Lighting the Way:
Mental Health in South Carolina

Imagine the Bull Street entrance to the historic State Hospital grounds, glowing with thousands of lights in the spirit of the 2006 Holiday Season. Imagine a series of events over the coming months to recall the five generations of service provided to South Carolinians who live with or in the shadow of mental illness. Imagine the opportunity to reflect on past success and support future initiatives in mental health.

“Lighting the Way: Mental Health in South Carolina”

Being launched in late November, one can be a part of this initiative’s first step by sponsoring one light, a string, or even a tree. Funds raised will be 100% directed to the events planned for the Spring of 2007, with any excess funds being used to support the housing and homeless programs of MIRCI. The month of May events will include a public symposium, retrospective display, an art exhibit, and tours of the historical “Bull Street” grounds. Sponsors, members of mental health organizations, agencies, boards, state and local leaders, and the general public are invited to participate.

The public symposium will honor the architects and “workers in the vineyard” who make the history of mental health in South Carolina so intriguing. The State Hospital, one of the first such facilities in the nation, and the William S. Hall Psychiatric Institute, the first residency training site of the USC School of Medicine, will be among the treatment, education, and research programs highlighted. A retrospective display of materials marking the progress of mental health in the state and an art exhibit are planned.

Co-Chairs of the Planning Committee for these events are Dr. Alexander G. Donald and Dr. Richard K. Harding, both well-known psychiatrists, administrators, and advocates for the mentally ill locally and nationwide. Featuring a nationally prominent speaker and local mental health leaders, the Saturday morning symposium will be of interest to historians, physicians, mental health providers, educators, and the general public. In the afternoon, tours of the grounds conducted by knowledgeable guides will weave a powerful, visual path through this state’s approach to treatment of those with mental illness.

Saturday evening’s public reception and silent auction will provide an opportunity to renew old acquaintances, make new contacts, and support local efforts to meet the critical need for comprehensive community mental health care and housing for the homeless.

Imagine becoming a part of honoring the past, celebrating the present, and anticipating the future of mental health in South Carolina.

Sponsored by the Mental Illness Recovery Center, Inc., a non-profit, 501(c)3 for Mental Health.
For more information, please contact MIRCI at (803) 786-1844 or mail@mirci.org.

Contributions to Lighting the Way: Mental Health in South Carolina (checks payable to MIRCI) are fully tax deductible. A reception for sponsors and program participants will be held on Friday evening prior to the Saturday activities.