Background
In early 2020, as the shadow of the Covid-19 pandemic began to loom over the United States, NAMI Ventura County endeavored to create something new. From the beginning, it was clear this pandemic would change the face and scope of mental health. We felt it was our job as community mental health leaders to proactively respond.
NAMI Ventura County leadership and staff wanted to create a program accessible to any person, no matter their experience or knowledge base around mental health. That meant creating a program suited to Covid culture: time-friendly, adaptable to virtual environments, enjoyable for participants (read: not boring or overwhelming) and packed with resources accessible during a global pandemic.
This new product needed to be rooted in the foundational aspects of NAMI curriculums and have the flexibility to serve any, and every, member of the community.
Philosophy
The Community Cares Workshop is designed to captivate and engage through conversational tone and candid, multi-dimensional storytelling elements. The two-hour format integrates five modules and a 35-page participant workbook and is used effectively with a diverse spectrum of audiences. Community Cares is not a family program or a peer program or a provider program. It is not a youth program or an adult program. Community Cares is an everybody program.
Structure
- Presenters (2): Family Member & Peer
- Time Frame: 2 Hours
- Location: Virtual or In-person
- Format: Script & Storytelling (mixed)
- Tone: Conversational
- Language: English/Spanish
The mission of NAMI Ventura County is to provide advocacy, support, education and resources for individuals and families affected by mental illness, inclusive of all, without discrimination and stigma.
NAMI Ventura County was founded in 1981 as The Ventura County Chapter of the California Association for Family & Friends of the Mentally Ill and became a 501c3 nonprofit organization in 1984. In 2000, the name was officially changed to NAMI Ventura County. Now NAMI VC facilitates a wide variety of programs and advocacy activities including programming in English and Spanish.
Kimberly Quinn-Colvin is a writer, artist, public speaker and long-time NAMI Ventura County advocate. Kimberly earned a BA in Journalism from the University of Maine and worked as a newspaper reporter and editor before earning an MS in Photography from Brooks Institute of Photography. Her graduate thesis work revolved around evaluating curriculum needs and building writing curriculums for photojournalism students.
Kimberly left the journalism industry to deal with the fallout of trauma and mental illness leading to her career as a mental health advocate. Kimberly is a true multi-hyphenate who passionately believes in the power of storytelling –– through words and images –– to bring people together. She is fiercely anti-status quo and lights up when given the opportunity to creatively problem solve.
Program Materials
What’s the workbook? The workbook is a companion to the Community Cares seminar. It gives space to explore and expand on the tools our facilitators teach during the workshop. These pages are for participant notes, mental wellness exploration and exercises.
Reflection Questions: During the workshop, participants hear a lot of information. It might shed some light or open some doors in their mind. Many pages of this workbook include reflection questions. Participants can fill them in during the workshop or spend some time with them after.
Taking it Digital: Some sections of the workbook include smartphone apps participants can take advantage of for information and mental wellness tools. NAMI Ventura County does not recommend or endorse any specific app or app developer. At the time of publication, these apps were available on the operating systems and at the costs listed. Those details are subject to change.
Diagnoses: The Community Cares Workshop only covers the most common mental health conditions. Presenters are not medical professionals and neither diagnosis participants nor recommend specific treatments. Symptoms lasting more than two weeks should be evaluated by a medical professional.
What’s the workbook? The workbook is a companion to the Community Cares seminar. It gives space to explore and expand on the tools our facilitators teach during the workshop. These pages are for participant notes, mental wellness exploration and exercises.
Reflection Questions: During the workshop, participants hear a lot of information. It might shed some light or open some doors in their mind. Many pages of this workbook include reflection questions. Participants can fill them in during the workshop or spend some time with them after.
Taking it Digital: Some sections of the workbook include smartphone apps participants can take advantage of for information and mental wellness tools. NAMI Ventura County does not recommend or endorse any specific app or app developer. At the time of publication, these apps were available on the operating systems and at the costs listed. Those details are subject to change.
Diagnoses: The Community Cares Workshop only covers the most common mental health conditions. Presenters are not medical professionals and neither diagnosis participants nor recommend specific treatments. Symptoms lasting more than two weeks should be evaluated by a medical professional.
Experience The Community Cares Workshop
Following the 2022 EDLE conference, NAMI Ventura County welcomes interested Executive Directors to attend a Community Cares Workshop. Please register to be notified when the next date is scheduled. If there is sufficient interest, NAMI VC may schedule a Community Cares Workshop specifically for attendees of the EDLE conference.
