Thanks to each of you who joined our week of celebration of healing and recovery through the arts. Our mission at the Mental Health & Recovery Services Board is to "Reach out and provide vital prevention and treatment services to every resident." We believe that reaching out requires us to look for new partnerships, imaginative approaches, and a commitment to more holistic and integrated care.

So we chose the arts as our theme for Mental Illness Awareness Week 2007. There’s just something about the creativity and expressiveness of the arts - whether it is the visual arts, literary arts, performing arts, or some combination - that helps people with mental illnesses get well.

There have been some great new partnerships that have come out of our journey into the arts. We appreciate the support of local arts organizations, the Lima City Schools, the Allen County Council on Aging, and many others who planned and staged this event. When we make these kinds of connections, we chip away at the stigma experience by people with mental illnesses and their families. We celebrate the contributions of all.

We invite you to read the powerful readings shared at our Vigil, look at the pictures of the volunteers who lent their gifts to our events, and enjoy the art work. Most of all, we invite you to stop and reflect on the restoration and recovery that happens when people are able to be themselves and make beautiful works of art.

“Suicide and mental illness take an enormous toll on families, friends and neighbors, leaving communities across the country devastated by this national health problem,” AFSP Executive Director Robert Gebbia said. “The Out of the Darkness Community Walks will unite thousands of people with common goals, preventing suicide and ending the stigma that surrounds depression and other mental illnesses.”

Many event participants will be walking because they, a friend or family member, suffers with a mood disorder or have lost someone to suicide. There is no fundraising requirement for these walks, but participants are encouraged to raise at least $150 for the cause.

The Mental Health & Recovery Services Board will host the annual meeting of the Housing Consortium and will unveil the Blueprint to End Homelessness on Tuesday, October 2, 2007 at 4:00 p.m. The Blueprint is the product of more than six months of work by the Allen County Continuum of Care, a local coalition of more than 25 community agencies. The document will be filed with the National Alliance to End Homelessness, a nonprofit organization committed to ending homelessness in the United States.

The local group began their planning initiative with a 30-day study of homelessness in Allen County. That survey revealed that on any given day, there are nearly 300 Allen County residents who are without a permanent home. The Blueprint to End Homelessness identifies key strategies to combat the problem, and will help establish an interagency approach to assisting persons who are homeless find safe, affordable housing options.

“This is the first time that all of these agencies have come together to create real strategies to help people right here in our own community,” stated Alice Giesken, Operations Director for the Mental Health & Recovery Services Board. “The Blueprint really reflects our local needs and resources. That was only possible because of the great participation we had in the planning process.” Giesken served as the co-chairperson of the Consortium. Mike Schoenhofer, Executive Director of the Board will present the plan.

The plan follows the format outlined by the National Alliance to End Homelessness and focuses on three main areas: closing the “front door”, opening the “back door”, and building local infrastructure. Closing the front door requires that established programs to combat poverty be held accountable for reaching persons who are threatened with homelessness and preventing the problem before it happens.

To open the back door, a community must develop and subsidize an adequate supply of safe, affordable, and appropriate housing. These options may exist on a continuum from shelters to subsidized rents to full independent living. The community must address the issue of those who are chronically homeless, which in Allen County could be more than 100 people.

The core of the plan identifies policies and approaches to building local infrastructure which mobilizes the resources necessary to solve the problem of homelessness. Availability of living-wage jobs, access to mental health and substance abuse treatment, and assistance from a range of community services are all part of building a healthy infrastructure.

For more information about the Blueprint to End Homelessness contact Alice Giesken at the Mental Health & Recovery Services Board at 419-222-5120 ext. 24, or attend the Community Forum on October 2, 2007 at 4:00 p.m. at the Mental Health & Recovery Services Board Office, 1541 Allentown Road, Lima.

For the complete document click here -->   Blueprint to End Homelessness