www.namifingerlakes.org
Mission Statement

NAMI-Finger Lakes is the the Finger Lakes Chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness.  Our 85-member, all-volunteer organization seeks to:
  • Provide support for families and friends of people diagnosed with major mental illnesses
  • Educate families and the public about mental illness
  • Advocate for the families and their ill relatives.

All of our members have relatives suffering from major mental illness.   We know the heartache & worry you are experiencing - we'd like to help you, and you don't have to be member to receive our help.

To Gain a sense of what it is like to have a major mental illness, we suggest:
Contemplate the pictures below - which show how artist Louis Wain's artistic style changed as his illness progressed.

NAMI Finger Lakes provide free support,  advice, and educational materials.  We also offer "Breaking The  Silence" - a free in-class educational  lesson plan presentation on Mental Illness for upper elementary, middle  school, and high school students.   We also offer a  free Family-to-Family Education Course http://www.namifingerlakes.org/#FrontPage_Family_to_Family for  adults, and we are also happy to talk with college classes and community  organizations about mental illness and its impact on families.

In addition, our Get Help http://www.namifingerlakes.org/get_help.htm, and Even More Help: Local, Regional, and National Mental Health Resources  http://www.namifingerlakes.org/links.htm web pages have extensive information on:   
  • Psychiatric care in Ithaca and in surrounding cities (such as Binghamton, Buffalo, Corning, Cortland, Syracuse, and Rochester)
  • Finding missing and homeless relatives
  • Dual-diagnosis (diagnosed with mental illness & addicted to alcohol/drugs)
  • Mental Illness and the Criminal Justice system
  • Estate planning when you have ill relatives

We also suggest you view What Is It Like to Have a Mental Illness? :http://www.namifingerlakes.org/what_is_it_like.htm,  which will help you understand the challenges facing your loved ones.

Finally, this NAMI Finger Lakes brochure http://www.namifingerlakes.org/Documents/NAMIBrochureLetterSizePaper.pdf .describes our organization and programs (document requires the Adobe Acrobat Reader http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html).   Note that our members are very familiar with Ithaca's excellent social services for people recovering from mental illnesses, and we would be happy to share our knowledge and experiences with you.
Gifts
50A $5 Mental illness information folders for two families with loved ones admitted to local hospitals.
50B $10

Confidential consultation, education, support, and warm hugs for a family struggling with mental illness.

50C $20 Mental Illness education presentation for a Tompkins County elementary school class.
50D $50 Sponsor a community event that educates thirty adult family members about major mental illness.
50X $ open Sponsor a 2010 education program that will educate more than 1000 Tompkins County residents - school children, families, and adults about major mental illnesses.
Jean Walters
607-273-2462
namifl@lightlink.com

NAMI-Finger Lakes
104 East Lewis Street
Ithaca, NY 14850

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