March 2019 Newsletter

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March 2019 Newsletter

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March 2019

Families Empowering Families

In this issue:

A message from the director

Youth Peer Workforce Grant Recipients

Children’s Mental Health Day Planning Mini Grants

Leadership Opportunity Announcements

Planning for Summer Camp

A Message From the Director

Dear friends,

March is one of my favorite months of the year, a month full of anticipation and planning. Personally, our family does a great deal of celebrating for St. Patrick’s Day & my birthday. I tend to do a lot of thinking that spring is really coming as the bitter cold seems to leave and warmer air and the bright sun returns to the Green Mountains.

In March we start preparing for celebrating a whole month of Mental Health Awareness in May. Each year we join the nation in setting aside the first week of the month to celebrate Children’s Mental Health Awareness Month. To help increase Children’s Mental Health Awareness in Vermont we will be awarding 6 mini grants for events around the state. Please consider applying for a mini grant and holding an awareness event in your community! We look forward to hearing your ideas!

Also, in this edition we invite you to join us in congratulating the 4 awardees of the 2019 Young Adult Peer Workforce Mini Grants. We are looking forward to hearing all about the success they have in developing the Young Adult Peer Workforce and we are proud to be part of the peer workforce development in Vermont!

Congrats to:

Brattleboro Youth Services
XYZ’s After School Program at the Morristown Community Center
Northeast Kingdom Youth Services Community Living Room
NAMI Vermont

It is that time a year again to start planning for summer camps. Here are some great resources put together by Vermont Family Network to share and help you plan and prepare for summer vacation.

Spring is coming! Hooray!

~Cindy

May your March be filled with luck and growth!

Youth Peer Workforce Grant Winners!

Congratulations to our 2019 Youth Peer Workforce Grant Recipients! Our Youth Peer Workforce grants help various community centers and organizations reach youth in their community and make the entire community aware of how important youth voice is! This year we had four recipients.

Brattleboro Youth Services have a youth-led screen-printing business that incorporates vocationally oriented case management services. This program enables youth in our community to engage and follow through on workforce skills and learn how to access resources from within their own networks. Their young adult peer worker will help recruit new employees and clients, facilitate meetings; check-in with youth who have barriers to full participation and help coordinate services to overcome those barriers such as transportation.

NAMI VT: NAMI Vermont is a statewide volunteer organization comprised of family members, friends, and individuals living with a mental illness. They offer resources, support, and education for peers and family members. NAMI hopes to use their young adult peer worker to expand their presence and offer peer support on college campuses.

Northeast Kingdom Youth Services Community Living Room: As part of Northeast Kingdom Youth Services Youth in Transition program their young adult peer worker would co-facilitate weekly peer support and advocacy groups in Northeast Kingdom Youth Services (NEKYS) Community Living Room space and will work together with other young adults to recognize and make use of

community resources while accessing and assisting in the development of family driven effective peer services that promote initial family well-being.

XYZ’s After School Program at the Morristown Community Center: According to their website, Xtreme Youth Zone (XYZ) offers a vibrant community space where youth can gather at E = MC² after school Monday through Friday 2:45 – 5:30pm. Teens 12+ are welcome to enjoy a variety of activities, snacks provided by the center, homework help, or opportunities to socialize with the community. Their young adult peer worker would assume a leadership role in the after school program and in curriculum development. Having a young adult peer worker helps bridge the understanding between youth and the adult staff at XYZ’s After School Program.

Children’s Mental Health Day Mini Grants

Join us in celebrating Children’s Mental Health Awareness Week! In order to help support events across Vermont we will be accepting applications for Children’s Mental Health Week mini grants starting this Friday!

We will be offering up to six 250 dollar grants for planning and holding Children’s Mental Health Week and Month events. Funded activities and events can range from positive social opportunities and community organizing to mental health awareness campaigns. Our goal is to assist and empower our communities to raise awareness of children’s mental health and positively impact their communities and the system of care. Applications are due end of business on April 5th, 2019 so apply soon! Click here for the application!

Leadership Opportunities!

Want to help families like yours? We have leadership opportunities for parents who want to be Local Interagency Team Parent Representatives or Parent Support Providers or both!

We are looking for parent support providers in the St. Albans and Brattleboro regions and Local Interagency Team Parent Representatives in the St. Johnsbury, Newport, and Springfield regions. If you’re interested please contact us for more information at 1-800-639-6071 or vffcmh@vffcmh.org.

Summer Camp!

We know, we know, even spring seems a long way away right now, but maybe planning for summer camp will help fight the late winter blahs!

Here’s a directory of camps in Vermont.

Our friends at the Vermont Family Network also put together a great directory of summer camps in Vermont.

Don’t know what to look for in a camp for your child? Want to know what questions to ask? Here’s a great article with about the benefits of camp for all kids and what questions to ask if your child has special needs.