BOONE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
116 West Washington Street
Room 103
Lebanon, IN 46052
Phone: (765) 483-4492 | Fax: (765) 483-4494
District 1: Tom Santelli | District 2: Donald Lawson | District 3: Jeff Wolfe
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
MEDIA CONTACT
Noah Alatza
317-519-7892
Commissioners reveal findings from annual Indiana Mental Health Summit
BOONE COUNTY, Ind. (December 14, 2022) — The Boone County Commissioners have revealed some resourceful findings from the annual Indiana Mental Health Summit.
Commissioner Tom Santelli attended the summit hosted by the state on October 21.
“The education we received during this day is critical to continue advancing the mental health services that Boone County provides,” Santelli said. “What we learned was how an inadequate response to mental illness negatively impacts Indiana courts and communities.”
“It was also helpful to observe how local policy teams and Indiana state agencies mapped their behavioral health continuum to identify and address areas of need,” Santelli continued.
The summit has helped the Commissioners identify service gaps in the local systems and develop effective strategies to fill them.
The Commissioners have long been committed to advancing mental health initiatives in the community. Commissioner Santelli said the summit has expedited the launch of an effective infrastructure for combating mental health woes in the Boone County community.
In early June, the Commissioners voted to approve the use of ARPA funds to replace lost revenue by the Boone County Child Advocacy Center (Sylvia’s House) during the pandemic. The organization works to provide a safe, comfortable, and child-focused environment for juvenile victims to share their stories of physical or sexual abuse. Plans are also currently being developed to provide another option for adults facing similar circumstances.
The Commissioners recently broke ground on the expanded Justice Center project, which will provide space for additional mental health services while focusing on keeping certain offenders suffering crises out of the jail system.
“For years, the Commissioners have been proactive in championing mental health resources in the county. Through our extensive work with community partners, such as Community Corrections and Probation, Aspire, InWell, Mental health America, Cummins, the Cabin, Witham Health, JDAI, Family Recovery, and Drug Court, we are tackling mental health, drug addition, domestic violence, suicide and crisis intervention, and much more,” Commissioner Santelli said.
Commissioner Santelli also recently attended the Mental Health America “Mental Health and Addiction Symposium & Heroes for Recovery Awards.” Additional updates will be provided in the near future on the progress and opportunities for advancement in these important areas.
For more information on mental health resources in Boone County please visit, https://www.livinginboonecounty.com/mental-and-behavioral-health-resources-in-boone-county/
