PD Blog: New ED, Parenting Pressures talk, Games Night & more
- info450094
- Sep 9
- 4 min read
Updated: Sep 10
Positive Directions has great updates to share! In this blog post:
Meet our new Interim Executive Director, Jessica Branson
Parenting Pressures panel discussion on September 15
Welcome to our TNP Coalition Coordinator, Marsha Elbourne
Suicide Awareness & Recovery Month updates & free training
Community events
CT Support Group Games Night for youth and young adults on September 27
Agency News
Welcome to our Interim Executive Director, Jessica Branson!
Jess joins Positive Directions as Interim Executive Director. Her upbringing in a family of empathetic healers and devoted community leaders instilled in her the importance of listening, nurturing, and empowering others. These values have
guided her 25+ years of experience in business, media and marketing strategy for fortune 100 companies and her own growth consultancy. Read her full bio here.
Welcome to Jess!
PD Staff Summer Picnic
PD staff wrapped the summer up with our annual staff celebration picnic. We thanked our staff for all their hard work with games and a tasty lunch.
Thank you for all that you do, team!
Prevention Department Updates
Parenting Pressures:
Navigating Challenges and Achieving Balance
Last year, the US Surgeon General put out an advisory highlighting how tough parenting is these days. In response, we've partnered with The Westport Library to organize a panel of local mental health experts, followed by small breakout groups where people can share and learn about supports and resources. This event will be moderated by our Prevention Director, Margaret Watt, and our Clinical Director, Melanie DeLapp, will be one of the speakers.
Free Suicide Prevention Training
September is Suicide Prevention Awareness Month -- an annual reminder that we should all be prepared to recognize and respond to someone who may be struggling with thoughts of suicide. We will hold our bimonthly free Question-Persuade-Refer (QPR) training on September 25th from 12-1:30 as a lunch & learn. Coffee & snacks provided.
Please sign up!
Introducing Our TNP New Coalition Coordinator, Marsha Elbourne
Marsha comes to Positive Directions from a career in marketing, where she spent over two decades working as a copywriter and creative director at agencies in Fairfield County and New York City, crafting strategies, ideas, and content for well-known brands. As mother of a 14 year old, she looks forward to working with Norwalk youth to promote mental health & prevent underage substance use. Read her bio here, and welcome to Marsha!
Community Events
We had a great (if rainy!) time recently at the annual Norwalk Night Out organized by the Norwalk Police Department, as well as the Ross Summer Social organized by the Norwalk Housing Authority. Our activities raised awareness and we were able to distribute parenting materials, lockbags, Narcan, and more.
Stop by and visit us at one of our upcoming events:
On September 13, we'll be at Slice of Saugatuck, with tables both for the Westport Prevention Coalition and for Positive Directions. Stop by for homemade cookies by Melanie, our Clinical Director!
On September 20, we'll be tabling for The Norwalk Partnership at the all-day St Philip Fall Festival in Norwalk.
And we'll be at the back-to-school nights at Coleytown, Bedford, and Staples as well!
Peer Support Updates for September: Suicide Awareness & Recovery Month
Candlelight Vigil
We were honored to again be a part of the annual Suicide Awareness Month candlelight vigil organized by My Friend Abby in Trumbull. People shared stories of loss and resilience, along with sharing resources. It was a heartfelt and heart-warming event, as always.
Free Peer-Led Supports for Those Struggling with Thoughts of Suicide
For Suicide Awareness Month, we encourage everyone to please share our flyer identifying a multitude of amazing, free, underrecognized peer-based resources to support people with suicidal thoughts. No one needs to struggle alone--help is available. Please download and share our Suicide Supports in CT flyer.
Our own Alternatives to Suicide (Alt2Su for short) support group meets online every Tuesday at 7pm.
Recovery Month
September is also Recovery Month. Our SMART Recovery and SMART Family & Friends groups continue to meet weekly to offer skills building and peer support to those seeking to make positive changes in their life.
SMART Recovery
Struggling with substance misuse, addictive behaviors, or mental health? In our free SMART Recovery support group, a trained peer facilitator will guide you in using evidence-based tools to learn skills:
Build and maintain your motivation to change
Learn to cope with urges
Manage your thoughts, feelings, and behaviors
Live a balanced life
Discover the Power of Choice!
SMART Family & Friends
Do you have a loved one struggling with unhealthy or addictive behaviors? SMART Family & Friends is a free support group based on the CRAFT model, which has been shown to be the most effective way of assisting a loved one to recognize they need help.
With SMART Family & Friends, you will:
Develop skills to help you cope
Get support from others
Learn effective communication skills to help your loved one
Restore balance in your own life
CT Support Group Games Night
If you're a teen or young adult in CT looking to meet folks your age and grow your community, you don't want to miss this! Our CT Support Group project is hosting the monthly game night on Saturday 9/27 from 7-9pm on Discord! Join the CT Support Group team for a night of laughter, competition, and connection.
Visit bit.ly/ctsgdiscord to join the server!
