NAMI members walk to raise awareness about mental illness
The sky was gray and threatening rain Saturday, but that wasn't going to deter members of National Alliance on Mental Illness Butler County from getting their message out. Members of NAMI Butler County gathered in the parking lot of the Bonniebrook Clubhouse, 104 Serene Lane, to walk part of the Butler-Freeport Community Trail to raise awareness and help people understand mental illness.
Wearing “Stop the Stigma” T-shirts, the Butler County participants were part of the national United Day of Hope sponsored by the national NAMI organization. NAMI Butler County Executive Director Donna Lamison said the event was the culmination of Mental Illness Awareness Week.
Other NAMI Butler County members were participating in a NAMI walk at Monroeville's Community Park West at the same time.
Linda Schmitmeyer, NAMI Butler County's secretary said, “The walk is to raise awareness and to help people understand that (mental Illness) is an invisible illness and to eliminate the stigma associated with it. For those of us who didn't go down, this was an opportunity for us to get together and show our strength.
“The idea of our T-shirts is sending a message. We're hoping there will be people on the trail to see it,” she said.
“We're trying to raise awareness about mental illness and mental health, and the importance of taking care of ourselves, especially after the past 18 months because of COVID,” said Schmitmeyer.
Julie Hopkins, of Zelienople, brought her husband, Sam, and her sons, Penn, 8, and Reeve, 10, to the walk. “We're walking as a family. We have a family member with mental illness that we care very much about,” she said.
Hopkins said she became a member of NAMI Butler County and is the co-leader of its family-to-family evaluation program and helps facilitate support groups that meet in four locations in Butler County and on the Zoom meeting app.
Gloria Winters, of Saxonburg, said she was walking Saturday because her late mother was greatly affected by mental illness. “I wanted to give back to the community that helped her her whole life,” she said.
“In the '70s and the '80s not a lot was known about mental illness. She had a hard road. I wanted to give back and help educate other people. People with a chronic illness can talk about it, but those with a mental illness, people don't want to talk about it,” said Winters, who joined NAMI Butler County a year ago and became a board member in January.
Lamison said another board member, Jennifer McConnell, the owner of Sweet Gremlin in Petrolia, was donating 10% of her business proceeds from sales during Mental Illness Awareness Week to the local group.
For more information about NAMI Butler County, call 724-431-0069, visit namibutler.org or email info@namibutler.org.
