Candlelight vigil, bands to benefit NAMI
Warren County?s National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) will be holding two nights full of activities that are dedicated to mental illness awareness beginning this Thursday, Oct. 5.
The festivities will end with eight heavy metal and hard rock bands performing at Hoot-N-Holler Farm on Oct. 6 at 6 p.m.
On Thursday, the activities will start at 7 p.m. and continue until 8:30 p.m. in the downtown park area directly in front of the courthouse.
Criminal Justice/Mental Health liaison from Putnam County, Jody Reecer, will be a guest speaker. There will also be a presentation called ?In Our Own Voice? where mental health consumers with mental illness have recovered, gone on to live productive lives and tell their stories. Guest speakers for that will be Lisa Hubler, with NAMI TN and Connie Levenhagen, with TN Mental Health Consumer Association.
There will be many state and local organizations with information, live gospel and country music, refreshments and door prizes. A candlelight vigil will follow the presentations.
The program is open to the public and all local mental health services in the area are invited to participate.
On Friday night, NAMI Warren County presents ?Rockin? Out Against Meth and the Disease of Addiction? at Hoot-N-Holler Farm.
?Addiction is a mental illness,? said NAMI TN board of directors vice president Sheila Hedge. ?Most people don?t think of it that way, but it is.?
There will be two stages, a megatron and eight bands. Performing will be: Steadyfall, 2nd Coming, Greatest Few, Secret Article, The Hot Rocks, Never See The Day, 20 Saw You Die, and Peers of Anguish.
With so many good bands playing, the event will be heavily supervised, according to Hedge.
?We know parents are concerned about their teens,? said Hedge. ?But this is a place parents can let their children go and not have to worry about them. Volunteers will be in T-shirts so they can be easily identified.?
If parents are worried that volunteers won?t be enough, the Warren County Sheriff?s Department will be on hand during the evening as well as the Putnam County Meth Task Force.
Many other county and state organizations will be there with information and materials on meth, the disease of addiction, teenage depression, suicide prevention and much more.
?It?s going to be so much fun,? said Hedge. ?Teens will love listening to the bands while learning about mental illness.?
The WCHS student council will be working this event under the direction of Pam Youngblood.
Admission is $3. The concession stand will be open. No alcohol will be sold at concessions or allowed during the event. Door prizes including an iPod and other great prizes.
The bands will begin at 6 p.m. There is no set time for the bands to stop playing. It could be after midnight. Hoot-N-Holler is located at 258 Bryan Nelson Road in McMinnville. The bands can be heard by logging onto MySpace.com/hootnhollerfarm