This year we lost two great people; Bev Young (on the right.), and Audrey Kissinger (on the left.) 

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Bev Young was 93, she died on March 1, 2017. She was one of the co-founders of NAMI. She started NAMI originally as a way that family members could come together to support other family members dealing with mental illness. The organization started in Wisconsin, and grew to become a national organization, and evolved into something that people with mental illnesses could become involved with as well. Our NAMI group had the pleasure of meeting her on two occasions. People with mental illness owe a debt of gratitude to Bev Young.

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On June 7, 2017 we lost the founder of our own chapter- Audrey Kissinger. Audrey was 87. Audrey was a kind, wonderful woman, friendly to everyone she met. She had wanted to get a NAMI chapter started here in part to erase the stigma against people with mental illness, especially after the shooting of former congresswoman Gabby Giffords. Audrey continued to be an advocate all of her life.

 

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