Community for Hope

Emergency

MISSION STATEMENT

We are community members united for the purpose of promoting and supporting mental wellness and building awareness about suicide prevention, intervention and response.

Community for Hope Meeting Dates

Jan 13 Feb 10 March 10 April 14 May 12 June 9

July 14 August 11 Sept 08 Oct 13 Nov 10 Dec 08

Community for Hope meets from 8:00-9:00 a.m. the second Tuesday of every month in the lower level conference room of the First National Bank building at 404 N. Main St. Oshkosh, WI. 54901.

Enter front door of bank and take a right down the curving staircase to basement. Conference room is on the left. The bank is located across the street from New Moon coffee shop.

Anyone interested in working on suicide prevention initiatives in our community is welcome to join us. Please call or e-mail the Executive Director prior to attending a meeting in order to receive an agenda and other meeting materials.

Any questions contact mvhii@gbonline.com

ACTIVITIES

Education:

Sponsoring the YELLOW RIBBON PROGRAM, a program that teaches at-risk students to ask for help and trains teachers, administrators, counselors, etc. on how to respond to children in crisis
Creating brochures for students, teachers, parents and concerned community members to help them understand suicidal behavior and know what to do about it
Creating a Mental Health Resource Guide of agencies that can provide support to suicidal individuals
Supporting and providing speakers on Suicide Prevention by raising awareness of such events and encouraging community-wide attendance
Providing community-based suicide prevention training using the nationally known method, QPR (Question, Persuade, Refer). For more information about QPR, click here.
If you’re interested in getting trained in QPR, contact Mary VanHaute, Executive Director, at mvhii@gbonline.com.

Communication

Interfacing with school administrators, counselors and social workers to support suicide prevention, intervention and response efforts in the school system

Support

Sponsoring and facilitating three chapters of S.O.S. (Survivors of Suicide), which is a support group of and for family, friends, classmates and colleagues of suicide victims. The chapters are active in Oshkosh, Appleton and Ripon.

MEMBERS

Over 35 community members, including school administrators, therapists, religious leaders and concerned parents, are currently active in Community for Hope.

Board Members:

Executive Director: Mary VanHaute

President: Jenny Wesner, Member at Large

Vice President: Don Merz

Treasurer: Patti Ahrens

Secretary: Linda Schabloski

NON-PROFIT STATUS

Community for Hope is an IRS-recognized 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. All contributions are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law.