Upcoming events
Funeral for Jesus
Annette Tesoriero and Karella Mitchel perform “Funeral for Jesus” - a dedication to all mothers who have lost a child through violence or in tragic circumstance.
Older Person Mental Health First Aid Training
The 2-Day (2 AND 3 November) Older Person Mental Health First Aid course is for any interested adult, particularly those who work with, live with or care for older people, including families and carers.
You will learn how to assist a person aged 65+ who may be experiencing a mental health problem or in a mental health crisis. You will gain the confidence to assist until appropriate professional help is received or the crisis resolves, using a practical, evidence-based action plan.
The Older Person Mental Health First Aid course is based on guidelines developed through the expert consensus of people with lived experience of mental health problems and professionals and covers depression, anxiety, confusion, dementia, psychosis, and crises associated with delirium, suicidal thoughts and behaviours, panic attacks and unsafe and challenging behaviours due to confusion.
Claim your spot in this 2-day course to become an accredited Mental Health First Aider. You MUST attend both days to receive accreditation from the internationally recognised Mental Health First Aid Australia.
The Older Person Mental Health First Aid Course is facilitated by Principal Master Mental Health First Aid Instructor, Annette Tesoriero, an engaging and experienced workplace and community trainer.
“Annette is an excellent instructor, and has a relaxed, encouraging teaching style. She easily guided the class through the content and allowed plenty of time for discussion and ensured all group members felt confident in their new knowledge.” (Course participant, University of Wollongong)
A comprehensive Mental Health First Aid Manual is provided to each participant.
Art Competition and Exhibition Shoalhaven Mental Health Fellowship
This biennial Competition and Exhibition promotes and celebrates Mental Health Awareness. The competition is open to anyone, regardless of their experience of mental illness. The Competition and Exhibition aim to reduce prejudice, discrimination and stigma in the community and it calls for entrant-artists to reflect on and create hope for persons with any mental health issue. Entries need to address this year’s theme which is reflective of recovery and personal growth. The theme this year is: Reflections - Your Place in the World.
Download The 2023 Entry Kit HERE or collect one from the Shoalhaven Regional Gallery
Dying to Know Day - NOWRA
Shoalhaven Health and Arts is proud to promote The Groundswell Project Australia’s Dying to Know campaign.
An opportunity to join with other community members to beef up your death literacy muscle. Death literacy is the knowledge, compassion and practical skills that enable supportive action and active decision-making around someone’s end-of-life choices. This event will create a trustworthy space to engage in meaningful conversations around death and learn more about how we can prepare for end-of-life.
Older Person Mental Health First Aid (Erowal Bay)
The Two Day (2 AND 4 August ) Older Person Mental Health First Aid course is for any interested adult, particularly those who work with, live with or care for older people, including families and carers.
You will learn how to assist a person aged 65+ who may be experiencing a mental health problem or mental health crisis until appropriate professional help is received or the crisis resolves, using a practical, evidence-based action plan.
The course covers: depression and anxiety, confusion and dementia, psychosis, and crises associated with delirium, suicidal thoughts and behaviours, panic attacks, unsafe and challenging behaviours due to confusion.
This course is based on guidelines developed through the expert consensus of people with lived experience of mental health problems and professionals.
Registrations are now open for community members across the Shoalhaven to claim their spot in this free two-day Older Person Mental Health First Aid accredited training course on the 2 & 4 August. You MUST attend both days to receive accreditation from Mental Health First Aid Australia.
The Older Person Mental Health First Aid Training is facilitated by Principal Master Mental Health First Aid Instructor, Annette Tesoriero
Supported through Australia Post and the Vinnies Bushfire Community Recovery Grants.
Enquiries info@shaa.org.au
Vic McEwan Presents the Critical Role of the Arts in Health
Shoalhaven Health & Arts invites you to attend a presentation by internationally renowned Researcher and Artist Vic McEwan, who will share findings from his fascinating research that has made unique contributions across both health and the arts. FREE / SPACES LIMITED / BOOKINGS ESSENTIAL/ BOOK HERE
Vic’s contemporary art practice works with sound, video, photography, installation and performance, with a particular interest in site-specific work that creates new dynamics by working with diverse partners and exploring difficult themes within the lived experience of communities and places. He aims to use his work to contribute to and enrich broader conversations about the active role that the arts sector can play in reimagining a better world.
Vic was the recipient of the inaugural Create NSW Regional Fellowship, which enabled him to undertake a three-year process at Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in Liverpool, UK to deliver an artist investigation into the negative impacts of sound in our hospital spaces. This project won the 2018 Council for the Humanities Arts and Social Sciences (CHASS) Australian Prize for Distinctive Work.
He is continuing his work in Australia as the first ever artist to be accepted into a PhD in the Faculty of Medicine and Health at the University of Sydney to undertake creative practice led research, working with the Sydney Facial Nerve Clinic at The Chris O’Brien Lifehouse.
His Arts Organisation The Cad Factory has recently been commissioned to undertake the creative consulting processes for the upcoming Griffith Hospital Redevelopment on behalf of NSW Health Infrastructure.
Vic is an invited participant in the Arts, Creativity and Mental Wellbeing Policy Development Program, aimed at developing policy proposals for all government portfolio areas regarding the role of the arts in wellbeing across the nation.
He is a Board Member of MusicNSW and an Arts and Health Network NSW/ACT Committee Member.
His current exhibition 'Face to Face - The New Normal' is currently on show at Wagga Art Gallery.
See more about Vic and his work here.
Don't miss this rare opportunity to hear from one of Australia's most engaging speakers who inhabits the frontline of international Arts in Health research.
COMPLIMENTARY LIGHT SNACKS & REFRESHMENTS WILL BE SERVED AFTERWARDS
FREE / SPACES LIMITED / BOOKINGS ESSENTIAL/BOOK HERE
Yarning Circle with Uncle Noel Butler & Amanda Reynolds, followed by Breathing Yoga led by Monica Mudge
YARNING ON BUSHFIRE, LOSS, GRIEF & HOPE
“Learn today about Yesterday for a better Tomorrow”. (Uncle Noel Butler).
Join other community members in a Yarning Circle led by Budawang Elder, Conservationist, Educator and Sustainability advocate Uncle Noel Butler and local artist/curator and writer, Amanda Jane Reynolds.
More information: see video Mourning Country
After the Yarning Circle, we will deepen our listening and discerning through a guided Breathing Yoga session led by Monica Mudge of Tidal Yoga.
"Breath is the bridge which connects life to consciousness, which unites your body to your thoughts. Whenever your mind becomes scattered use your breath as the means to take hold of your mind again." (Thich Nhat Hanh).
"regenerate & grow" forms part of the Shoalhaven Health and Arts' bushfire recovery program Reflect & Heal and is presented by Shoalhaven Health and Arts in partnership with Treading Lightly. Reflect & Heal is supported through Coordinare South Eastern NSW PHN through the Australian Government PHN Program and the Foundation For Rural and Regional Renewal
Limited Numbers BOOK HERE
“regenerate & grow”
This two-hour workshop facilitated by experienced creative well-being facilitators, Maiki-Jane Blakeney and Katie Coogan-Mason, is an introduction to healing modalities that focus on nourishing innate wisdom to encourage unique self-expression. “regenerate & grow” is a unique experience that encourages an exploration of internal energies through gentle movement to create a shift and to bring yourself into a renewed state of flow.
Together we will journey to discover new and old ways of being and communicating authentically through movement, mask and sacred theatre/art (no experience necessary).
The facilitators create a safe space for creative expression, it is not, however, intended as a support group or any form of therapy. Everyone is invited to participate in accordance with their own emotional comfort level and physical capacity on the day.
Please wear comfortable clothes that do not hinder movement. Art materials are used during the experience, we recommend that you wear/bring clothing that is not offended by a stray splash of colour!
Limited Numbers Book Here
"regenerate & grow" forms part of the Shoalhaven Health and Arts' bushfire recovery program Reflect & Heal and is presented by Shoalhaven Health and Arts in partnership with Treading Lightly. Reflect & Heal is supported through Coordinare South Eastern NSW PHN through the Australian Government PHN Program and the Foundation For Rural and Regional Renewal
Shoalhaven Crack UP
The Shoalhaven Crack UP is a FREE community celebration of local performing talent. This exciting evening rejoices in resilience and aims to de-stigmatise and promote awareness of positive mental health. This year’s Crack UP evening is Thursday May 12, 2022 in The Studio, Shoalhaven Entertainment Centre. Doors open 6.00pm. Tickets are available at the door on the night or reservations can be made by emailing info@shaa.org.au
Older Person Mental Health First Aid
The 2- Day (29 & 31 March 2022) Older Person Mental Health First Aid course is for any interested adult, particularly those who work with, live with or care for older people, including families and carers.
You will learn how to assist a person aged 65+ who may be experiencing a mental health problem or mental health crisis until appropriate professional help is received or the crisis resolves, using a practical, evidence-based action plan.
This course is based on guidelines developed through the expert consensus of people with lived experience of mental health problems and professionals.
Would you like to become an accredited Older Person Mental Health First Aider and participate in an opportunity to refine your new listening skills in a creative community setting? If so, the Listen Share Learn program is for you!
Listen Share Learn is an innovative program, initiated and produced by Shoalhaven Health and Arts and Bomaderry Community Inc. It offers accredited Older Person Mental Health First Aid training with an opportunity to gain “ears-on” experience with older Shoalhaven residents in a series of creative community afternoon teas hosted in Bomaderry.
Registrations are now open for community members across the Shoalhaven to claim their spot in this free two-day Older Person Mental Health First Aid training course on the 11th & 18th March 2022. You can also RSVP to become a Volunteer Community Listener at one or more of the creative community morning teas in Bomaderry between March and May, 2022. Volunteer Community Listeners are supported in their listening role by the Mental Health First Aid Instructor.
The Older Person Mental Health First Aid Training is facilitated by Principal Master Mental Health First Aid Instructor, Annette Tesoriero
The Listen Share Learn Program is supported through Australia Post, Vinnies Bushfire Community Recovery Grants.
Enquiries info@shaa.org.au
Reflect & Heal - An Artists' Picnic
Reflect & Heal - Artists’ Picnic
A free event for artists by artists. More information
BOMO ALIVE Expression of Interest
Expressions of Interest are now open from South Coast artists and those who have a strong connection to Bomaderry for Stage 1 of Bomo Alive .
We are calling for contemporary art form proposals that may be realised/ presented in late 2022 for a micro festival. All art forms will be considered including performance and hybrid.
Download an Expression of Interest form here
What Place Music? What Place Death?
Join us online in conversation around the power of music to move us beyond our solitary grief.
Book Now - SORRY THIS EVENT IS NOW SOLD OUT BUT YOU CAN ADD YOUR NAME TO THE WAITLIST
Mental Health First Aid
Mental Health First Aid Training -Blended Format
Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) is the help provided to a person who is developing a mental health problem, or who is in a mental health crisis (for example, the person is suicidal or has had a traumatic experience). Like physical first aid, MHFA is given until the person receives professional help or until the crisis resolves.
If you have completed the MHFA e-Learning component, you can register here for the two Zoom sessions required to gain your accreditation.
Register Here
Contact us for upcoming courses in your area or to discuss a workshop customised for your workplace or community.
Caring for Artists, Caring for Communities
Shoalhaven Health and Arts (SHAA) and the Cad Factory in Narrandera NSW are excited to announce the founding of a cross regional artistic exchange program that aims to provide professional development opportunities for arts professionals and communities through the sharing of skills, knowledge and networks.
To launch this exciting new partnership, on May 22nd 2021 SHAA will host a day of conversation at the Shoalhaven Regional Gallery with Cad Factory artistic director Vic McEwan. Vic is a contemporary artist who works with sound, video, photography, installation and performance, with a particular interest in site-specific work which often explores traumatic realities of people and place. Vic’s recent work includes presenting "One for Sorrow, Two for Joy" at Art State in Wagga Wagga. This was a performative questioning of ethical creative processes undertaken when working with communities to create performance-based work that focuses on trauma-steeped subject matter.
Register now for this day of gathering, sharing and conversation around our creative processes and our health.
Death After Lunch
Shoalhaven Health and Arts (SHAA) and the Alter Eco Cafe, Nowra invite you to a Death Cafe!
A Death Cafe is a space where you can enjoy open and relaxed conversation on death and dying. It is a welcoming space where you can share a story if you wish, or just listen and observe. There is absolutely no pressure, just friends and compassion.
At a Death Cafe, people, often strangers, gather to eat cake, drink tea and discuss death. Our objective is 'to increase awareness of death with a view to helping people make the most of their (finite) lives'.
A Death Cafe is a group directed discussion of death with no agenda, objectives or themes. It is not a grief support group or counselling session.
Reflect & Heal
This is a FREE two-part event that invites community members to spend meditative time in the Eurobodalla Regional Botanic Gardens to lay down their grief after the bushfires of 2020 and spend time in healing nature. The event will be led by Shoalhaven Health and Arts (SHAA) associated artists who invite visitors to participate in inclusive meditative art activities. The day will include a ceremony to remember the loss of animals and plants during the fires.
TO BOOK PILGRIMS WALK
TO BOOK PICNIC & CEREMONY
Mental Health First Aid
Mental Health First Aid Training
Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) is the help provided to a person who is developing a mental health problem, or who is in a mental health crisis (for example, the person is suicidal or has had a traumatic experience). Like physical first aid, MHFA is given until the person receives professional help or until the crisis resolves.
Registrations for the 2-day MHFA Course in Moruya, sponsored by the Eurobodalla Regional Council are now open. Register your place here.
Contact us for upcoming courses in your area or to discuss a workshop customised for your workplace or community.
SafeTALK Suicide Alertness Training
SafeTALK is a suicide-alertness workshop that prepares anyone over the age of 15, regardless of prior experience or training, to become a suicide-alert helper. Most people with thoughts of suicide don’t truly want to die, but are struggling with the pain in their lives. Through their words and actions, they invite help to stay alive.
SafeTALK-trained helpers can recognise these invitations and take action by connecting them with life-saving intervention resources.
Since its development in 2006 by Livingworks safeTALK has been used in over 20 countries around the world.
Contact us for upcoming courses in your area or to discuss a workshop customised for your workplace or community.
NEXT EVENT: Manyana Sunday March 28th 10am to 2pm BOOK HERE