Text Box: In the past year there have been some changes of faces here at GEP.  Some of you know us and some of you don’t.  In an effort to make sure you all have names and faces to go with the agency, here is an interview that will help you get to know us a little better:  Sam Ahrens What is your name, what is your position at GEP, and where is your office located?  Sam Ahrens: Technical Assistance Coordinator with an office in Eau Claire, assisting sites in Eau Claire, Chippewa Falls, Rice Lake and Ashland.  Do you serve on committees or policy-making groups?  Sam: Not right now, but I intend to, and I'm looking forward to getting involved.  Name three things that you love about GEP.  Sam: I love our mission and its vision of empowerment. I love the sense of community present within our staff and our sites. I love visiting the sites and seeing how wonderfully diverse they are; each site is a community held together by caring and commitment, and each site develops its own unique pathways to recovery and empowerment.  Share a little bit about yourself…what would you like folks to know about you?  Sam: I have recently moved to Eau Claire, where I live with my husband and a cairn terrier named Gracie. We have two grown and wonderful children.  My husband and I met as VISTA volunteers; from there I went on to work as a social worker and advocate, primarily in the areas of poverty, homelessness and mental health. My experiences working with people and my own experiences as a consumer lead me to believe deeply that people can and will transform their lives when they are accepted, supported and empowered to develop in ways that feed and inspire them. Poetry, meditation, the natural world, and people are what feeds me and keeps me going.  Kellianne O’Brien What is your name, what is your position at GEP, and where is your office located?  Kellianne O’Brien: Technical Assistance Coordinator for Southern Region office, assisting sites in Green Bay, West Bend, Jefferson, La Crosse, Milwaukee and Madison. My office is in Madison. Name three things that you love about GEP:  Kellianne:  1. The People—knowing that we have, each in our own way, “been there,” and that we are, each in our own way, “recovering,” TOGETHER. 2. The Camaraderie— Bearing witness to people supporting people who share an understanding, empathy, and enthusiasm for one another’s struggles and successes. 3. Traveling—Driving through scenic countryside and urban landscapes, reflecting on the commitment and dedication of the AMAZING individuals who are part of GEP.  Share a little bit about yourself…what would you like folks to know about you?  Kellianne: I have been a mental health consumer advocate for 10+ years—as a patient, a consumer, a bureaucrat, a provider, and currently as a Technical Assistance Coordinator for Grassroots Empowerment Project.  I am also an accomplished artist—a painter, sculptor and photographer who has had exhibitions in St. Thomas, Montreal, Barcelona, Crete and Rome. My artwork has recently been published by a London-based press in a book titled “Famous 100 Contemporary Artists,” and I have been offered a solo exhibition in Vienna, Austria.   People often ask me why I exhibit my art overseas rather than in the U.S.. The answer is simple. I began my artistic career in Madison, displaying my work at local coffee shops and at the hospital where I had my first inpatient stay. I quickly found that abstract art is not well-appreciated. Several guestbook entries at the local exhibitions had comments like, “You call this art???” I even caught a viewer laughing at one of my paintings. Let’s just say, I left the local scene, pretty hurt, head hanging low. But I continued to be inspired to paint and sculpt. All the while, I had been photographing my work and building a web site. Soon thereafter, I began to receive compliments on my work and enthusiastic invitations to exhibit my art in other countries. So I did. Commitment and perseverance is my recipe for success—in art, in recovery, in Life.

Spring/Summer 2008
Text Box: Meet the New GEP Staff

“GEP peer support has helped me understand how to deal with my mental illness, how to be a better person, being able to advocate for my peers.

I have attended the last four GEP Conferences and have learned a lot from these informative and educational courses that were provided by GEP.

GEP has helped me know how to manage and handle my mental illness, and to make life more enjoyable as I struggle hard to recover.” - Cliff P.

Consumer network news

Grassroots Empowerment Project presents
Text Box: Creating opportunities for people with mental illness to exercise power in their lives