Thank God we had Bert Nash

Patrick Kelly will be the first to admit he’s not the touchy-feely type. “In my family, we weren’t huggers,” Patrick said. “We sat around and read books and tried to outsmart each other.”

But Patrick, who is director of the Lawrence College and Career Center and is a Douglas County commissioner, has come a long way in his emotional journey.

A starting point for him was when his step-daughter, who was in high school at the time, was struggling.

“We were at a complete loss,” said Patrick’s wife, Amy. “So we called Bert Nash. We took her in the next day for an assessment and they were wonderful. Thank God we had Bert Nash.”

For Patrick, he was supportive and he wanted his step-daughter to get whatever help she needed, but the idea of therapy was outside of his comfort zone.

“I didn’t understand mental health care. Again, I grew up in a household where you just sort of made it work,” Patrick said. “We didn’t cuddle, we didn’t hug, we didn’t do any of that stuff. My predilection was you just have to work harder.”

For his wife, she was much more comfortable with the idea of seeing a therapist.

“I did that when I was in my 30s,” Amy said. “For me, therapy was a safe place to say whatever I wanted. But I knew Patrick struggled some with it.”

Amy’s daughter went through the Dialectical Behavior Therapy program at Bert Nash.

“She’s utilized those skills she learned in DBT many times and she’s doing really great now,” Amy said. “I would go with her to family sessions and Patrick went some. It was really interesting. Even then, Patrick could tell it was very helpful information.”

Patrick’s views about mental health care have progressed over time. He spoke publicly about his journey last year during an all-staff meeting at Bert Nash and again at the Celebrate Bert Nash event in November.

“When my step-daughter came to Bert Nash, that was the starting point of my journey understanding mental health,” Patrick said. “At the time, I was scared and I was ignorant. Translation, I was dismissive and judgmental. I was operating with the information I had at the time and with the skills I had at the time.”

Fast forward about four years, and Patrick was a principal at Free State High School.

“We weren’t comfortable talking about mental health then. Translation: I wasn’t comfortable talking about mental health then,” Patrick said. “But we had a Bert Nash WRAP (Working to Recognize Alternative Possibilities) therapist, April Ramos, at the school at the time who was showing up in my office with students on a daily basis. April was instrumental in helping a not ‘touchy- feely’ educator understand that mental health is no different from physical health and that we have to treat it with the same respect and care in order for our students to be successful."

In his role as an educator, Patrick has become an advocate for Mental Health First Aid, an eight-hour training course that Bert Nash offers. Mental Health First Aid teaches participants how to help someone who is developing a mental health problem or experiencing a mental health crisis. 

“Everyone on my staff (at the Lawrence College and Career Center) attends a Mental Health First Aid class,” Patrick said.

“I really thank Bert Nash for giving us the skills and the tools to serve our students in the most respectful way possible.”

In his role as a county commissioner, Patrick interacts with the Bert Nash Center in a different capacity.

“I am so proud and grateful for the work that you (Bert Nash) do on behalf of the people of Douglas County,” Patrick said. “The integration work Bert Nash and other community partners are doing is unbelievable; it’s innovative and it’s inspiring. You’ve increased services by expanding your hours, you’ve expanded access to psychiatric care, and you’re building a workforce of peer support mentoring that goes beyond the walls of Bert Nash. In my work, I am inspired and motivated every day by the work you are doing.”

He still may not be a touchy-feely person, but Patrick’s personal journey regarding mental health care continues to evolve.

“And it’s a journey that has significantly been influenced by the people at Bert Nash,” Patrick said. “I’m still on my journey to embrace and support mental health and to be an advocate. Sometimes it has been two steps forward and one step back. But it is with my entire heart that if I could, I would I reach out my hands and hug you and thank you. On behalf of the people of Douglas County, on behalf of the educators of Douglas County, on behalf of the College and Career Center, and on behalf of my family, thank you so much for the work that you do to make our community so much better.”