The CMHA will hold a mental health awareness walk on May 3. (file photo/battlefordsNOW Staff)

By Angela Brown

Coming together

CMHA plans art show, walk for Mental Health Awareness Week

Apr 26, 2023 | 5:16 PM

The Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) Battlefords branch will celebrate Mental Health Awareness Week, running from May 1 to 7, with a number of local events.

The organization will have an art show at the branch office at 1602 103 Street in North Battleford from 1:30 p.m. to 3 p.m. on Monday, May 1. People are invited to drop in, have a beverage and treat, and take in the display. Some pieces are also available for purchase.

The artists’ exhibition mainly features pieces created by CMHA clients who participate in CMHA programs, as well as by some CMHA housing tenants at the Independence Commons facility on Kramer Place in North Battleford.

“We’re pretty excited,” Battlefords CMHA executive director Michele Winterholt said. “I think we’re going to have a large number of people’s [work] to showcase.”

Then on May 3, the CMHA will hold a Mental Health Awareness Walk, followed by a chili and a bun meal for a $5 donation.

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The event runs from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., leaving from the CMHA branch office, walking down 103 Street, then onto 11 Avenue, then over to 101 Street, and back up to the CMHA branch again.

The CMHA is encouraging people to take part in the walk and promote mental health.

“We’re inviting our members and everyone from the community, our board, to come and do a walk for mental health,” Winterholt said. “We hope they are able to join us in continuing to raise awareness and reduce stigma.”

The theme for Mental Health Awareness Week this year is “My Story.”

“Collectively and individually, we have multiple layers and stories that make us who we are,” Winterholt said. “Each year, one in five Canadians experience a mental illness or mental health issue, while five in five of us – that’s all of us – have mental health. That’s the focus of this year’s theme.”

She added that everyone is different but has equally valuable stories to share.

People need to take care of their mental health, just as they do their physical health.

“It’s one in the same; they are both equally important,” Winterholt said. “You can’t usually have one without the other. There are lots of different ways to do that – through fitness, activities, art, music or social activities [for example].”

She added that the CMHA as a whole wants to share the message that universal mental health care is important, and is needed now.

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Angela.Brown@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @battlefordsnow