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On Tuesday
April 12th the Mental Health Association of New
York City (MHA-NYC), a national leader in mental health
services, advocacy and education will host its annual gala,
themed “The Many Faces of
Mental Health.” The gala, at New York’s Pierre Hotel,
will honor former U.S. Representative Patrick
J. Kennedy for his career of leadership and advocacy in
support of mental health.
Bill
Ritter, WABC
Eyewitness News co-anchor, will Host the
Gala
Kennedy, who served in the
U.S. House of Representatives from Rhode Island’s 1st district
from 1995-2011, is one of the nation’s leading voices on
mental illness, addiction and brain diseases. During his
time in Congress, he fought a national battle to end medical
and societal discrimination against these challenges,
highlighted by his lead sponsorship of the Mental Health
Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 and his openness
about his own health challenges. Kennedy details his vision
for the future of mental health in America as well as some
of his own personal struggles in a new book he has
co-authored, “A Common Struggle.” His wife Amy, who serves
as Education Director for the Kennedy Forum, will address
their commitment to mental health at the gala.
“Patrick’s leadership has
been essential to the progress we have made with mental
health parity to this point,” MHA-NYC CEO board chairman Kevin
Danehy said, “and it is absolutely vital as together we
build on this progress and navigate the new and changing
health care landscape.”
“I want to thank Kevin, MHA-NYC
CEO and President Giselle
Stolper and everyone at the organization for this
honor,” Kennedy said. “They are fighting every single day on
behalf of nearly 50 million Americans and so I am proud to
share this honor with them. We have so much still to
accomplish, and I look forward to working side by side with
MHA-NYC to get it done.”
The gala will also feature Antigone
Davis, the head of Global Safety on Facebook’s Public
Policy team. The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline team
has been partnering with Facebook since 2007. The
partnership has served a critical role in helping Facebook
support people in suicidal crisis who use the platform, as
well as the community around them. They’ve created new
support tools, resources for people going through a crisis,
and tips to equip friends to support a friend in crisis in
addition to reaching out to Facebook.
“Lifeline staff are
worldwide leaders and innovators in their use of social
media to reach and support people in crisis,” Antigone Davis
said. “All of us at Facebook are committed to working
together to create a more socially connected and responsible
online community.”
Also scheduled to speak at
the gala is Sarah Vander
Schaaff, whose first person account of her struggles
with obsessive compulsive disorder in the Washington Post
(“Obsessive-compulsive disorder nearly ruined her life”,
January 4th) has generated wordwide acclaim from
those with similar mental health issues and those thanking
Vander Schaaff for coming forward and helping to reduce the
stigma associated with mental illness.
“Sarah’s column, and the
reaction to it, has been so moving for all of us,” Stolper,
the MHA-NYC, CEO and President said. “It is a perfect
example of the importance of advocacy, education and
awareness surrounding mental health. Her story is a life
lesson about the progress that can be made when we address
our problems without shame or stigma.”“I am thrilled be a
part of this great evening with such a powerful theme,”
Vander Schaaff said. “This cause affects every age, race and
socioeconomic class. I am just one more of the many faces of
mental health.”
More than 500
business, civic, and government leaders will come together
for the 2016 gala, to call attention to the diversity of
people who grapple with mental health challenges and to
celebrate the innovative leaders, programs, and technologies
bringing treatment, support, hope, and health to those
striving to achieve emotional wellness. Dinner Chairs for
the gala include Jennifer Ashley Ph.D., Global Director of
Human Resources of CBRE; Rick Clark, Senior Managing Partner
and Chairman of Brookfield Property Group; and Charles
Fitzgerald, Senior Managing Partner of V3 Capital
Management, L.P.
About the Mental Health
Association of New York City (MHA-NYC):
MHA-NYC is a non-profit
organization that addresses mental health needs in New York
City and across the nation. Through our three-part mission
of service, advocacy and education, we identify unmet needs
and develop culturally sensitive programs to improve the
lives of individuals and families impacted by mental illness
while promoting the importance of mental health. Our
subsidiary, Link2HealthSolutions,
is administrator of the National Suicide Prevention
Lifeline, and a leading innovator developing technology and
communications infrastructure critical for supporting the
emotional wellness of individuals and communities in need.
Together MHA-NYC and Link2Health Solutions provide
high-quality services that reach more than one million
people every year. www.mhaofnyc.org
To learn more about the MHA-NYC
gala “The Many Faces of Mental Health” go to: http://www.mhaofnyc.org/gala2016
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