Mental Health Issues and Challenges Facing Metro Detroit’s Diverse Faith Traditions
“Mental Health Issues and Challenges Facing Metro Detroit’s Diverse Faith Traditions”
Wednesday, May 16th
6:30 PM to 9:00 PM
at The Community House in Birmingham
(380 S. Bates)
The panel will include experts in the mental health field representing the Christian, Hindu, Jewish, and Muslim faith traditions. The presentation will focus predominately on youth of multiple faith groups, the challenges that they face, and the stigma attached to dealing with mental illnesses. Information will include steps that teachers, parents, family members, and clinicians can take to ensure that mental health issues of youth in specific faith traditions are addressed.
Nacha Leaf (Jewish), Clinical Social Worker/Therapist at the Jewish mental health agency called Kadima, in Southfield.
Sameera Ahmed (Muslim), Director of the Family & Youth Institute and a Clinical Assistant Professor at Wayne State University in the Dept. of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience.
Rev. Sandra Gordon (Christian), Assistant to Pastor Kenneth Flowers at the Greater New Mount Moriah Missionary Baptist Church in Detroit. Former Co-chairperson of the Yellow Ribbon Suicide Prevention Program.
Mona Belsare (Hindu), Vice President of the Michigan Asian Indian Family Services which serves the South Asian community, and a psychiatric social worker in the ER at Beaumont Hospital.
These panelists will address specific mental health issues face by the youth of their faith tradition, suggestions for helping the family members struggling with their child’s issues, and ensuring that the mental health issues faced by the Christian, Jewish, Hindu, or Muslim families are dealt with in counseling and in the child’s classroom.
This program is sponsored by the Family and Youth Institute, the Interfaith Leadership Council of Metropolitan Detroit, Kadima, The Race Relations and Diversity Task Force of the Birmingham Community House, and WISDOM (Women’s Interfaith Solutions for Dialogue and Outreach in MetroDetroit).
The event is free! Coffee and cookies will be served. For further information or to register, please contact Sheri Schiff, sheri1228@yahoo.com