President Carlos rang the bell and opened the meeting. He led us in the Pledge of Allegiance, our invocation and a recitation of Rotary’s Four-Way Test.
Our guests were:
Dr. Ana Teresa Arizaga, Chief Behavioral Health Officer at HMS, our speaker,
Glenn Ouzts, Dr. Gary Latzon, Gayle Simmons and Josh Young
Announcements:
- As always, please quiet or turn off your cell phones.
- WNMU will be closed May 3- May 24. Following discussion, we agreed to meet in May in the HMS Conference room. Here’s a post-meeting announcement from Rotarian Dan Otero:
“Audrey Coward, HMS’ CEO Executive Assistant, has booked our conference room for May 7th, 14th, and 21st. We are planning on having food available as follows:
- Barbeque Sandwich meals (with drinks & a small dessert)
- Subway sandwich meals (with drinks & a small dessert)
- Pizza Day (with drinks & a small dessert)
Lunch will be provided at $5.00 per meal. We are not charging for the space (just in case someone asks). We need to know how many attendees to expect.”
- We will meet at 11:00 am next Tuesday to prepare hygiene packs for our Health and Hygiene workshop at 6th Street School, 2:00 pm on April 29th. (Jim Callender will confirm this date and time with the hygienist.)
- Since Steve Chavira is taking a leave of absence from Rotary, assistance is requested in lining up speakers for May and June – and also in supporting Sunny and Art with the weekly bulletin.
- Jim Callender announced that there would be no Silver City Rotary Foundation Board meeting today.
- Gary Latzon reminded everyone that Give Grandly is coming right up in early May.
Happy Dollars:
Well, one “bittersweet dollar” from Sunny – Harry is home after two weeks in the hospital, still struggling, please keep us in your thoughts.
Program
Dr. Teresa Arizaga thanked Rotary for all our work and commented that what we do is directly related to mental well-being. She shared printed materials covering the scope of services available in our community and noted the importance of honoring each person, regardless of where they are on their journey. People are not defined by their diagnosis – all clients need to be treated without shaming and in a non-judgmental way.
Stressing the power of human connection, she observed that with that connection – and assuming that basic human needs are met, people can improve with remarkable speed.
Her presentation sparked interesting discussion about outreach, crisis intervention, self- referrals, the value of calling 988 (available to anyone experiencing a crisis or their family or friends), and “Tu Casa” (open 8-6 M-Th and 9 to 1 on Fridays).
Finally, it was agreed that more work is needed to reach out to people in need of support with mental health issues or substance misuse, to bridge the accessibility gap caused by some services’ limited hours, and to ensure that primary care providers are aware of ALL the services available to their patients.
President Carlos thanks Dr. Arizaga and adjourned
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