CAPE GIRARDEAU – The Community Counseling Center will present a week-long virtual Suicide Prevention Speaker Series taking place on-line on February 21-25, 2022, featuring international experts and speakers on various topics of suicide prevention. The event is available at no charge to anyone who registers.
Registrations are required and may be made at: https://cvent.me/a8y0yD
Community Counseling Center is proud to bring the FREE Virtual Suicide Prevention Speaker Series to attendees on-line, the result of a Perry County Community Foundation grant the organization received in 2021. The virtual event will take place February 21-25, 2022. Multiple topics and sessions are being offered throughout the week to allow attendees flexibility to attend around their personal schedules. Those wishing to attend will just need to register and select the date and time of the sessions they want to participate in. CEU’s are also available for any mental health care providers with that option also available at registration.
There will be multiple training opportunities in Mental Health First Aid, Youth Mental Health First Aid, and Question Persuade Refer (QPR.) The speaker line-up for the event includes five international suicide prevention experts: Dr. Jonathon Singer presenting on Suicide in Schools: Prevention, Assessment, Intervention and Postvention; Dr. Sally Spencer-Thomas speaking on mental resiliency with a presentation titled, Up on the High Wire; Kevin Briggs with his presentation, Negotiations and Listening to Understand; Sarah Gaer sharing on Beyond Self Care: Soul Exhaustions and Soul Care; and Victor Armstrong presenting on The Role of the Faith Based Community in Suicide Prevention.
The Community Counseling Center (CCC) provides mental health services in a five-county service area in Southeast Missouri, including Bollinger, Cape Girardeau, Madison, Perry, and Sainte Genevieve- with multiple offices located in each county.
The Suicide Prevention Speaker Series was organized after CCC received grant funding through the Perry County Community Foundation. The funding was awarded in response to the mental health impacts from the COVID pandemic.
Event spokesperson, Michelle Ramsey, CCC Executive Foundation Director said, “Suicide is currently the 10th leading cause of death in the US. We also know that there has been an upward trend in the younger demographics in Missouri. The pandemic has brought with it unsettling changes for many, and everyone has been unaffected in some way.”
She continued, “We have become aware that the youth demographic has really struggled, causing a huge demand in additional resources through our School Based Counseling program in all of our counties, but Perry County specifically. As our planning continued, we felt that building a virtual series to address mental health and suicide that would be fitting for anyone to attend would allow us to make the biggest impact.”
“This series is not geared to only mental health professionals, but to teachers, parents, grandparents, students and the general population,” Ramsey added. “We are very happy about the way this event has shaped up and are so grateful the grant funding afforded CCC the opportunity to bring it to Southeast Missouri, and since it’s virtual, beyond!”