speakers provide us with an increased understanding of advances in the field. For example, Dr. Venkat Baskararajan, the Medical Director of Pine Belt Mental Healthcare Resources, spoke to us regarding his creative therapeutic approach to community mental health. Mr. Michael Marks and Ms. Katelyn Brown described the role of “Mississippi United for Health” and its impact on our state’s collaboration among health agencies. Judge Wes Curry, the City of Hattiesburg’s administrator of the Municipal and Behavior Health Courts, and his able assistant, Ms. Khadijah Muhammad, gave us insight into the functioning of those vital programs. In June, Judge Carol Jones Russell briefed us on her vision for the future of the Forrest County Youth Court. Our July meeting hosted the top CIT Coordinator in the nation, Linda Foley. She brought us up to date on the exciting grant programs that are assisting vulnerable individuals in our community. Indeed, our guest speakers are doing so much to enrich the mental health programs in our state.

A major event occurred again this year when the City of Hattiesburg renewed its commitment as a major sponsor of NAMI. Our local affiliate presented a certificate of sponsorship to Mayor Toby Barker at a City Council Meeting on February 20th. The collaborative spirit in our city is very refreshing.

Two of our members, Joe and Sandy Kinnan, are representing NAMI-MS on the Governor’s Challenge Suicide Prevention Committee this year. Their goal is to significantly reduce or eliminate suicides among military active duty, veterans, and military families.

We are naturally planning for our NAMI-MS Pine Belt Affiliate Walk on October 9th. Our Walk Kick-Off was held on August 10 at the Hattiesburg Train Depot. We welcomed many NAMI supporters (sponsors, walkers, city officials, and other friends of mental health). We hope to use the donated funds to sponsor mental health first aid courses, CIT training, Behavioral Health Court graduations, and several NAMI signature program events.

We were extremely impressed with the awesome job that our NAMI-MS State Office did with the development and presentation of the State Conference in May and the Minority Mental Health Conference in July. The State Office team is filled with talented, can-do people who inspire all of us to commit ourselves to the NAMI mission and to the people we serve. Recently, we were quite inspired by the Mississippi PBS program on Mental Health Issues that hosted Mrs. Wendy Bailey, the Executive Director of the MS Department of Mental Health, and our own NAMI State Executive Director, Sitaniel Wimbley, as well as other mental health specialists. The panelists were exceptional in discussing the mental health challenges and potential solutions in Mississippi.

Until next time, we wish you wonderful mental health “happenings” with many victories. We consider you key companions on our journey.

Submitted by Joe Kinnan, Ph.D.

NAMI Pine Belt Affiliate Steering Committee meets at Depot Venue to plan the NAMIWalk Kick-Off scheduled for August 10. (Depot rendering displayed on wall.) Left to Right: Cathy Ventura, Maureen Martin, Mavis Creagh, Sandy Kinnan.