NAMI Baldwin County

 

Baldwin County’s Voice on Mental Illness

 

Mental Illness can be a Lonely Road. 

You Don’t have to Go Down it Alone!!

 

JOIN NAMI TODAY!!

Call 965-NAMI (6264)

February 23, 2010

 

Phillip Drane, Director

 

The Shoulder

 

   

   Our speaker for January was Cindy Gayer with the Alabama Disability Advocacy Network (AL DAN). AL DAN is a newly-formed, cross-disability advocacy

network. Formed in August of 2009, AL DAN has already grown to 300 members. It was formed under a grant from the Alabama Council for Developmental Disabilities, and it hopes to be self-sustaining in two years. The AL DAN website,

www.aladan.org, has information on advocacy groups, events around the state, links to other organizations, and voting information. AL DAN is based in Birmingham and can be reached at 334-322-0935 or aldan1@bellsouth.net

    For 2010, AL DAN currently has three main events planned. First, three regional planning events have been scheduled. These three planning meetings will occur in Mobile (March 25), Montgomery (April 8) and Birmingham (April 22). They will include discussions on coalition building and advocacy training. A regional advisory committee will also be formed. Second, a state-wide summit will be held in

Birmingham on July 26^th. This happens to be on or near the 20^th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Lastly, AL DAN intends to conduct a gubernatorial candidate forum in Birmingham on August 9^th. AL DAN also attended the legislative day on January 26^th in Montgomery and the Alabama Arise Lobby Day on February 4^th also in Montgomery. An annual disability policy rally is also scheduled for March 3^rd in Montgomery.

     Cindy briefly discussed other Alabama disability advocacy groups. The Alabama Disabilities Advocacy Program (ADAP), which NAMI members may recognize, is a federally-funded program in Alabama. The Alabama Disabilities Advocacy Coalition (ADAC) is a smaller, part-time organization. The Alabama Institute for the Deaf and Blind (AIDB) also has appeared on AL DAN's networking efforts. AL DAN

welcomes contact with any other state disability organizations.

    NAMI-BC thanks Cindy for her information on this relatively new organization (AL DAN).

Interested NAMI-BC members can register to join AL DAN.

 

 

FROM THE LAST MEETING

          HATS OFF TO OUR 

      VALUED SUPPORTERS

Jan McVey—Gulf Shores

 

(in memory of Gary Martin Brewer)

 

Gulf Bowl—Foley                      

WELCOME TO NEW MEMBERS

Kristina Kapp—Daphne

Jane Orosz—Daphne

Fawn Wiley—Foley

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