Local organizations to host mental health and resilience conference

Working with two other regional organizations, Minnesota Prairie County Alliance (MNPrairie) will offer an Oct. 25 conference focused on mental health and resilience.
Adults and Disabilities Services Supervisor Brandon Smith said MN Prairie is partnering with NAMI SE MN and SPERO, the local mental health center serving Dodge, Steele, and Waseca counties, to present the Mental Health & Resilience Conference.
The day-long event will be held at the West Hills Commons building on the City of Owatonna campus.
Smith said the organizations “saw an opportunity through grant funding to provide community education around building resiliency on an individual’s mental health journey.”
“This mental health conference provides a timely and powerful opportunity to bring together resources, community leaders, individuals with lived experience, and service providers to address these critical needs,” he said. “How do we support one another on this journey and how do we reduce the stigma and make it okay to not be okay at times.”
The event will include a keynote speaker, three topic-specific sessions, and a lunch-and-learn (with lunch provided).
“This conference will serve as a platform to share best practices, offer education, highlight local initiatives, and equip participants with tools to improve mental health outcomes and access,” Smith said. “Many individuals experience mental illness in different capacities, and the goal is to provide insight into the systems that are in place, how to navigate them, and how to advocate for reducing gaps in services.”
Smith noted the event organizers intentionally planned the event outside of the normal business day and with a “local punch with the keynote speaker being the Owatonna Mayor-Matt Jessop.”
“Through this event the region will strengthen its regional knowledge around mental health challenges, inform lived experience community members of local resources and how to access them, and reduce stigma and elevate the voices of those with lived experience,” he added.
For MNPrairie, a human services provider for Steele, Dodge, and Waseca counties, this type of collaboration isn’t unique.
“MNPrairie has collaborated in the past on many projects that have brought community education to the area,” Smith said. “There have been several mental health resource fairs and suicide prevention events in all three counties MNPrairie has assisted in getting together. Through the Southeast MN Adult Mental Health Initiative, a regional approach to mental health resources, MNPrairie has also assisted in hosting educational events throughout Southeast MN. MNPrairie also participates in these events by utilizing vendor space to discuss services they are able to provide.”
In addition to speakers, Smith said the event will “feature multiple resource booths from the local area that provide a wide variety of services individuals are able to visit throughout the conference.”
He stressed the event is not “a clinical training but a community conversation.”
To register or for more information, visit https://tinyurl.com/MNPrairieMHConference.