— Daily Freeman-Journal photo by Anne Blankenship Patti Treibel-Leeds, director of Central Iowa Community Services, Anthony Wubben, social worker at Van Diest Medical Center, and Lori Foster, public relations director at VDMC, look over the line up of presenters set for the third annual Mental Health Awareness Conference. This year’s event is virtual.

Let’s face it: 2020 was a really tough year with the pandemic, lockdowns, social distancing and isolation. The stress related to those events could have residual effects for years to come, some mental health professionals suggest.

A conference planned for later this month will offer a program of speakers and topics related to those mental health issues as well as others, according to organizers.

The Third Annual Mental Health Awareness Conference is planned for Thursday, May 20 from 12 to 4 p.m. While the conference was held in-person the first two years, this year’s conference will be virtual.

“The idea for the conference originally grew out of our Hamilton County Mental Health learning community that meets once a month,” said Patti Treibel Leeds, director of the Central Iowa Community Services. “We talk about Mental Health issues that we are seeing in our community and the surrounding areas and how we can address those — what we can do as a community to be sure people’s mental health needs are being met.”

The group represents a wide spectrum of the local mental health provider community and they discuss a broad range of topics. Many of those topics of discussion have become the themes and focus for the Mental Health Conference on May 20.

Due to the pandemic, the 2020 conference was canceled. This year, the organizers have worked to find a way to offer a virtual platform. The response has been tremendous, according to organizers. More than 200 have registered for the free conference. The platform has the capability to handle as many as 500 attendees.

“Honestly, it’s pretty exciting,” said Patti Treibel Leeds.

Anthony Wubben, social worker from Van Diest Medical Center, said registration can be made online at https://whova,com/web/medic_202105. He said while the registration is through Whova, the conference will run on the Zoom platform.

“When you register, you’ll see a line up of all the speakers and their bios. Scroll down a little further, and you can see the list of exhibitors taking part,” Wubben said, adding that those attending can interact with the exhibitors to receive more information.

“It really is a unique option for this platform,” he said.

The featured sessions and presenters include:

• “Let’s Talk: The ABC’s to ‘Bee Approachable””: Tiffany Larson, Bee Inspired Community Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Program Coordinator at Building Families.

• Stress on the Farm: Strategies to Help Each Other: Malisa Rader, human sciences specialist at Iowa State University Extension and Outreach.

• Supportive Services: Mobile Crisis Response Team and Other Community-Based Services: Breanna Degelau, community-based crisis services supervisor with Eyerly Ball Community Mental Health Services and Monica Van Horn, LSW, director of the Crisis Services Department at Eyerly Ball Community Mental Health.

• How to Remain Strong and Resilient In Uncertain Times: Working Through Daily Difficulties: Kurt Volkert, mental health therapist at UnityPoint Health-Berryhill Center.

The keynote speaker will be Lyndsey Fennelly, who will discuss “Hope and Healing: My Walk with Mental Illness.” Fennelly is a former Iowa State All-American basketball player and an WNBA draftee. She co-created CampusCycle, a beat-driven spin studio with locations in Ames and Ankeny, and also runs Elite 360 Training, a sports development service for Iowa Athletes. She’s the mom of two children and is married to the Iowa State women’s basketball assistant coach Billy Fennelly.

She’s currently writing a memoir detailing her experience with mental illness after two significant breakdowns. Organizers said she is a passionate advocate for mental health and a life well lived.

“She’s very open about her journey,” Treibel-Leeds said. “I think that makes it real for people. She’s lived with this and is functioning…”

“And she’s successful,” said Wubben.

There will be a brief break in the program and attendees will have a chance to take a virtual tour of The Roundhouse, the new mental health drop-in center, located in Shashi Station, the former Webster City Medical Clinic building.

Another feature of the conference will be the naming of the Community Champion. The organizers are keeping the name of the recipient a secret for now, but say the 2021 recipient will be a person or agency that has shown care, compassion and work ethic.

“Our community is better because of this recipient,” Treibel-Leeds said.

Past recipients of the award include Doug Bailey of Webster City who worked behind the scenes as a county supervisor and on boards dealing with mental health and substance abuse. The second recipient was Sheriff Doug Timmons and his office.

Organizers said the conference is open to everyone.

“This is really appropriate for anyone,” Wubben said. “You may know someone who has a mental health condition. You may be in the healthcare arena or you just want to learn about mental health. We don’t know who this may impact down the road.”

“It’s appropriate for anyone who engages with others — healthcare workers, teachers and others,” said Lori Foster, director of public relations at VDMC.

The virtual platform is also attracting attendees from outside the central Iowa area, according to Foster. Registrations so far have come from all across the state, Minnesota and even as far away as Colorado.

For more information on the Mental Health Awareness Conference, contact Wubben at 515-832-7717, or Carrie Hisler at 515-832-9550.