NAMI Wilmington Volunteer Opportunities

The below list is by no means an all inclusive list, but areas in need of continuous support. Please email Chuck Eldridge @ namiwilm@gmail.com with your interest and best time that we could speak more about the opportunities of interest:

Behavioral Health Center Presentations

We present the benefits of NAMI to the discharge patients at NH Behavioral Health Center the first and third Monday of the month at

12:45-1:45PM. You must be a Peer. We try to get one female and one Male Peer to present. You can shadow an existing volunteer Peer to gain comfort.

CIT- Crisis Intervention Training

The lack of mental health crisis services across the U.S. has resulted in law enforcement officers serving as first responders to most crises. A Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) program is an innovative, community-based approach to improve the outcomes of these encounters. NAMI Wilmington partners with Trillium by offering a Peer and/or Family Member panel to share their experiences with the first responders for 1 hour of their course. Training course frequency is random and varies in locations.

Support Programs

We have 4 active support programs and period education classes. Each requires at least 2 trained and certified facilitators. Criteria for each varies according to the support intended. These groups are the primary function of NAMI. We are always looking for more facilitators for the existing programs and we often have greater demand for more diverse groups or groups to offer additional times and geography.

Provider Education

A significant initiative is to educate providers and the public about NAMI and what we have to offer. In the past year we have created “kits” of information for our providers to give to peers and family members to learn more about us. We have distributed close to a hundred to Psychiatrists, Psychologists, Behavioral Health Centers, churches. It is working, but we have barely touched the surface. This can be a Peer, Family member or friend. We need people to call on providers and briefly explain our services, distribute kits and follow up.

Membership Coordinator

The Membership Coordinator will help maintain current membership data, encourage membership growth opportunities, and serve as liaison between our board, its members, and the state and national organizations.