Meeting set to get local NAMI chapter going

SANDUSKY — Local residents who want to help establish a local chapter of NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, are invited to attend a Sept. 30 meeting. A volunteer recruitment meeting will be at 5:30 p.m. Sept. 30 at the Erie County Services Center, 2900 Columbus Ave., in the large conference room of the first floor. The NAMI chapter needs people to come forward and help, said Julie Hammond, a NAMI Erie County board member. "It is a decades-long, grassroots organization that helps to educate families about mental illness as well as provide support systems for both those diagnosed with a mental illness and those who care about someone that is diagnosed," Hammond said. Getting a NAMI chapter up and running would be a big asset for the community, said Dr. Michelle Clinger, clinical director for Firelands Counseling and Recovery Services. "NAMI is a wonderful support mechanism for people struggling with mental illness and their family members," Clinger said. "They are not judgmental and they have great ideas." The new chapter is focused on helping in four areas, Hammond said. "Currently we are in the planning stages and have four distinct categories we are focusing on: family support, peer support, children's programs and anti-stigma," Hammond said. "We are hoping to get 12 to 20 dedicated volunteers to divide among these committees, Hammond said. "If you or a loved one has a mental health diagnosis and you would like information about volunteering, please attend our volunteer recruitment meeting," Dealing with the pandemic made it harder to get the chapter going, but volunteers are determined to move forward, Hammond said. "Over the last two years, a handful of people dedicated to bringing understanding and support for mental illness to our area have been working to get a local NAMI chapter up and running," she said. "With the pandemic year we have had, our group has hit a few roadblocks but we are determined to move forward."