NAMI fundraiser scheduled for Jan. 7 at TCNJ

For tickets, call 799-8994 or visit www.namimercer.org

By John Dunphy
   "(H)erded like cattle and treated with less concern" was the fate bestowed on the mentally ill of the 1800s as they were warehoused in asylums "pervaded by a fetid odor so heavy, so nauseating, that the stench seemed to have almost a physical existence of its own."
   The description comes from Albert Deutsch’s 1946 book "The Shame of the States."
   Mental illness was uncharted territory; those with mental illness, pariahs.
   Pat Demers, president of the board of directors for the Mercer County affiliate for the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill (NAMI), at 3371 Brunswick Pike, Lawrence, remembers that mental illness was something that was not discussed openly as late as the 1950s.
   That was when her mother was diagnosed with schizophrenia.
   "You did not talk about that," she said. "My kids didn’t know about grandmom’s (condition) until three years ago. Because my mother had schizophrenia, that’s really what has made this a passionate organization to me."
   And while Ms. Demers, a member of NAMI Mercer for eight years, acknowledges the stigma of mental illness still exists today, she said understanding has improved greatly through research, medical advancements, and organizations such as NAMI Mercer. The groups was founded in 1983, and its North American parent, four years before.
   On Jan. 7, NAMI Mercer will present "A Night Out With NAMI," the organization’s annual fundraiser, in the Music Building at The College of New Jersey (TCNJ) in Ewing. The event begins at 3 p.m. with dinner and silent auction following at Brower Student Center. Tickets are $60 for the concert, $175 for concert and dinner, $200 for concert stage seating and dinner. Sponsorship levels start at $500. For tickets, call 799-8994 or visit www.namimercer.org.
   Dr. Richard Kogan, a New York City psychiatrist and concert pianist, who has performed for the benefit four times previous, will present the mind of composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart as part of the composer’s 250th birthday celebration. The performance will give the audience "a unique perspective of how Mozart composed so effortlessly, almost supernatural, working up complex pieces while he was engaged in such activities such as billiards," according to a NAMI Mercer press release.
   The "A Night Out With NAMI" fundraiser began in 1999 when the organization presented John Nash, the Nobel Laureate whose struggles with mental illness were the subject of the best-selling book and hit movie "A Beautiful Mind."
   That year, the fundraiser, which features a dinner, the concert, and a silent auction, raised about $25,000 for the nonprofit agency. Last year’s event, which also presented a performance by Dr. Kogan, raised $90,000.
   NAMI members (only two of whom receive salaries), 90 active volunteers, and about 500 other contributors, hope to raise even more at the Jan. 7 event. Proceeds go toward funding the free educational programs the organization holds throughout the year.
   The sense of secrecy and shame that once made mental illness a silent killer, isolating people in their minds from the world — an illness that history has determined long-afflicted Mozart — has been eroding, said Jerome Lindauer, executive director for NAMI Mercer.
   The deterioration of that stigma has brought many to NAMI Mercer over the course of its 23 years. It has brought many volunteers with family members with mental illnesses; and many, still, with mental illnesses of their own.
   "We’re here for families," Mr. Lindauer said. "You don’t want to look at this as a person separated. That sets us apart; we’re family oriented — we look at it as a whole unit."
   It’s that sense of including the whole family in treatment for mental illness that has brought volunteer Madeline Monheit, of Lawrence Township, out of a mild depression she did not realize had consumed her entire life until she was in her 50s.
   "Getting better is a family affair," said Ms. Monheit, a member of NAMI Mercer for four years. "We talk about it openly. Once you realize there is nothing to be ashamed of, you want to spread the word."
   "I never realized until I was 55 what it was like to be happy," she added.
   Still, despite a greater acceptance of the reality of mental illness, a need remains of awareness for those who might not be ready for help, either through the educational programs NAMI Mercer offers, through medication from a health-care provider, or through another source.
   NAMI Mercer offers a host of programs, from the Family-to-Family education program, the WRAP (Wellness Recovery Action Plan) method, which will meet next on Jan. 22, as well as the "Just Friends Social Program," which brings people with mental illnesses into a social environment they might otherwise avoid.
   While many people involved in many of NAMI Mercer’s programs suffer from more severe mental illness conditions, Mr. Lindauer said, many people can benefit from the services the organization offers.
   "People usually approach us when they feel desperate," Mr. Lindauer said. "But, it varies. It has evolved as knowledge has evolved. People used to think anxiety was just worry. There’s room for lots of different people under the NAMI umbrella."
   As for Mozart, the subject matter of NAMI Mercer’s upcoming event, Ms. Demers said, she believes the genius composer, suffered from both bipolar disorder and Tourette’s syndrome, and could have lived with a much higher quality of life today through the advancements in the study and treatment of mental illnesses.
   "He attracted people who were not really helpful to him," she said. "Today, I would hope his family would recognize he needed help."
   While modern observers have speculated that many of history’s creative geniuses suffered with various types of mental illness, Mr. Lindauer said, he does not believe a person needs to suffer to retain that creative spark.
   "It’s nice to know being a creative person doesn’t mean suffering of that degree is required to create," he said.