World Mental Health Speaker

“A World View of Men’s Mental Health” Join Mr. Preston Garrison at 7:00 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 28, 2006, as he explores men’s mental health in the context of local, national, and international communities. As the Secretary General of the World Federation for Mental Health, Mr. Garrison will share a particular emphasis on the differences and similarities that exist between mental health issues based on factors of culture and family status. The discussion will bear insight on the diverse populations of men living within Minnesota’s borders including immigrants, refugees, rural communities, and minority populations. Additionally, Mr. Garrison will highlight the importance of family status, including fatherhood, on men’s health and well-being.

Directions: Driving directions to Saint John's University are available here. The Pellegrene Auditorium is in the Peter Engel Science Center (# 30 on the campus map, linked here). For general campus information, call the St. John's University switchboard: (320) 363-2011.

Men’s Lives Series: Since 1995, the Center for Men's Leadership and Service at St. John's University has organized the Men's Lives Series as an opportunity for students and members of the community to examine men's issues. Learn more at www.csbsju.edu/menscenter/mls/default.htm.

Preston J. Garrison: Mr. Garrison has served as the Secretary General/Chief Executive Officer of the World Federation for Mental Health (WFMH) since 2002. The World Federation for Mental Health (WFMH), founded in London in 1948, maintains its Secretariat in Alexandria, Virginia, with teams of representatives in New York and Geneva, the two central locations for United Nations (UN) activities. It has member organizations, individual members and other contacts in more than 90 countries, and is in consultative status to the United Nations and its specialized agencies. The membership includes all professions engaged in mental health, consumers of mental health services, government officials, care-givers and volunteers. The Federation’s goals include public education on mental health issues; the promotion of mental health; the prevention of mental, neurological and psychosocial disorders; and improvements in the care of those who have experienced such disorders. One of its major programs is World Mental Health Day, which has expanded into many countries as a public education activity. It is observed each year on 10 October or

as close to that date as possible, depending on local circumstances.

Previously, Mr. Garrison served in the role as founding Executive Director of the National Practitioners Network for Fathers and Families, Inc. in Washington, D.C., a post he held from 1998-2002. He guided the establishment of this new membership association, building its program and foundation support. It is now involved with a nationwide network of programs serving disadvantaged communities, designed to increase the involvement of fathers in the lives of their children. Through his work at NPNFF, Mr. Garrison was an instrumental force behind forming the Minnesota Fathers & Families Network in 2001 and 2002.