By the Staff of WestCare Tennessee
From August 24th through 27th, our team was proud to attend and present at the 2021 Tennessee/National Alliance for Drug Endangered Children Conference in Nashville, TN! Our WestCare Tennessee staff on hand included Renee Salyers, Shandi Hill, and Makayla Calloway and were joined by WestCare Foundation’s Director of Training and Technology Transfer, Jennifer Hilton. The four-and-a-half-day conference consisted of presentations on the latest research and best practices for drug endangered children, their families, and their communities. The conference was attended by countless representatives from the medical, mental health, treatment and rehabilitation, childcare, and law enforcement sectors – all with the common goal of helping children and breaking the multi-generational chain of trauma that exists within some families.
While we were on hand to learn and run our own outreach booth, we were also honored to be presenting! Jennifer Hilton presented on the need for Mental Health First Aid training for all as well as the importance of practicing self-care and understanding that the language that we use matters. Meanwhile, our Regional Administrator, Renee Salyers co-presented with Brian Maus, Director of Addiction Prevention and Mentoring Programs for Camp Mariposa, regarding the research-proven benefits of providing services to children whose lives have been touched by substance abuse.
