2012 Illinois Snow Angel Pageant

I am so thankful to once again have been part of the Illinois Snow Angel Pageant! In it's third year now, there are more and more young ladies participating that want an opportunity to be a platform voice for the Illinois Baptist Children's Home Ministry of Angel's Cove Maternity Center. Contestants enter this pageant knowing that winning means work, so their hearts have to be focused on the cause. That's what makes the Illinois Snow Angel Pageant so great and when I get the invitation to emcee, my schedule is automatically cleared.

When the winners of this pageant start the journey of their reign, they come to understand the important service that Angel's Cove provides. As their website explains, "Angels' Cove provides residential care for minors and those over 18. Whether a young mother chooses to parent or to form an adoption plan for her child, Angels' Cove staff are there to assist with counseling, networking with community resources, prenatal care, parenting classes and other services. Birth mothers who choose adoption not only have input into the openness of the adoption but also choose the adoptive couple for their child.
Birth mothers forming an adoption plan can also be served within their own homes throughout Illinois." 

The group of Snow Angel titleholders continues to grow as a few new titles were added in addition to the previous ones. Along with the Miss, Teen, and Littlest Snow Angels, the Junior and Pre-teen categories are boasting some fabulous new winners!
Miss - Jessica Dillow
Teen - Alaina Katherine Pinnon
Preteen - Lauren Campbell
Junior Miss - Tori Dollins
Littlest - Jenna DeWitt 
See the winners pictured here with their most excellent pageant directors, Lindsay Zeschke & Jenna Harner (L to R).

You can also see more pictures from the event on the Illinois Snow Angel Pageant Facebook Page or by following this link to my photo album.

The continued success of this pageant is amazing. This year the pageant raised a total of $3061.08 which will help to support the Angel's Cove Ministry beyond it's usual donations! I can't wait to see what the next year brings. God has great plans for this entire group!

I also want to thank the outgoing Snow Angel Queens from 2011 -- Samantha Steely, Jenna Doerr, and Addison Nagel. They and their families donated their time to also help me advocate for children's mental health and they were lovely and passionate Green Queens! You all are always welcome in the Green Queen family because we have plenty of work to do to educate our communities. You three are very special young ladies to me. I am blessed to have the opportunity to know you all!

Teaming Up to Battle Stigma

In 2010, Angie Hampton, CEO of Egyptian Health Department, offered me the opportunity of a lifetime -- the chance to battle the stigma of mental health as an employee of Project Connect at EHD. However, she was really the one who was taking a chance in offering a Social Marketing Coordinator position to someone who had no formal education in marketing. Luckily for me, she had been observing my faithful work to educate the community and my publicity during 2009 when I was Mrs. Illinois International. Angie, who is passionate in her work to a truly admirable level, recognized that I had passion as well, and intended to have me on a team that would make a difference in our communities -- I am so grateful she believed in me.

2009 - Eddie & Me

When I think back to how many skills I developed during 2009, and how many people I met who changed my life forever, I can't help but to appreciate what pageantry gave me, how it improves my life continually, and to this day, helps me change other lives as well. And here's where the story intertwines with another person that means a great deal to me. In 2009 when I was at the Mrs. International Pageant, I met a man by the name of Eddie Peterson who was the director of the California International Pageant. I had looked forward to meeting him because we had something in common -- we were both psychotherapists, not something common to the pageant population. Eddie shared with the contestants that year something he was developing called "You Don't Know My Life," and it was then that I knew I had a forever ally in educating others about mental health and battling the stigma that surrounded it.

When I made the trip back to the Mrs. International Pageant this past July as Mrs. Midwest 2012, I looked forward the most to seeing Eddie again and feeling that spirit of empowerment that comes so naturally to him. As I believe that God is orchestrating a plan we are most times unaware of, I listened to him tell more about his foundation and how "You Don't Know My Life" is continuing to grow -- and a feeling began to overwhelm me about Eddie's ability to reach out to audiences of all types. I knew then that I wanted him to come to Southeastern Illinois to make an impact with his story, his therapy skills, and just the magic that he seems to leave behind everywhere that he goes.

My coworkers & friends from PC

When I returned home after the pageant and talked with the core Project Connect Team, they were completely on board with bringing Eddie here to help us battle the stigma that keeps families from seeking treatment, and empower them with the message of not being judged by others because they don't walk in your shoes everyday. We decided to create 3 different workshops for people of our community while he was here -- one for child & family serving professionals, one for parents, and one for youth.

Continuing to be great friends & colleagues!

I can't express how happy I was to have Eddie here in Illinois helping Project Connect with our mission to share information about mental health and increase the number of families receiving support. Altogether, 160 people participated in our three events with absolutely glowing reviews about Eddie and his message. The most common thing I was asked was "When is he coming back again?" His visit here once again made me appreciate the melding of my job, mission, passion, and friendships with that of my pageantry experience and I love being able to expose others to the positives that can be found there.

If you are in need of a great motivational speaker that will empower you and help you to keep an open mind about life, Eddie Peterson should be the only person to consider! If motivational speaking doesn't fit your need, don't tune out just yet, because Eddie is such a talented therapist and presenter, I'm sure that he has the right fit for your organization's needs. All you need is to just talk with him once and you'll feel the power he has been blessed with.

In sum, I am thankful for the people who are by my side in the journey of mental health education. Angie, Eddie, the Project Connect Team, and most importantly my family, who also pitched in to make the events with Eddie the best they could be. So give a big cheer with me...Go Team Anti-Stigma!

Today is World Mental Health Day

World Mental Health Day... now there's a thought, huh? In other words, mental health challenges are a global issue -- imagine that! And, why not, when statistics prove that 1 in 5 people have a diagnosable mental illness at some point in their lifetime. This year, the World Mental Health Day Project was an education campaign created by the World Federation for Mental Health. The Project is entitled "Depression: A Global Crisis" and you can read the full pdf by clicking here. I think that the story behind the development of this day is important too and you can read about it's inception 20 years ago by checking out the WFMH Facebook page.

Of course I am always in support of specific diagnosis awareness, but as most of you know, I have a preference for promoting the elimination of stigma that surrounds mental health diagnosis and treatment. Why? Because I still run into people everyday that believe mental health disorders to be hooey mumbo jumbo, because they believe anyone can decide to pull themselves up and not be mentally ill anymore! WHAT!?!?! And that's all because of a lack of mental health education along with a culture that shuns those who are afflicted.

How do I know it's not mumbo jumbo? Just today, as I was floating down the river of Twitter information from my favorite mental health organizations (check out who I follow) I ran across two articles that drive this point home. One was titled "Gene tied to Obesity, Depression, ADHD" and the other was called "New de novo Genetic Mutations in Schizophrenia Identified." (click titles to read the articles) Just the titles without the articles scream genetic markers, not just 'pull yourself up by your bootstraps' behaviors. Yet, how much proof does our society need?

Even though I could ramble incessantly about this point, I will refrain and just finish with these thoughts:  Change starts with you. Acceptance starts with you. You influence others.

"Be the change you want to see in the world." -- Mahatma Gandhi

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Early Childhood Educators & Their Role with CMH

Having the opportunity to speak with the Southern Illinois Association for the Education of Young Children opened a great deal of communication as to what role an early childhood educator fills when it comes to children's mental health. A lot of people would automatically say that the role could simply be defined as the first gateway toward a child or family receiving mental health services -- but I think it is much more than that.

Not only is it possibly the first place to gain a referral, but it also could be the first place to become exposed to the "feeling" of what a mental health referral is. To clarify, I'm talking about whether or not the presentation of the referral prompts the family to feel positively about the intervention, or shamed and stigma laden about having to seek mental health services. Just for arguments sake, which way would you want your child's preschool teacher to approach you about a mental health referral? A or B?

A. Your child is having some difficulty fitting in with the other children. His behaviors don't allow him the ability to play for any length of time without causing the other children to walk away. He has a temper/anger problem that we believe needs to be evaluated by a mental health professional. Would you like to talk with the social worker that we have on staff?
B. As your child's preschool teacher, it's my job to help identify possible barriers to your child's academic and social success. Mental health care is significantly important when it comes to school and I think it's important that we consider consulting with the social worker/counselor to make sure that we are providing him every opportunity to succeed. Would you like for me to assist you in meeting with them?

The difference is clear -- one is a labeling and accusing statement without support (your child is bad and what are you doing as a parent?) and the other is a supportive, non-blaming collaboration to making sure that all children have an equal chance to succeed. Not only would it be received better by a caregiver, but choice B is also more comfortable for the pre-school teacher.



Officers of the SIAEYC...great new Green Ribbon Advocates!

In order to reduce the stigma of mental health and make it an acceptable part of growth and development, we have to start at a very young age. The introduction of services to caregivers is a very important part of this process. The SIAEYC members were so supportive of this idea and their excitement regarding their role in this process was an inspiration for me. No one wants to feel labeled or judged and remembering to treat others as we would want to be treated is the key to acceptance. Thank you SIAEYC for being a great group of caring providers. You're an admirable group!

I was also fortunate to have a co-presenter at the event, Brittany Smith from the Children's Mental Health Network! She gave the SIAEYC great information about the Network and then told them about the White Board campaign. It's always fantastic when I get to be around Brittany and feel her energy about sharing mental health advocacy. We both appreciate the interest in the White Board Campaign and those who got their photo taken for the campaign wall. Check out those photos here. 

 

 If you are in the early childhood field and would like to learn more about mental health services for children ages birth to 5, please feel free to contact me about information and resources.