TAKE FIVE!

January 19, 2021

Jenny Sanchez:
Hello, I’m Jenny Sanchez. Welcome to Sullivan 180 Presents Take Five!. Our guest today is Lori Schneider from NAMI Sullivan County, New York. NAMI stands for National Alliance on Mental Illness. Lori, thank you for joining me. Can you please introduce yourself, your title and tell us a little bit about your organization?

Lori Schneider:
Sure. I’m the executive director of NAMI Sullivan County and I’ve been here since October of 1988. The organization has been in the County since 1983. And as you said, we are the local affiliate of the National Alliance on Mental Illness. Our name used to be Friends and Advocates for Mental Health. So a lot of people do remember us from that, but we’ve always been the local NAMI affiliates. We’re primarily a family support and advocacy organization for people living with mental illness and their families

Jenny Sanchez:
What type of programs and services do you offer?

Lori Schneider:
We offer some programs that other NAMI’s don’t necessarily do, but at the heart of everything that we do is that underlying mission of family support and advocacy. So we have family support groups. We have a suicide bereavement group. We have peer support groups, our NAMI connection, all of those are being done virtually now. And I know I’m probably skipping a little bit ahead, but normally pre COVID, and god willing, soon they would be live meetings. At various times during the month we also have a computer program that we run. Compeer means companion peer. And it’s a program that recruits volunteers from the community, caring men and women to be matched in a one-to-one friendship with someone who is recovering from mental illness and the compeer volunteer and their friend will agree to get together once a week or a few times a month and share in activities that they both enjoy through each other. They both become better people, sort of like a big brothers, big sisters idea, but all with adults in our area. We also have an advocacy program, which serves people again prior to COVID. We would go out in the community and be doing things on a weekly basis. We had groups that were meeting for people who had dual-diagnosis. So DTR, double trouble in recovery, people who have a diagnosis of both a mental illness and a chemical addiction. We’re doing all of our meetings, all of our support groups and activities are all virtual now because of COVID.

Jenny Sanchez:
How has your programming and services changed due to COVID-19

Lori Schneider:
For the most part we would do our support groups live, and obviously we can’t do that now. So we have two monthly family support groups that we’re meeting once a month in Monticello once a month in port Jervis. Now we’re just meeting still twice a month, but it’s open to anyone. And it’s the third and fourth Tuesday of each month from 6:30 till 8. We have our suicide bereavement group, which meets once a month at first Wednesday from 6:30 to 8. And that’s open to anyone who’s lost a loved one to suicide. We have our NAMI connection group, which is our peer support group, which meets twice monthly, every other Monday. And that’s led by peers by people who themselves are in recovery from a psychiatric illness. We also did, a little bit different fundraising this year because our fundraising in the past has been things where people would get together like a golf tournament. We’re doing a taste of Sullivan where we put together 21 restaurants and eateries all around the County who are taking part in a discount card. So a Taste of Sullivan is 21 different restaurants from Hurleyville to Jeffersonville, Liberty, Monticello, Narrowsburg, Rock Hill, Roscoe, and Wurtzsboro, who are taking part in either offering a discount on any order take out or eat in or are offering a dessert with purchase or a glass of wine or a glass of craft beer with purchase. So the different restaurants are offering different things and they’ve been amazing. We do have a Facebook page. And so there would be a link on there. We were starting to sell these in December, a stocking stuffer and gifts for yourself or for someone else, but they are being sold throughout the year. And they’re good for the year. Anytime from January 1st to December 31st unlimited use at any of the 21 restaurants that are taking part,

Jenny Sanchez:
Is there anything else or any other way County residents can, can help us support your organization?

Lori Schneider:
Absolutely. We are a private not-for-profit organization. We’re a 501(c3). So any donations that people would like to make, whether it’s through a Taste of Sullivan that we’re doing as a fundraiser or a straight donation in memory of someone or in honor of a special event, we would be very happy to receive. Also if you have someone that you love who is living with a mental illness, or you yourself are living with a mental illness, please take part in the activities that we do. We’re here to support you. And it’s not something people think mental illness and there’s a lot of misunderstanding and myths and stigma. And a lot of people don’t reach out for help or take a very long time before they do. And so what I would like for everybody to go away with understanding is that mental illnesses, psychiatric illnesses are as real as any other physical illness. The brain is an organ of the body that’s susceptible to illness, just like the heart or the liver or the pancreas. And so it shouldn’t be a shame or a stigma to say that you have yourself or someone in your family has a mental illness. These are very common illnesses and they are as real as any other physical illnesses, they’re flaws in chemistry, not character. So if you know someone who has been diagnosed, you’re not alone, please reach out to us. We have family support groups. We have peer support groups. If, god forbid, you lost someone to suicide, we have that group as well. I’m actually one of the facilitators. I lost my first cousin to suicide 26 years ago. And so some of us have been trained by the American Foundation On Suicide Prevention. And when we found that it was a need, that was not being met elsewhere in the County we started doing those groups.

Jenny Sanchez:
How can people stay in touch with NAMI. What is the link for NAMI?

Lori Schneider:
Our Facebook page is NAMI Sullivan County comma, N Y. So you can find us there and hop on. We do keep it updated with different things that we’re doing. The information about a Taste of Sullivan is there, the information about all of our meetings is there on a regular basis. And if anybody needs to get in touch with us, you can call 794- 1029. We’re located in Monticello, but we do serve the entire County.

Jenny Sanchez:
Okay. That’s wonderful. Lori, thank you so much for being here and for sharing your great programs with us.

Lori Schneider:
Thank you, Jenny, for this opportunity.