NAMImobile Visiting Mentor This Wednesday

Perhaps you or a loved one suffer from a mental illness.

Maybe you have questions about treatment or available services.

You can get those answers and more -- as well as some ice cream -- when the NAMImobile comes to Mentor this Wednesday.

The NAMImobile is brought to you by the Lake County chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness.

NAMI is comprised of family members and friends of people afflicted with a mental illness. Its mission includes advocacy, education, facilitating access to treatment, and helping to reduce the stigma often associated with illnesses such as depression, schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.

The NAMImobile is a large RV which has been designed as a rolling billboard to draw attention to and encourage dialog about mental illness.

"We’re excited about this," said Carole Jazbec, NAMI Lake County’s executive director. "The NAMImobile is a real attention-getter because of its size and graphics. It will definitely help us draw attention to our core messages – that physical health and mental health are two equally important components of wellness; that mental illness is treatable; and that we need to talk about mental illness more openly and honestly to reduce stigma."

The NAMImobile will be making three stops in Lake County this Wednesday. It will start its day in downtown Painesville from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Then it will move to Mentor. It will stop from 2 to 5:45 p.m. at the . Finally, it will conclude its day in the Macy's parking lot at the from 6 to 9 p.m.

Celebrity scoopers will be doling out ice cream, as well as information on mental illness. Those scoopers include Jazbec, ADAMHS Executive Director Kim Fraser, Painesville Police Chief Troy Hager, Lake County Sheriff Dan Dunlap, Ron Graham from the Lake County General Health District, Laura Kessel, managing editor of the News-Herald, and Camilla D’andre from WELW.

The Lake County NAMI chapter receives funding and support from the Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services (ADAMHS) Board.

Along with NAMI Lake County and the ADAMHS Board, other community partners in the Lake County NAMImobile effort include the and the Lake County General Health District.