|
MEET CHERYL BRINKS
When talking with Cheryl, the first thing you’ll notice is her passion and appreciation for The Momentum Center and its staff. Beginning at the young age of 13, Cheryl has struggled with mental illness. However, she’s not letting it define who she is or keep her from enjoying day-to-day activities.
The Momentum Center for Social Engagement is a social and recreational program for people with mental illness, addiction, or developmental disabilities. Just Goods Gifts and Cafe is housed within the Momentum Center where hand made merchandise, coffee, tea, and snacks are available for purchase. It’s also a place where individuals can go to learn about resources within the community. This public space encourages interaction throughout the community and strives to eliminate stigma.
For seven years, Cheryl was involved in Peer Forward, a weekly support group led by peers. Being part of that group gave her a sense of community, but it was only available one day a week for a short time, so she was left with nowhere to go on other days. The Momentum Center was created for people just like Cheryl. As a member, she feels it’s the perfect opportunity to connect and grow relationships and, more importantly, build her confidence.
Within the Momentum Center, there is a pool table, air hockey table, Wii, board games, and a computer bay. The Momentum Center offers classes in art, exercise, breathing, and self-development. It also arranges offsite events and activities and provides transportation so individuals can participate in Extended Grace events and Town Hall Meetings.
The Momentum Center is open based on daily activities. Monthly calendars are available and everyone is invited to stop in and see what it’s all about. Membership is restricted to individuals with a mental illness, addiction, or other disability. Membership costs $1 per year and allows individuals to participate in scheduled activities and events. Almost everything is offered without any additional charge, but some activities may include a nominal fee to participate.
While talking with Cheryl, she mentions the Momentum Center is a place where individuals can create lasting friendships, build self-confidence, and enhance a variety of skills. She feels valued by the staff and knows they’re always there to support and encourage her.
Cheryl and the staff at the Momentum Center all agree on one thing: Cheryl has made tremendous progress since becoming a member and joining the community. Success for Cheryl is supported by a stable team who support her needs and abilities. Her dreams and goals include continuing to develop relationships and building her confidence. The main goal of the staff at the Momentum Center is to ensure Cheryl always feels she’s welcomed and a part of an extraordinary community.
MENTAL HEALTH MILLAGE UPDATE
Community Mental Health has been rolling out programs funded with millage dollars since October 1, 2016. Here are some of the programs currently operating:
Starting October 1, 2016, we ended the waiting list for services for people who were uninsured or underinsured. We also started serving people with a Medicaid Spenddown, which is basically a deductible. As of May 1, 2017, 60 people have received services who otherwise would be on the waiting list.
The Ottawa Pathways to Better Health Program began January 3, 2017, and the Community Health Workers have received 119 referrals as of May 1, 2017. This program helps with prevention and in many cases will address behavioral health concerns before they become severe.
- CMHOC has begun offering free Mental Health First Aid certification courses throughout Ottawa County. Courses will be held in each
- quadrant of the county. We are actively recruiting churches,
- businesses, and first responders to participate in this training.
- The Holland Drop In Center, a peer run program, expanded their days of operation to six days per week.
- The four social recreational programs for people with disabilities
- in Ottawa County are all up and running. Each program has a
- separate calendar of free and low-cost activities for people to
- register for.
- CMHOC has hired a full-time employment specialist to assist
- consumers with locating employment opportunities in the community.
- CMHOC has expanded mental health services, including psychiatric services, to people who are in the Ottawa County Jail.
MEET RANDALL SNOW
Randall takes pride in being a part of his thriving community.
When talking with him, he states over and over that he loves being independent and enjoys living on his own. Randall is provided with several hours of assistance daily that supports his unique interests and needs. Community Living Supports (CLS) have been a huge relief for Randall and have allowed him to live just like everyone else with the assistance of his CLS worker of five years, Tammi Napier.
Community Living Supports (CLS) are an array of person-centered supports, services, and resources that are based on the person’s unique interests and needs, while being adaptable as life and needs change. Supports are provided in the individual’s home and in the community. They can assist with reminding, observing, guiding, and/or training in a variety of activities. These activities may include meal preparation, laundry, money management, socialization, relationship building, grocery shopping, transportation to/from community activities, household care and maintenance, and much more.
As Randall told us more about his life growing up, we learned that he was born in Turkey and adopted at a young age. He then traveled and lived around the world with his parents for many years before deciding to settle in Holland. He works at D&W, where his job responsibilities consist of being a service clerk, bringing in carts, emptying the bottle machine, and mopping floors. He mentions the work can be hard, but he enjoys contributing to his community.
Individualized supports can help people identify and achieve personal goals, connect to their communities, participate in valued roles in community organizations, maintain and increase family and social relationships, and promote personal productivity. Supports also enable a person to live an inclusive life in the community of their choice - a life that reflects the values, relationships, contributions, and activities that are meaningful to them.
Randall’s face lights up when he talks about being active in his church and within the community. He loves Camp Sunshine and has attended for over 21 years. He starts listing all the fun activities he gets to do, such as horseback riding, ziplining, and going to the beach.
Camp Sunshine provides a camping experience for persons with developmental disabilities in an inclusive environment that embraces their recreational, emotional, physical, spiritual, and relational needs.
The Community Living Supports staff enjoy working with Randall and value his positive and uplifting personality. His goals include becoming more and more self-sufficient and to stay active within his community. Tammi and the staff do their best to support and encourage Randall and make sure he feels capable to achieve anything he sets his mind to.
DIRECTOR'S LETTER
 Our mission at Community Mental Health of Ottawa County is to partner with people with mental illness, developmental disabilities, and substance use disorders and the broader community to improve lives and be a premier mental health agency in Michigan. It is an honor to lead an organization with this important charge, and I’m proud to say we work diligently to meet these goals. We could not do this work without the support and collaboration of our many partners, including our contractual providers, other social service agencies, and the multitude of organizations that make up the safety net system that supports this community. This annual report offers us an opportunity to share with you some of the successes and challenges we experienced in 2016 as we worked to improve lives and provide quality service. As you are aware, the last several years have been difficult ones for us financially. We have undergone many changes in our efforts to reduce costs and become more efficient. Throughout these endeavors, we have
maintained our focus on the people we serve and have looked for ways to be creative and adapt to the seemingly endless changes and new expectations that are commonplace in our world. A shining example of this was our successful millage campaign. Ottawa is the first county in Michigan to pass a dedicated mental health millage. Funds collected from this 10-year millage will help us provide important services and supports that were impacted as a result of funding reductions. The other stories and statistics included in this report will help to illustrate the innovative and collaborative work we do as we strive to fulfill our mission.
I would like to thank each of you for your ongoing support and interest in Community Mental Health of Ottawa County.
Lynne Doyle
Executive Director
|
The Community Mental Health Board
We are so thankful to have such a wonderful group of individuals serving on our board. They’ve really taken initiative in going above and beyond to find solutions and help those in need.
By implementing strategies and taking the right steps, they are truly making a difference in helping our community become more aware of the behavioral health concerns that affect so many. The staff at Community Mental Health of Ottawa County want to extend enormous thanks to our board members for constantly seeking opportunities to make a change in Ottawa County and beyond.
Meet Our Board Members
- Michelle Cassen, Board Chair
- Vonnie Vanderzwaag, Vice Chair
- Don Disselkoen, Secretary
- Andrew Brown
- Al Dannenberg
- Peg Driesenga
- Matt Fenske
- Rebecca Gretzner
- James Holtvluwer
- Richard Kanten
- Alberto Serrano
- R. James Steinke
| 
