Celebration of Courage Sept. 10-12 to Support Mentally Ill
Stop by the lawn of Mission Hospital's St. Joseph Campus on September 10-12 and buy a flower to support mental illness. More than 1,000 irises, tulips and daisies will line Biltmore Avenue as NAMI Western Carolina, in partnership with Mission Hospital, sponsors the Celebration of Courage.
The 45-inch-tall flowers represent Vincent Van Gogh's famous work, The Irises, painted when he was institutionalized for mental illness. The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) has adopted the flower as a symbol of hope and courage. Conceived and developed by NAMI Wake County, the display has been installed at sites across North Carolina, including the General Assembly lawn, to help raise awareness of mental illness.
A recent survey by Employee Benefit News, a magazine for HR professionals, states that employers believe that mental illness costs their company more money than any other health condition. The study, called "Innerworkings: A Look at Mental Health in Today's Workplace," surveyed companies to rank which health issue they believed had the most effect on lost productivity, increased absenteeism, and other indirect costs. Mental illness came in first over any other condition.
"The Celebration of Courage is a beautiful affirmation of human worth and potential," NAMI Western Carolina Co-President Jim Pitts said. "It asserts that mental illnesses are treatable and lives can be reclaimed. People who suffer mental illnesses and those who care about them have a major stake in erasing the stigma that prevents appropriate medical treatment for citizens of all backgrounds.
"Helping people with mental illnesses to reclaim their lives is an enlightened and wise investment in more than the persons who deserve treatment," Pitts added. "It's also an investment in the health and vitality of WNC families, schools, and communities."
Sponsoring gifts of $50, $100, $200 or more also are welcome. Contributions to NAMI Western Carolina should be mailed to Jim Pitts, 21 Allesarn Rd., Asheville, NC 28804. For further information, email Pitts at irises@namiwnc.org or call (828) 258-5359.
Learn more about the Innerworkings study.
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Photo courtesy of Mission Hospital - |
