One Week Later: NAMI Chicago
From helplines to connection to advocacy, this organization works for those living with mental health issues.
The NAMI Chicago team
Organization name?
NAMI Chicago
Where are you located?
Chicago, IL in the Ravenswood neighborhood.
What’s your mission?
Guided by the experiences of those living with mental health conditions and rooted in equity, NAMI Chicago educates to fight stigma and discrimination, fiercely advocates for our community, and shares hope, connection, and expertise with people on their mental health journey.
Who are the brains behind your organization?
NAMI Chicago is led by CEO Alexa James and COO Jen McGowan-Tomke, a brilliant duo that have built an organization that is both daring and innovative, as well as professional and sustainable. We are an alliance and a convener, powered by thousands of courageous individuals who work alongside us to share their own personal stories, advocate, and raise awareness for mental health in their communities and networks. Their passion and wisdom inform every part of our work, our strategic direction, and our impact.
Tell us your origin story.
NAMI Chicago was founded in February 1979 by families in the Chicago area who were supporting adult children living with mental health conditions, during a time when mental health and mental illness were significantly stigmatized. They incorporated as a nonprofit organization, built a support group, and invited others. Later that year, Chicago members joined together with families from across the country in the national meeting which chartered the National Alliance on Mental Illness — and NAMI Chicago was established as one of its first affiliates. We are proud to have been part of the original grassroots movement to provide support and education for family members, and improve mental health services in Chicago and across the nation.
Three words to describe your team?
Warm, fierce, collaborative
Workplace essentials?
Plants, comfy chairs, peanut butter pretzels
Best source of creative inspiration?
Our own lived experience and that of the people we work with. Special love to those who share their stories through art, music, and creativity.
Team members work check-in at the 2019 NAMIWalks fundraiser
What would people be surprised to know about your organization?
We launched our beautiful WOTW website the same week we moved into a new office space, the last week of January 2020 — six weeks before the pandemic closed our city down. In the remainder of the year, our website got 150,000 hits. Our office, on the other hand? We never fully finished moving into it. Which was the better investment?
What are your favorite features of your WOTW site?
Where do we begin? We love that our Helpline number lives on a bar on top of every page that never goes away. Website/online is our no. 1 referral source for our Helpline, which took 13,000 calls in the year 2020. We love our home page and the warm look and feel of the site. WOTW managed to convey, through design, the way that we want our work to make people feel. Last, we love how easy the whole site is to update and maintain. Kelsey and the team set us up for long-term success by creating a strong, simple site that is evergreen and rarely breaks or glitches.
What was your favorite part of working with the WOTW team?
They really come from a place of “yes” and share in the joy of our success. As we brainstormed and processed the build, we pelted them with constant questions about features we wanted to build into our site, and gave tons of feedback, some of it tough. Instead of getting frustrated with us, they got excited about finding the answers and solutions to meet our needs. Even since we launched, we’ve gone back to them several times to build out new features, and every time, they are excited to help us achieve our goals and have delivered beyond our expectations.
Where can people find you and donate?
You can donate using the sleek DONATE button that WOTW built onto the top right corner of our website, namichicago.org. You’ll also see a STORE link where you can buy mental health merch!
What are you hoping for in 2021?
Peace and healing.
