Workshop explores mental health concerns

Talk about it

Celebrate Recovery, a faith-based recovery program at Alexandria Covenant Church, and New Visions Center of Alexandria are co-sponsoring a workshop to help equip people to help those they know or love through various storms of life, with a specific focus on mental illness.

Led by Jeff Jorgensen, director of special education for Alexandria School District 206, “Helping Others Through the Storm” will be held Monday, March 23 from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Broadway Ballroom, 115 East 30th Avenue, Alexandria.

That same evening at 6:30 p.m., Jorgensen will present a faith-based perspective on this subject at Celebrate Recovery, 4005 Dakota Street (on the service road north of Target). There is no cost for this presentation and members of the community are invited to attend.

These presentations will explore the depth and prevalence of mental health concerns in our communities today, including common struggles such as depression and anxiety. Participants will seek first to understand how a mental health condition affects an individual’s ability to communicate effectively.

The class will also work to identify both general and specific strategies for communicating with and helping those within their lives that suffer from mental illness. This workshop will provide resources helpful for professionals in the fields of health care, mental health, law enforcement, educational and social service fields, as well as anybody from the community at large.

Cost of the daytime lunch workshop is $20, which includes a deli buffet lunch.

To register or for more information, contact (320) 763-5659 or suel@alexandriacovenant.org.

Jorgensen, workshop facilitator, has a bachelor’s degree in biology/psychology from the University of Sioux Falls. He also holds a master’s degree in marriage and family therapy from North American Baptist Seminary, and a master’s degree in school psychology from the University of South Dakota. He received his certification as a special education director from St. Cloud State University. Jorgensen has been with the Alexandria School District since 2005.

Tags: news, workshop, mental, health, concerns