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January 11, 2024

The Ally: Welcoming in the New Year
 

We are excited to welcome in 2024 with all of you! There are many things to celebrate and look forward to. Our Tenth Annual Community Partnership Celebration is January 29. We will celebrate all that we accomplished in 2023, look forward to all that is to come in 2024, and honor our award winners for each of our core values. Please join us!

Each new year brings the start of another Mississippi state legislative session. This week, we share general information about the legislature with you and explain the beginning of the bill-making process. We encourage all of you to follow legislative happenings online and in person. Let us know if you or a group you belong to is following an issue or bill that you think might also be important to other parents.

It is also touching that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr's birthday is at the beginning of the new year. I hope reflecting on his life brings special meaning to our New Year planning. This week, we re-share some thoughts from 2023 that remain relevant.

Please join us virtually in congratulating our newest class of parent-peer support graduates this Friday, January 12, at 1 p.m. In addition to celebrating their accomplishments, this is an excellent opportunity to build the parent-peer support community. We encourage friends and families of the graduates, as well as anyone who supports parent-peer supporters or is interested in learning more about being a parent-peer supporter, to attend.

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NEWS
Helping a Loved One Dealing with Mental or Substance Use Disorders - Link to PDF
 
This year, Families as Allies honors our award winners at the Community Partnership Celebration on Monday, January 29.
 
The Mississippi State Legislature began its new session on January 2, 2024. We will follow the session and encourage you to do so as well.
 
The United States honors the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on the third Monday of every January. He left us with so many lessons to learn. This year we ask you to consider Dr. King's words about "creative maladjustment" thoughtfully.

EVENTS
 
The current 25-member Council includes people with disabilities, parents, family member advocates, and required governmental representatives.
 
This presentation will cover the six foundational principles of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
 
This hour is open for any family member to drop in to ask questions or get feedback about IEP issues and other school situations.
 
You don't want to miss our upcoming Special Education Boot Camp in Gulfport, Mississippi on Friday, January 19 from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
 
The MAAC's mission is "to study, make recommendations, and develop a strategic plan to educate and train students with ASD.
 
This group focuses on understanding current policy issues and opportunities to serve on decision-making committees.
 

Please join us at Bravo Italian Restaurant and Bar on Monday, January 29, 2024, from 5:00 to 8:00 for our Tenth Annual Community Partnership Celebration to celebrate the work we do together and ensure it continues. We hope all of you can join us, but if you cannot, please consider donating.

RESOURCES
 
It is very uncommon for people going through that process to be held in jail without criminal charges for days or weeks - except in Mississippi. In 2023, Mississippi Today and ProPublica investigated the practice of jailing people solely on the basis of possible mental illness while they wait for...
 
Ridgeland, MS — NAMI Mississippi proudly announces the appointment of Kathleen Seeberg as its new Executive Director, effective December 2023. With an impressive background in nonprofit leadership and a commitment to community service, Seeberg brings a wealth of experience to lead NAMI Mississippi in its mission to support individuals and families affected by mental illness. Read more ... 
 
Click or tap the images below to see each full PDF.