On May 15, staff from ɫ��ɫ’s TRAC/TMRS/SHOP programs set up a booth at the Amgen Tour of California. The Tour de France-style cycling road race came through Modesto, where program staff greeted community members and informed them about the services they provide within the community. During the event, staff connected with other community resources, linked up with potential members, and even participated in the parade.  

ɫ��ɫ's Riverside County and celebrated  and week May 7-13.

The support staff brought in meals for all three shifts, conducted a scavenger hunt, and had an old-fashioned ice cream social.

"Everyone had a blast and our entire facility came together to Celebrate our Team and the ɫ��ɫ Mission," said Steven Oppenheimer, Administrator at Riverside PFH.

On May 3, ɫ��ɫ and  hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony and open house for a brand-new Mental Health Crisis Center in Riverside County where ɫ��ɫ will operate the ɫ��ɫ Lagos Crisis Residential Treatment (CRT) Facility when it opens in July 2017.

"The ribbon cutting ceremony was a wonderful celebration where we had the opportunity to connect with various partners and department heads from Riverside County," said Beatrice Serafin, Regional Director of Operations for Riverside and San Bernardino Counties. "We hosted an information booth, met our neighbors at the site, and gave facility tours to individuals attending the celebration. It was a great way to introduce everyone to the Lagos Program."

The Lagos CRT will be a 16-bed, unlocked, voluntary psychiatric recovery program with the goal of stabilizing individuals experiencing a mental health crisis by providing intensive and structured psychosocial recovery services in a non-institutional, welcoming, safe, and respectful environment.

A powerful and unique component of the Lagos program will be the various Peer Support Provider positions, which will comprise 50% of the overall staffing pattern. "Peer Support Providers are uniquely qualified to inspire and engage residents to reclaim their personal power and achieve their recovery goals," said Jennifer Hinkel, Vice President of Development. "This program will include several positions from our Peer Support Provider career ladder, including Peer Support Specialists, Family Peer Support Specialists, Peer Recovery Educators, as well as a Peer Team Leader who will provide support to all the Peer Provider positions."

ɫ��ɫ programs participated in the global in which organizations around the world held training's and workshops to spread awareness on the Five Signs of emotional suffering and ways to help a person in need.  One goal is to change the cultural narrative of how people with mental health challenges are viewed. , , and of England are big names lending their time and energy to this worthy campaign.    

LAOA invited building tenants and businesses to a conversation on mental wellness and recognizing the . Door prizes/raffles, food, and drink were provided to create a welcoming and safe environment to begin a dialogue on wellness and begin demystifying mental health. 

 The 5 signs are:

1. Personality Change

2. Agitation or mood swings

3. Withdrawn/Isolated

4. Poor Self Care

5. Feeling hopeless

Ways to combat and help those in need:

1. Take Care- Eat well, Sleep well and exercise

2. Check-In- With family, friends, counselors

3. Engage- With others, create healthy relationships

4. Relax- Be active, meditate, garden, dance, love

5. Know– Know the 5 Signs of emotional suffering

ɫ��ɫ’s Modesto outreach programs have teamed up with the four of the newest officers that have been hired on to work with the homeless population in the community.

“If the officers suspect that the person might have a mental health diagnosis or substance use disorder, they will phone our outreach staff, Randy Limburg and Maria Madrigal, to assist with linking them to needed services,” said Dawn Lewis, Program Business Director at the .

“In the five weeks that this MPD team has been in place, at least four people have been successfully linked,” she said.

ɫ��ɫ has multiple outreach programs in the Stanislaus County area that provide a wide array of community outreach and linkage services

• • Outreach and Engagement 1 focuses on the area’s homeless population

  • Outreach and Engagement 3 team provides psycho-education and mental health services with the intent of reducing stigma in mental health

  • Latino Access specifically provides outreach and psycho-education on mental health to the county’s Latino population

• TRAC provides a continuity of care and a menu of outpatient treatment options

  • Partnership TRAC serves clients who have previously been under served and/or uninsured

  • Fast TRAC serves clients who are under served, many of whom are un-benefited

  • Wellness TRAC serves clients that are low-risk and can benefit from low-intensity services, primarily medication services and group offerings

  • Josie’s TRAC serves Transitional Age Youth (TAY) 18-25

• serves primarily clients residing in Modesto with a history psychiatric hospitalization