President’s Message for December 2023
There is big news brewing in the criminal justice arena. The number of Mental Health Courts in Massachusetts is increasing from the few that were in place for several years to over a dozen. In early 2024 the Concord and Ayer District courts will be offering Mental Health Specialty Court sessions. The geography of those two court districts encompasses most of the towns in the western end of our affiliate. The Woburn District Court, which covers many of our east end communities, is not yet set to add the service.
Once an individual voluntarily elects to participate in Mental Health Court Sessions and is assessed as eligible, the person would be formally entered into the Mental Health session by the court, and the court would become part of their terms of probation. The person is agreeing to participate in behavioral health recommendations and regular status hearings with the judge. Referrals to the program are typically generated by attorneys or probation officers. We are in communication with the Mental Health Court Clinician assigned to both locations and will attend December meetings to gather details. We’ll share the information with our readers on our website and in the January edition of “The Bridge.”
In the arena of local activity, we could use a few hands clicking away on computer keys to reach two of our goals. Each year we update our list of high school counselor email addresses in the communities we serve. We contact them about our College Panel program and Basics classes. We usually split up the towns among a few volunteers who dig into school websites for the information and complete the task by the end of January. The second goal pertains to maintaining our membership. Each month we send an email to those who need to attend to renewing their affiliate membership. It is a quick task and important for keeping our membership rolls up to date. Please reach out, nami.cmsx@gmail.com, if you can offer your typing/searching/copy/pasting hands for a few minutes to support our efforts.
May your year end with peace and joy. And now a note from Becky Hadden:
As your editor for “The Bridge,” I want to say thank you to all our readers and especially to the NAMI Central Middlesex Board for supporting me so faithfully and enthusiastically during my 10 years as editor. I’ve learned a tremendous amount; I’ve felt wonderful doing my little part for the great work that NAMI CMSX does; and I’ve been thanked and appreciated so many times, it’s embarrassing! BUT I will say, these folks from NAMI are the kindest, most caring people in this world. For anyone who considers taking on some of the important communication work or another volunteer activity for NAMI, be aware—you will be appreciated and thanked profusely. And you will help so many.
It’s been an honor. ~Becky
