Health and Fitness : Mental Health Across the Lifespan: Traveling Art Show and Panel Discussion

UnityPoint Health - AbbeHealth Services - Abbe Center for Community Mental Health is celebrating its 75th anniversary with a series of free community events at local libraries across Eastern Iowa. The events will feature a traveling art show and panel presentation on "Mental Health Across the Lifespan" to honor their history and ongoing commitment to mental health and well-being.

AbbeHealth's story began on October 17, 1949, with the establishment of the Linn County Mental Health Center, now known as the Abbe Center for Community Mental Health. Over the years, AbbeHealth has expanded to serve Linn, Johnson, Benton, Buchanan, Delaware, Jones, Iowa, and Cedar counties, providing outpatient therapy, substance use disorder services, psychiatric care, community-based programs, and crisis intervention services.

AbbeHealth's most recent accomplishment is earning CARF accreditation as a Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic (CCBHC) in 2024. In the spring of 2025, AbbeHealth will relocate its Cedar Rapids Abbe Center for Community Mental Health location to the former Stamats building at 615 Fifth Street SE. The new location will give AbbeHealth providers more space for its new model of care, which will improve access and provide comprehensive, integrated, coordinated, and person-centered behavioral health care.

Abbe Center provides more than 20,000 individual services each year, making it the largest behavioral health center in Iowa. Nearly one in two individuals will experience a need for behavioral health care in their lifetime

The free community events celebrating Abbe's 75th Anniversary will feature artwork created by individuals in recovery, along with a panel of experts who will discuss practical ways community members can support their own mental health and that of their loved ones. Attendees will also receive valuable information about the mental health services available in their community.

"These events are not only about celebrating our past but also about sharing practical tools and resources for mental health," said Theresa Graham-Mineart, Abbe Center for Community Mental Health Outpatient Services director.

Event Schedule:

• Vinton Public Library: Thursday, September 12, from 6 - 8 p.m.
• Independence Public Library: Tuesday, September 17, from 6 - 8 p.m.
• Manchester Public Library: Monday, September 23, from 5 - 6:30 p.m.
• Anamosa Public Library: Wednesday, October 2, from 5 - 7 p.m.
• Iowa City Public Library: Tuesday, October 8, from 6 - 8 p.m.
• Cedar Rapids Public Library: Wednesday, October 16, from 5:30 - 7:30 p.m.

Each event will serve light desserts and refreshments, and will provide attendees an evening of art, learning, and community connection.