For immediate release
From the city of St. Petersburg
Contact: Janis Ford, Weed and Seed Coordinator, 727-892-5087

SEVENTH ANNUAL AFRICAN AMERICAN MENTAL HEALTH FORUM & TRAINING
In the
AFRICAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY

St. Petersburg, Fla. (October 4, 2007) -- The St. Petersburg Weed and Seed and the African American Mental Health Initiative is sponsoring the Seventh Annual Community Mental Health Forum in the African American community. The theme of the training and forum is "Mental Health Crisis: Where do we go from Here?"

The training for professionals in the field will be held on October 12, 2007 from 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the St. Petersburg College Allstate Center, 3200 34th Street South. The fee for Friday's training day is $30 per person and offers three sessions about Clinical Social Work, Marriage and Family Therapy, and Mental Health and Substance Abuse Counseling. Professionals must provide a copy of their license.

On Saturday, October 13, 2007, the annual community forum will be held at Thurgood Marshall Fundamental Middle School, 3801 22nd Avenue South, from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Registration begins at 9:30 a.m. Three plenary sessions will be presented on topics including Co-Dependency, Engaging African American Males, and The Empowered Mother. The Saturday forum is FREE and open to the public. A continental breakfast and lunch will be provided.

The luncheon keynote address by Kelly White, Ph. D., a clinical psychologist specializing in stress treatment programs, will focus on the topic of "Post Traumatic Stress Disorder."

For more information, contact Janis Ford, Weed and Seed Coordinator, at 727-892-5087.

Sponsored by: St. Petersburg Weed and Seed

Co-sponsored by:

• African American Mental Health Initiative, Operation PAR, Inc.,
  
• Pinellas Emergency Mental Health Services, Inc., Windmoor Health Care, Inc.,
  
• St. Anthony's Behavioral Health, Suncoast Center for Community Mental Health, Inc.,
  
• Pinellas County Public Defenders Office, and Pinellas County Sheriff's Office