NAMI Walks event raising mental health awareness, funds during May

By Stacie Frerichs Special to the Express To raise awareness and decrease stigma around all mental health conditions, Yolo County residents are taking to the streets – with sidewalk chalk. The third weekend in May is the annual NAMI Walks, part of the annual Mental Health Awareness Month in May, an event where thousands of people gather to raise awareness of mental health and work to eliminate stigma around mental health conditions. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, NAMI Walks has pivoted to small, virtual events. Newly titled, NAMI Walks Your Way now has thousands of participants fanning out over California and the Country to promote the same values as NAMI Walks. As of Sunday, May 16, over 20,000 people were raising money across the country. One local team, made up of Board Members of NAMI Yolo County, is spreading messages in chalk in Downtown Davis on Saturday, May 22nd.  Named “Hope Chalks”, the team includes four NAMI Yolo County Board members: Stacie Frerichs, Sara Gavin, Petrea Marchand, and Anya McCann. There are eleven teams raising money for NAMI Yolo County this year. You can look them up, donate, and sign up to participate at https://www.namiwalks.org/team/Hope-Chalks There are multiple ways to support “Mental Health of All” during May. Write or draw your own messages of hope and resilience in chalk or on a poster and take a photo and email to friends@namiyolo.org. Photos will be shared on the NAMI Yolo County website. Post the photo on social media, tag @NAMI Yolo County on Facebook, and include the #notalone and #namiwalksnorcal hashtags. On Saturday, May 22, visit the “Hope Chalks” team and see the chalk drawings outside The Paint Chip at 217 F Street in Davis. The team will draw from 8 a.m. to Noon and the art should be visible for a day or two after the event. Donations to NAMI Yolo County can be made on the team page https://www.namiwalks.org/team/Hope-Chalks/. Most importantly, all the money raised supports NAMI Yolo County’s mental health programs. NAMI Yolo County supports the one in five who experience mental illness in our community and the five in five who are affected by it. Their vision is a stigma-free future where all people affected by a mental health condition experience resiliency and recovery with safe, affordable housing, meaningful activities, supportive relationships, and hope. The pandemic has only increased the need for mental health services.