Mental Health Association in New York State, Inc.
(Publication Archives)

Community Connections, Winter 2002/2003

A Quilt of Visions in Cattaraugus
By Shelly Woods, Coordinator of Peer Training and Education,
and Dr. Richard Edwards, MHA in Cattaraugus County board member

To reduce self-stigmatization by mental health recipients, and to increase public understanding of mental illness and related mental health issues, the MHA in Cattaraugus County's Community Mental Health Promotion Team (CMHP) spearheaded a county-wide quilt project. Team Cattaraugus is one of 14 MHANYS- sponsored CMHP teams from across the state currently addressing discrimination and stigma in their own communities.

Under a unique approach initiated by Shelly Woods, a CMHP team-member who is also coordinator of peer training and education for the Cattaraugus County MHA, mental health consumers from throughout the county were invited to help create a single Quilt of Vision. Those choosing to participate were asked to design one 9-inch quilt block as his or her way of visually expressing what it is like to live with mental illness. By the time the quilt was completed, blocks had been received from consumers ranging in age from children to older adults.

Provider agencies also participated in the project, and included the county-operated Drop in Center, Guidepost Continuing Day Treatment program, and Sala-manca Counseling Center; both the Gowanda and Olean sites of Housing Options Made Easy; and MHA's own Back Door Social Club. Each participating provider has its own square at the base of the quilt, and received a notebook containing a description of the project and pictures of the individual blocks. The note-books are intended to be displayed along with the quilt.

Work on the quilt was begun in August 2001 and completed in July 2002, just in
time for the finished quilt to be displayed at the Cattaraugus County Fair, where it received a first-place ribbon. A number of blocks reflect the severe depression face by many consumers. Their visual message is often enhanced by captions that accompany many of the pictures in the notebook. These captions are often very moving, giving viewers a better understanding of what consumers experience in their day-to-day lives. "I am like a bird with a broken wing and unable to fly," reads one. "Break the stigma of mental illness. I don't want to lose another friend," reads another. Taken together, words and pictures convey a powerful message.

Since the quilt project began, three mental health consumers in Cattaraugus County have died as the result of suicide. One of them had contributed a block to the quilt, and for many who knew and loved him; this block will be a lasting memorial.

Currently, the quilt is circulating among the participating provider agencies, each of which is displaying it for 30 days. When its "tour" is over, the quilt will hang proudly in the MHA office, where it will be available for further lending.

posted 1/28/03