Happy Wednesday!
New this week:
Monday, August 31st, is Overdose Awareness Day. Washington County organizations are planning events at both ends of the county, Machias and Calais, to honor and remember those we have lost due to overdose:
- Machias: 5 pm at Bad little Falls Park – candlelight vigil and memory board (download flyer)
- Calais: 10 am — 6 pm at the Downeast Recovery Support Center, 311 Main Street (download flyer)
CCC Brown Bag Lunch
CCC is holding a brown bag lunch on “10 Tips for Working with Children,” next Wednesday, September 2nd. See our announcement in the Updates section below
The Maine Office of Child and Family Services (OCFS) recently released a new Mandated Reporter training that must be completed by Mandated Reporters every 2 years. Sunrise Prevention Council is awaiting final materials and hopes to be able to facilitate this training in-person and on zoom by October 2026. Stay tuned for updates.
Date/Time: Wednesdays 10 – 11AM
Location: Women for Healthy Rural Living, 87 Main St., Milbridge
Machias playgroup has been meeting at the Salem Street park while the weather is warm and will move back inside when it cools off.
Date/Time: Fridays, 10-11AM
Location: Porter Memorial Library, 92 Court St., Machias
If you missed the Voices of Care Summit: A National Schizophrenia Caregiver Experience (or want to rewatch), a replay is now available. The Summit brought together storytellers who know firsthand what it’s like to care for someone living with schizophrenia, and they showed up ready to talk about the parts that usually stay private. Watch the Summit replay.
After-School Technology Club for Teens
Cobscook Institute is developing a new weekly after-school program for teens focused on collaborative learning about technology. The goal is to build a supportive environment that helps area teens learn and develop useful technical skills while also providing a framework that strengthens collaboration, communication, and creative problem-solving. Gauging community interest is key in launching with the right focus responsive to youth enthusiasm. Please share this survey widely with your networks. We imagine the triangle between Machias, Calais and Lubec will be our main service area for this program given transportation restrictions, but teens outside of the area who think it would be possible to participate are encouraged to respond and participate as well. Please ask teens or their guardians to complete this survey by September 5th. The planned launch date for this program is October 1st.
Artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to improve access to and better meet demand for mental health and substance use disorder care. AI tools are available anytime, have no waiting lists, are typically low cost, and can be accessed anonymously. The question is not whether these tools have value; it is whether that value can be realized safely and at scale given concerns about model transparency, decision-making, and accuracy. SAMHSA has released a new publication: Artificial Intelligence in Mental Health Services: Opportunities, Challenges, and Future Directions, that reviews what these technologies can and cannot do, and what it will take to govern them responsibly to realize their positive potential. Learn more.