From left, Sherri Bensley, Jenell VonBuren, Sue Gagne, and Peter Mittiga work the Genesee, Orleans, Wyoming (GOW) CARES Alliance table Friday during the second annual Community Mental Health Awareness event in downtown Batavia. They handed out mental health-related information and some light-hearted materials, including a boxed “emotional support pickle” and a simple but effective “Be Kind” button.
Photo by Joanne Beck
There seemed to be activities — cutting of ribbons, grand openings, protests — in all sections of the city on May Day, including the second annual Community Mental Health Awareness event.
One of the goals of Mental Health Awareness month (during May) is to reduce, and ideally eliminate, the stigma associated with mental health challenges through better education, access to resources, sharing of one’s own story, and showing a little kindness instead of fear or misunderstanding toward someone’s struggle. GOW CARES Alliance was equipped with “Be Kind” buttons at its table to help move that along.
Individuals shared their personal journeys of dealing with and learning from mental health issues — and how local resources can help.
Key goals of the month are to:
Reduce stigma: Breaking down shame and barriers to treatment.Raise awareness: Educating the public about signs and symptoms of mental health conditions.Encourage early action: Promoting early intervention to reduce severity.Promote access to care: Highlighting available resources and fostering supportive environments.Supporting holistic health: Recognizing that mental health is tied to overall well-being.Advocacy: Pushing for better, accessible, and affordable mental health services.
Social worker Heather Burnell, left, rallied fellow Batavia High School students and staff together for a field trip to City Hall Friday to check out the Community Mental Health Awareness activities going on. Everyone walked away a winner, with at least one or more gift baskets from basket raffles, and handouts from several vendors set up around the front of the downtown Batavia site. Teacher Jeremy Mettler, center, said they just wanted to check it out to see what resources were on hand with information.
Photo by Joanne Beck
Photo by Joanne Beck