Help Us Care So We Can Better Care For You

by

We are the We Care People, and we need you – everyone – to help us care. 

A lot of people don’t really know who we are when I tell them I work for the We Care People.  When I say it’s the Mental Health and Recovery Services Board, they usually start to recognize better who we are and what we do.

This election is about getting the word out to everyone, exactly who we are, what we do, and why it is so important that we have the funding we need to help the people in our communities.

One organization which is funded by the We Care People is PVFF, or Partnership for Violence Free Families.  PVFF is made up of over 40 organizations which range in purposes from preventing bullying to preventing drug and alcohol abuse.

This is the key.  Prevention.  This levy will provide each organization which is funded by the MHRSB what they need to better serve our communities by preventing something like substance abuse, as opposed to treating it.  What we want, ideally, are communities that are thriving, full of individuals who are not addicts being treated for substance abuse, but rather, people who might be seeking resources that will help them cope with life issues in a healthy way.  We will be closer to achieving this dream with the passing of the levy.

Something else PVFF does is provide support groups for our communities.  I am a facilitator for one of the support groups, Shelter from the Storm.  This group is for people who are depressed or bipolar, and the group has been meeting for about 16 months now.  I can say from my own experience that this group has helped me so much.  These people have become my second family.  Even though I facilitate the group, I need it as much as any of the people who attend.  And I know how much some of them need it.  I know that this group has saved a life or two since it started.  I think it’s saved mine many times.  We just meet up and talk about what’s going on in everyone’s lives.  Our frustrations, our emotions, our depression.  Our depression.  It’s the one place we can all go and feel safe, and feel understood.  I look forward to my support group every time.  I love these people.

So that is another example of what can continue to be offered through PVFF, which is funded by MHRSB, which, of course, is why this levy matters.

It is so vital that we start talking about the importance of mental health.  That we start understanding a little better what would best serve our communities regarding mental health.  That we start caring about mental health.

On November 5, help us care.