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February 2013 
Dream
In This Issue
Why Advocacy is So Important in Mental Health
Making Our Voices Heard: Lodge Members Vote
Employee of the Month: Jonathan Stewart
Volunteer Corner: Mercy Rivera
Thank You to Our 2012 Donors!

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Upcoming Events
Open Eye Gallery Committee Meeting
Fri., Feb. 1 
11:00 a.m.
At b.b.Bistro, 112 Annapolis Street, Annapolis.
Join us to hang artwork by Arundel Lodge artists for a show titled "Art as Food for Thought." Be sure to visit the bistro in Feb. to see our show!
 Email Katerina Evans or call her at (443) 433-5914 with any questions.


Valentine's Day Craft Sale
Wed., Feb. 6
10 a.m.-1 p.m.
In the Open Eye Gallery.
 Valentine's Day and spring -themed jewelry, arts, crafts, and small gifts for sale.

NAMI Family
Support Group
Thurs., Feb. 14 
7:00-8:30 p.m.
at Arundel Lodge.
For more information, email NAMI Anne Arundel.

NAMI Family
Support Group
Thurs., Feb. 28 
7:00-8:30 p.m.
at Arundel Lodge.
For more information, email NAMI Anne Arundel.

Save the Date: On Wed., May 8th from 1-5 p.m., Arundel Lodge, in partnership with Community Behavioral Health and On Our Own Affiliates, will present a one-day show, "Through the Looking Glass: Reflections on Life with Mental Illness" at the American Visionary Art Museum in Baltimore. We are soliciting artwork from mental health consumers across the state to partner in celebrating the power of the arts in healing. More information coming soon!

Mental Health Links

Anne Arundel County Mental Health Agency

NAMI Anne Arundel County 

 

On Our Own of Maryland 

 

SAMHSA 

 Greetings!  

   

With the Maryland legislative session in full swing, we turn this month to the importance of advocacy for mental health. At the Lodge, we work year-round to educate the public and policymakers about mental health, and we enjoy strong relationships with both local and state representatives. Thanks to them for sponsoring bond bills, arranging for a nearby bus stop for our clients, and many more actions that improve the mental health of local residents.

 

Arundel Lodge belongs to Community Behavioral Health (CBH), and their Executive Director Herb Cromwell is this month's guest columnist. CBH improves the health of Maryland's children and adults by advocating for and providing support and technical assistance to Maryland community-based behavioral health service providers and their constituents. As a statewide professional organization of community service programs, CBH is dedicated to making high quality rehabilitation, vocational, residential, and treatment opportunities available to all persons with mental illnesses.

Advocacy Day 2013
Advocates from Arundel Lodge gather for Mental Health Advocacy Day 2013 in Annapolis
A big advocacy opportunity took place on January 29th, the annual Mental Health Advocacy Day in Annapolis. A number of Arundel Lodge clients and friends were there. Day Program Rehabilitation Specialist Samantha Butler told Arundel Lodge NEWS, "It was great! Very informative and an outlet for members to learn more about the issues that affect them--their options in the community."

Public officials need to understand how government actions affect persons with mental illness. Clara Musser from the Deaf Program staff gives us one example of how a cut in services can be harmful:

 

"The closing of Springfield's Deaf Unit is a devastating loss for Deaf adults with mental illness all over the state of Maryland. This means there is no longer an inpatient place for Deaf clients to receive treatment, perpetuating a lifelong struggle with equality and isolation. An interpreter in the mental health field is not enough. The clients need a culturally affirmative approach for their recovery. They need not only therapists who are culturally competent but also staff. Our clients are upset about this because if they relapse and require hospitalization, they are now isolated from signing peers and forced to rely on an interpreter."

 

There are many ways to advocate for mental health, and our employees and volunteers do this work every day as they serve clients and their families. This month we feature Jonathan Stewart, Employee of the Month, and Mercy Rivera, an outstanding volunteer. And without the ongoing support of donors, listed in this issue, we couldn't provide high-quality services that support mental health. Thanks, staff, volunteers, and donors!

 

One last thing: Arundel Lodge artists will have a show titled "Art as Food for Thought" at b.b. Bistro in Annapolis during the month of February. We hope you'll check it out! 

Why Advocacy is So Important in Mental Health

By Herb Cromwell, Executive Director, Community Behavioral Health Association of Maryland

 

Arundel Lodge is a terrific provider of mental health services. But as an agency working in Maryland's public mental health system, it's not enough to be a good service provider. Arundel Lodge must also be a good advocate: an advocate for the people it serves, an advocate for people who could but don't yet benefit from its services, and an advocate for a comprehensive accessible service system for citizens across the state and the country.

 

Because we operate in a public system, we operate in a political one. Core funding of agencies like the Lodge comes from the state budget. The rules about how services are delivered and to whom are determined by local, state, and federal laws and regulations. Most of what the Lodge is able to do is connected in one way or another to political decisions made by government officials, elected and otherwise.

 

We need to be at every table where public policy decisions are made: nothing about us without us!  

 

Those decisions need to be influenced by stakeholders--by us: service recipients, families, staff, administrators, Board members, supporters, and friends. Advocacy is a fundamental part of our jobs, whatever our role. We need to be at every table where public policy decisions are made: nothing about us without us!

 

Here's an example. More than 85% of the funds spent in Maryland to provide treatment, rehabilitation, and other supports to the 140,000 children and adults who use our state's public mental health system come from Medicaid. Medicaid is not just an insurance program but a lifeline. So a cut to Medicaid by the Governor, the state legislature, or the U.S. Congress is not just a public policy decision - it could be a matter of life and death.

 

Perhaps no other area of health care has as many issues subject to political debate, and thus needing advocacy involvement, as mental health:

  • Historic underfunding: agencies like the Lodge have had only four inflationary budget increases in the last 17 years.

  • Insurance discrimination: recent "parity" laws will make it harder for private insurance companies to cover mental illnesses to a lesser extent than other illnesses; discriminatory coverage of outpatient treatment by Medicare that required a 50% co-pay for mental health vs. a 20% co-pay for every other condition is being phased out thanks to another federal law.
  • Civil rights: involuntary civil commitment to hospitals or to outpatient treatment, privacy and confidentiality, and fair housing ("not in my back yard") are among many such issues.

Community Behavioral Health is not only the professional association for Arundel Lodge and our other 49 member agencies across the state, it's an advocate for our agencies. To be more effective, we've formed an Advocacy Committee to help grow and strengthen the collective grassroots advocacy capacity of our members. The underlying assumption is that the public mental health system in Maryland has been underfunded and undervalued as a crucial component of the health care system, and that the only way this will every change is through strong, loud, and consistent advocacy on the part of all of us.

 

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Making Our Voices Heard: 
Arundel Lodge Members Vote  
An important marker in a person's recovery is assuming the responsibilities of citizenship. Three staff members shared with
Arundel Lodge NEWS how they helped facilitate members' participation in citizenship. Of course, our members' views are across the political spectrum. The efforts of our staff encouraged members to cast their ballots based upon their choices and beliefs.

LaShandra Oliver, Community Day Program Manager:

 

Way back when, we had a representative from the Maryland Disability Law Center come out to register our clients to vote. So many were interested and I thought it was just great.

 

I loved the chance to take the clients voting this past November, especially during early voting. This was my first year taking advantage of early voting myself, so I thought it would be great to integrate it into the lessons during our Current Events classes for hearing and Deaf with Rehabilitation Specialists Samantha Butler and Jill Balmer. Then we took the members to the Edgewater Library.

 

Samantha and I took a van-full on the Wednesday before the election, and Jill took a group on Thursday. There was this cool energy in the van on the way back--you could tell that the clients really felt like they had exercised their inalienable rights. I was so proud of them for signing up and going. I was excited for the clients in Current Events who learned about issues, filled out sample ballots and brought their ballots to the polls to vote. Our clients have strong opinions and beliefs, and we were thrilled to help them express themselves at the polls.   

 

Samantha Butler, Rehabilitation Specialist:   

 

This past November, our members were more engaged in the political process than ever before. Last summer, those who attended our Current Events class were eager to learn about the candidates in the primary election and they read articles about the main issues of the election. Before the general election, they explored the Democratic and Republican platforms and formed their own opinions about how to vote. We supported anyone who wanted help registering to vote.

 

This was a complicated ballot, so before the election, members who were registered to vote filled out their own sample ballots, ensuring they would be fully prepared at the polls. LaShandra Oliver and I drove members to early voting at the local library in Edgewater. They were excited and committed to their chosen presidential candidate as well as their decisions on several ballot questions. As they completed voting, Marie F. stated that she felt that she done her American duty.

 

Rehabilitation Specialist Jill Balmer:

 

I was able to take three deaf members to do early voting, and they were all excited. They felt happy to have the chance to vote because they felt like they had a voice during the election.

 

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Employee of the Month
Jonathan Stewart, Rehabilitation Specialist

Jonathan Stewart

Jonathan Stewart moved to Maryland from Illinois and began working at Arundel Lodge in June 2011. He has been in the field of psychiatric rehabilitation for seven years. He has a wonderfully positive attitude. He's even an Eagle Scout!  

 

Jon told Arundel Lodge NEWS that he likes working at Arundel Lodge because the job is a challenge, and every day is different--it's never boring. What he enjoys most is when the clients become more independent and realize what they can accomplish on their own. In addition to enjoying the members, Jon says that the staff here is a very good group of people, and they try hard to work together as a team.    

 

Here is what his co-workers had to say about him:

 

"Having worked with Jon in the Deaf Program, I can say that he is a very hard worker and made an immediate impression on everyone."

 

"Jon has done a bang-up job in the Deaf Program! He has shown true professionalism with the members and their medical issues. His communication with the clinical team is awesome, too."

  

"Jon does a wonderful job, often doing extra work for the clients. He was willing to interpret for a client at the hospital, assisting with a complicated medical condition."

  

"Jon has a wonderful rapport with the members."

 

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Volunteer Corner
Mercy Rivera

At 17, Mercy is one of our youngest volunteers. She started out volunteering at the front desk all day, every day for a month. She was then hired as the front desk person for the morning shift. In the afternoon, she volunteers helping Jennipha Gregory with filing and organizational tasks.

Mercy is a people person. She puts people's birthdays on her calendar and says happy birthday to everyone. She always has a nice, friendly smile. She wants to go to college--maybe Anne Arundel Community College, or maybe back to her home in Newport, Virginia.  

 

Mercy told Arundel Lodge NEWS, "People come in and I like to talk. My mom was always complaining about me burning up my minutes, but now I don't have to be on the telephone to engage in conversation."


Arundel Lodge NEWS:
How long have you been volunteering at Arundel Lodge?

Mercy: Since October.

 

Arundel Lodge NEWS: What kind of work do you do as a volunteer here?

 

Mercy: Staffing the front desk, filing, whatever anyone asks me to do.

 

Arundel Lodge NEWS: What made you want to become an Arundel Lodge volunteer?

 

Mercy: I like helping people. I want to become a pediatric nurse. My aunt, Lisa Chambers, works here and it interested me what she said about her job. I came for a visit and started volunteering.

 

Arundel Lodge NEWS: What have you gained from your experiences?

 

Mercy: I've learned a lot about mental illnesses, and I've learned how to understand people a little bit better. Being organized is a really good thing. Have a smile on your face even if you are upset, because you don't want to upset others.

 

Arundel Lodge NEWS: Every day, you put up a quote of the day. What made you want to do that? 

 

Mercy: One day a [Deaf] woman came in who was really upset and I didn't know how to sign, so I put up the sign. Now she comes in every day and she comes up and says thank you. I do it to brighten up people's day. If I am having a bad day I ask someone else what they would like to say.

 

Mercy's co-workers were happy to share their thoughts with us: 

 

"Mercy has volunteered with me since she has been here and has been a big help. She is doing a great job helping my department with organizing and to be a little bit greener. She is constantly reminding me not to waste paper and to recycle. I appreciate the additional help as she has done tasks for me that I have been holding on to for months. She is a great addition to the organization and to supporting my department and me." 

--Jennipha Gregory, Supported Employment Program Manager  

 

"Mercy is very enthusiastic and always willing to help.  She is a quick learner and has a positive attitude.  She always has a smile on her face and brightens everyone's day!"

--Laura Murphy, Human Resources Manager

 

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Thank You to Our 2012 Donors!
 

$50,000 and above

The Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation

The State of Maryland

 

$10,000-49,999

Anne Arundel County Office of County Executive

In Memory of James Still: 

Ray and Mary Still

Susan Still and Peter Bergstrom

 

$5,000 - $9,999

J. Walker Johnson

Midshore Mental Health Systems, Inc.

 

$2,500-$4,999

Atlantic Contracting & Materials Co. 

Nick and Jody Lacey

Sandy Spring Bank

In Memory of James Still:

Mimi and Kent Dixon

   

$1,000-$2,499

James and Mildred Banwell

Veronica Bolan

Community Foundation of Anne Arundel County

Richard and Estelle Glasgow

Libby Heffner

Frances Karns

Dr. Stephen Kent

Maryland Primary Care Physicians, LLC

Donald and Betti Morganstern

SL Industries, Inc.

Brad and Joanne Zeiger 

In Memory of James Still: 

Thomas Still and Sally Owen Still

In Memory of Agnes LaPointe:

Michael D. LaPointe

 

$500-$999

Catherine Purple Cherry

Michael Drummond and Linda Coveleskie

Maryland State Council Knights of Columbus

Jeffrey and Jane Marks

Peter and Daphne Summers

Rosalie Zaia

 

$100-$499

Dorothy Bartolotta

David and Justine Disborough

Thornton and Barbara Green

Norris M. Hanson

Dennis and Stephanie Hom

Judy Mauriello

Elke Morris

Kristen Myers

Michele Noble

Laurie Nolan

Margaret O'Brien

Maria Smith

Donald and Mary Tucker

In Memory of James Still:

Alice Kujala

Nick and Jody Lacey

In Memory of William Kleeberg:
Mary Gillis

 

$99 and below

Susan Aherne

Betty A. Bender

Margaret Bills

William Delo

Reginald and Jennipha Gregory
Jenni Lucke

Brendan McCormick

Carol Parker

Robert and Jacqueline Wooldridge, Jr.

In Memory of James Still:

Dorothy Bartolotta

Margaret Bills

Andrea Wohlfeld Kuhn

Maxwell and Suzanne Ochs 

Steven and Shelley Reynolds 

Wittenberg University

William and Eleanor Wohlfeld

In Memory of Stephen Orszula:

Sharon Doolin

Melford L. Maples

Martha McClary

Bozydar Orszula

Swietobor Orszula

In Memory of William Kleeberg:  

Jacqueline Nicholson

In Memory of Theresa Howes:

Guy and Lynn Goddard

Roy and Susan Goddard

In Memory of Alherta Slonnata:

A. Leigh Redmon 

In Memory of Angela Miller-Marshall:  

Doug and Estelle Harvey
Ray and Marguarite Krell

John and Renee Whitmire

 

Arundel Lodge would like to thank the above individuals, corporations, organizations and foundations for their generosity throughout 2012. Every effort has been made to accurately list the names of these donors. Please contact the development office to help us correct any errors. Thank you again for your strong support.