March is Mental Health month at the Park County Library.
The Library is hosting a series of panel discussions on mental health, co-sponsored by the Christ Episcopal Church. Every Thursday in March, a different topic will be facilitated by a different panel of mental health experts from the community. The entire series is free and open to the public.
The series begins this Thursday.
On March 5, “A Conversation About Suicide” will be led by a five-person panel including Josh Spinney, Licensed Professional Counselor at Cody Regional Health Behavioral Health Clinic; Peg Monteith, Park County School District 6 Student Support Services Director and current Interim Superintendent; Deb Bank, a parent affected by her son’s suicide who supports families who have lost someone by suicide; Dr. Terresa Humphries-Wadsworth, Associate Project Director with the National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention and Suicide Prevention Resource Center; and Rhianna Brand who represents Grace For 2 Brothers, an educational organization dedicated to the advocacy of suicide prevention through awareness and education in Wyoming.
A panel on March 12 will focus on “Adolescent Mental Health” and will include Kori Black, counselor at Cody Middle School; Rick Satterthwaite, counselor at Trinity Teen Solutions; Dr. Dina Tassione, school psychologist; and Judson McKee, counselor at Yellowstone Behavioral Health Center.
“Advocating for Mental Health” will be the topic of the March 19 meeting. Warren Murphy, board member of Yellowstone Behavioral Health, will moderate a panel consisting of Dr. Shaun Balch, Clinical Director of Yellowstone Behavioral Health Center; Colin Simpson, former speaker of the Wyoming House of Representatives and long-time advocate for mental health services; Wendy Corr, regional journalist with a background in newspaper as well as radio and TV broadcasting; and Roy Eckerdt, Chief of the Powell Police Department and board president of Yellowstone Behavioral Health.
The final session in the series, “Living Well,” will be led by Sara Murray, board chair of NAMI-Park County. Murray will discuss ways of creating social support networks with Christy Schmeiser, yoga instructor; Linda Raynolds, professional artist; Jenny DeSarro, Greater Yellowstone Coalition Conservation Coordinator and avid naturalist; and Megan Gaspers, owner of Firefly Yoga and Wellness in Cody.
Identical programs will be presented each day at 10 a.m. – noon & again at 6 – 8 p.m.
