community foundation series
By Bob Valasek
This is the third installment of a six-part series in 2020 highlighting the New Albany Community Foundation as it celebrates 25 years of transformative impact on our community.
It’s Time to Talk
Mental health conversations with the NACF lead to community action
Photo courtesy of James DeCamp
F
or the last 20 years, the New Albany Community Foundation has taken the lead to start conversations about challenges facing New Albany residents. Around the time of the first Jefferson Series lecture, central Ohio experienced an increase in teen suicides, raising concern among residents, school officials and city leaders who understood New Albany was not immune to the trend. Communities can choose to ignore such issues in order to avoid any perceived negative attention, but New Albany chose to confront the problems head-on. www.healthynewalbanymagazine.com
“In New Albany, we care about everybody and we wanted to find a way for the community to express this,” says Craig Mohre, president of the NACF. “We looked to start a community discussion that would help remove the stigma associated with mental illness.” The foundation decided to make mental health a focus by encouraging community dialogue and awareness of resources. During the 2015,16 Jefferson Series season, the NACF took its first public step toward convening a community conversation about eliminating the stigma associated with mental health related topics, but it didn’t hap-
pen overnight. There was significant work done behind the scenes prior to Mariel Hemingway coming to New Albany, and significant progress has been made in the years since. Hemingway had just written a book chronicling her famous family’s generational battle with mental illnesses. The timely subject matter coupled with her celebrity status was a perfect fit for a Jefferson Series lecture, and the community response was tremendous. The next day, Rocky Fork Company owner Brian Bailey, who had attended the Hemingway lecture, visited Mohre in his office. Bailey wanted to make a cor27
