Talkin' About Mental Illness

Last week the White House sponsored a National Conference on Mental Health. As President Obama encouraged Americans to dialogue about mental health, locally our residents were doing it! NAMI Fairfield celebrated all participants of its 1st annual Essay Contest about mental illness. The Essay Contest Celebration and Award Ceremony took place on Wednesday, June 5th in Fairfield, Connecticut.

Kerrri Gawreluk, the winner of the Adult category, wrote about living with a mental illness and the work involved to look and feel “normal.” Wilton High School junior, Isabel Zayas’s, winning essay was about finding the desire to live and help others, following suicide attempts and subsequent hospitalizations. Joey Hopkins is a seventh grader at St. Ann’s school in Black Rock; his essay described his love for his brother and his observations of the challenges his brother experiences. Read all of the essays here.

Mental illness affects one in four people in this country, but many are uncomfortable talking about it due to stigma. The shame felt interferes with getting needed support, both for the individual impacted and their family members. NAMI Fairfield applauds all of its courageous authors in the 2013 Essay Contest. They overcame the fear of stigma and exposed their most vulnerable selves in order to help others understand more about mental illness and end the related stigma.

Representatives Kim Fawcett, Tony Hwang and Brenda Kupchick and Senator John McKinney congratulated the winners with Official Citations from the Connecticut General Assembly, presented by The Honorable Daniel Caruso, Fairfield Probate Court Judge. Fairfield Selectman Kevin Kiley gave a heartfelt introduction to Gawreluk of Black Rock. Isabel Zayas’ school counselor, Pamela Scott, introduced her. Both Kerri and Isabel read their moving and poignant essays. Joey Hopkins, the middle school winner, attends St. Ann’s School in Black Rock. Joey’s father read his essay as Joey was not feeling well.  

NAMI Fairfield plans to encourage people to write about mental illness through its essay contest each year, making this an annual event. It is hoped that Stigma-Free CT will foster dialogue about mental illness, mental health care and the need for comprehensive and affordable services for all people who need them. It offers an opportunity to raise understanding, nurture compassion, inspire change and end the stigma that often surrounds mental illness.

Photos from the celebration and all of the essays are can be seen at www.StigmaFreeCT.com.

NAMI Fairfield is grateful to the generous sponsors who made this event possible. A $250 scholarship was presented to our high school winner that was underwritten by Pediatric Healthcare Associates. PHA Partner and pediatrician Dr. Amanda Rodriguez Murphy was on hand to personally congratulate the winner.

Other sponsors include Lupe’s Drugs; Steve Ehrens of Northwest Mutual; Parasol, LLC; the staff of Bridge House; the Blumenfield family; The Adventure Park at the Discovery Museum; Barcelona restaurant and the Sound Tigers. Other sponsors were Yellow Moon Toy Company; Silver Ribbon; Healthy People and Places Consulting; Discovery Museum; and restaurants Osianna, Liana’s Trattoria and Vinny’s Ale House. Splatterbox, Tucker’s Café and Village Bagels of Fairfield also supported the event. Visit StigmaFreeCT.com’s Sponsor Page for a full list of sponsors and links to their respective websites.