About this Event
Join PREACH, the East Baton Rouge Parish Library Sytem and Vialink on Monday, September 28th from 10:30 am - 2:30 am for the No Child Left Unheard: Phase 2 Utilizing the Faith Community to Empower Youth to Utilize 988 program. This free program will offer faith leaders the opportunity to learn the importance of the 988 system, how it works, the multitude of community partners that can help you serve the young people in your community and the power of partnering with your local library. You will leave with valuable tools and resources to truly impact the quality of life in your community.
On Tuesday, September 8th which was 988 Day PREACH, Vialink and the East Baton Rouge Parish Library System partnered with local partners to inform parents and children that 988 is more than suicide and crisis but a valuable resource for de-escalation and safe conversations about hard things by hosting informational tables at all 15 library branches to focus on the following issues impacting our youth:.
- Bullying/When I am Different
- Special Needs
- Unsheltered
- Suicide
- Isolation
- Justice-Impacted
- Gun Violence
- Death of a Parent
- When Home Is Hard
- Domestic Violence
- Cyber Stalking
- Foster Care
- Refugee & Immigrant Challenges
- Addiction
The local partners were author Dr. Terri Whitley Jackson, Louisiana Center for Health Equity, Youth Oasis, O'Brien House, Aetna, Magellan, Traeh Thyssen Have A HearT Foundation, Justice and Accountability Center of Louisiana, Moms Demand Action – Baton Rouge Chapter,Gulf Coast Social Services, Familias Unidas on Accion and East Baton Rouge Parish Pr*son Reform Coalition.
There has been a special emphasis on getting the word out to our youth about utilizing 988. Senator Regina Barrow, authored Act 331 whichrequires public and approved nonpublic secondary schools to print the "988" suicide prevention hotline number on student identification cards. Representative Delisha Boyd introducedAct 548(the Student Suicide Prevention Awareness Act) to futher enhance Act 331 by requiring every Louisiana school to post crisis hotline information where students can see it, at school, on the school website, and on student ID cards.
Rev. Alexis Anderson, Executive Director of PREACH and the chair of the Children and Youth Committee of the Louisiana Behavioral Health Advisory Council, says, " Growing up is difficult and sometimes there's no safe adult to share challenges like handling the grief of losing a significant family member like a parent or grandparent or navigating the trials and tribulations of being bullied. In East Baton Rouge Parish, there have been shootings almost every week but no safe place for most children living in those areas to share their fears. Utilizing the places that most children consider safe with local partners who are in the community seems like a no-brainer to help our children."
Event venue & nearby stays
River Center Branch Library, 250 North Blvd., Baton Rouge, United States
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