NAMI Illinois

10/21/2026

What a powerful day of storytelling, connection, and inspiration! 💜
 
On Friday, October 16, NAMI Illinois’ Ashley Warren, Executive Director of Programs, and Zoe Victorine, Youth & Young Adults Program Manager, attended The She Said Project’s 4th Annual Power of Storytelling Women’s Conference in Champaign, Illinois.
 
The conference brought women together to celebrate the power of sharing our stories, building connections, and lifting one another up.
 
At NAMI Illinois, we know that sharing lived experiences can help break down stigma, foster understanding, and remind others they are not alone. Events like this reinforce just how powerful it can be when people feel empowered to use their voices.
 
Thank you to The She Said Project for creating a space where women’s voices and experiences are celebrated!

10/21/2026

Big things are happening in Central Illinois!

We're excited to welcome Chris and Molly, directors of the new NAMI Central Illinois affiliate, to the 2026 NAMI Illinois Annual Statewide Conference!

Their presentation, Meet Them Where They Are, will explore what it takes to build a brand new NAMI affiliate in a rural community and create more opportunities for people to find mental health support close to home.

We can't wait for attendees to hear their story and learn about the work taking shape in Central Illinois!

📅 October 23 & 24
🎟️ Register today and be part of the conversation: https://namiillinois.org/get-involved/2026conference/conferenceregistration2026/

10/20/2026

🎤 We're excited to welcome Mary Garrison, President and CEO of Heritage Behavioral Health Center, to the 2026 NAMI Illinois Annual Statewide Conference!

Access to behavioral health care can make all the difference, and telehealth is changing how people connect with the support they need.

Mary will bring her expertise to this year's conference to explore telehealth and its role in expanding access to care. We can't wait to hear her perspective!

📅 October 23 & 24

Hear from Mary herself, then make plans to join us! There’s still time to be a part of the conversation.

🔗 Register today: https://namiillinois.org/get-involved/2026conference/conferenceregistration2026/

10/19/2026

Illinois officially has its 22nd NAMI affiliate!

We are incredibly excited to welcome NAMI Central Illinois, recently approved by NAMI National and now preparing to serve communities throughout Macon and DeWitt Counties.

This means more people will have a local connection to NAMI education, support, advocacy, and community. It means families in another part of our state will have people nearby who understand this work and are committed to building something specifically for their communities.

Getting here took people willing to put in the time to make it happen.

Chris Neal and Molly Tenuto of Heritage Behavioral Health Center are leading the development of the new affiliate with support from local partners, NAMI Illinois, and NAMI National. We could not be more excited to see what they build.

And you’ll get to meet Chris and Molly very soon.

At the NAMI Illinois 2026 State Conference, they’ll present “Meet Them Where They Are: Building Community in the Early Development of a Rural NAMI Affiliate,” sharing what they have learned while building NAMI Central Illinois from the ground up.

Welcome to the NAMI Illinois family, NAMI Central Illinois. Number 22 looks pretty great to us. 💚

10/19/2026

We are grateful to Johnson & Johnson for sponsoring the 2026 NAMI Illinois Annual Statewide Conference.

Mental health work depends on a strong network of supporters -- including organizations that recognize the value of bringing advocates, individuals with lived experience, family members, professionals, and community leaders together in one room. Johnson & Johnson is one of those organizations. Thank you for your partnership!

10/16/2026

What happens when young people get the opportunity to ask a state legislator how mental health policy actually gets made?

That conversation is at the center of a new episode of Grabbing the Aux.

Next Gen Minds HS cohort member Meeriem sat down with State Representative Lindsey LaPointe to talk about her path into public service, her work in mental health policy, and how legislation moves from an idea into something that can affect people across Illinois.

For young people, government and policy can sometimes feel far removed from everyday life. Conversations like this bring the process closer and give youth the opportunity to ask questions of the people helping shape it.

We’re proud to see Next Gen Minds creating those opportunities and even prouder to see young people taking the microphone and leading the conversation.

Listen to the new episode of Grabbing the Aux on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/4xc1urAYe0WQ4KktGFcV1a?si=TfXxJy2oRjiyo4kwDrYB2A&nd=1&dlsi=6d018a60f0294dc7

10/14/2026

Es hora de recuperar nuestra narrativa.
El cambio cultural empieza con nosotros: basta de machismo y marianismo, basta de vergüenza al pedir ayuda, basta de silencio sobre nuestra salud mental.

NAMI Will-Grundy, en alianza con Trinity Services, Inc., presenta Compartiendo Esperanza: una serie de tres conversaciones comunitarias sobre salud mental y bienestar, basada en el poder sagrado de compartir nuestras historias.

Si hablas español y eres parte de la comunidad hispana, estas conversaciones son para ti.

Se recomienda inscribirse:
https://namiwg.org/support-and-education/presentations/nami-compartiendo-esperanza/

Acompáñanos para una serie estructurada en 3 partes para estas fechas: 16, 30 de Octubre y 6 de Noviembre

10/14/2026

We’re proud to see NAMI Illinois represented at this year’s Program Coordinators’ Learning Expo!

Luisa Cicero, Statewide and Affiliate Programs Manager, and Juan Velez, Lead Consultant for Compartiendo Esperanza, will present “Stronger Together: Connecting Affiliates into a Statewide Model for Latino Mental Health,” bringing NAMI Illinois’ work and experience into a conversation about how affiliates can connect across communities to strengthen Latino mental health support.

This is work that depends on relationships. Every community brings its own needs, knowledge, and experiences, and connecting that local expertise across a statewide network creates opportunities to learn from one another and reach more people.

We’re excited for Luisa and Juan to share what NAMI Illinois has been building and bring new ideas back home with them.

10/13/2026

Executive Director Sara Gray and Affiliate & Statewide Programs Manager Luisa Cicero traveled through the region this week with one goal: listen.

They met with State Senator Terri Bryant in Murphysboro to hear more about the needs of communities across her district. They sat down with Senator Erica Harriss in Edwardsville to continue that conversation in another part of the region. They shared meals with local leaders, behavioral health partners, and the NAMI Jackson County Steering Committee.

Every stop added another perspective.

What resources are already working? Where are people still struggling to find support? What partnerships could make a difference? And where can NAMI Illinois be more useful to the people already doing this work every day?

Those answers do not come from sitting in one office. They come from going where people live and work, listening to the people who know their communities, and building relationships that continue after the trip home.

We came back with ideas, new connections, and plenty of work ahead of us.

Southern Illinois, thank you for the conversations, the hospitality, and the honesty. We’ll be back.

10/12/2026

Thank you to Centerstone for supporting the 2026 NAMI Illinois Annual Statewide Conference!

Events like this one require meaningful investment, and Centerstone's sponsorship contributes directly to what we are able to offer attendees, which include advocates, individuals with lived experience, family members, mental health professionals, and community leaders from communities across Illinois.

We value this partnership, thank you Centerstone!