Helping to provide assistance to those affected by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill situation, the Baldwin County Mental Health Center has been on hand at local marinas from daylight to dark, offering counseling to anyone in need.

“We are there between 5 and 6:30 a.m. every day,” said Director Robin Riggins, during Wedensday’s town hall meeting in Orange Beach. “Everyone has been very receptive.”

Stressful time

Riggins said the center is not doing crisis intervention, but is talking to individuals about mental resources available in the community that they might need during this stressful time.

“We plan to be around as long as is needed,” Riggins said.

In addition, representatives from Baldwin County Mental Health Center have made themselves available from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. at the Business Support Center that has been set up at Faulkner Community College.

“Folks are coming in there to talk to the financial counselors and advisors about their businesses, and there are times when they need us to intervene and provided additional information,” Riggins said.

Additional funding

Riggins said they recognize that it is not just the fishing community that needs their assistance, but in areas all throughout Baldwin County. With that in mind, the center is working with the Alabama State Department of Mental Health to get additional funding so that they can hire additional counselors and get them in the field full-time.

“We also know that the children are definitely a priority at this point. Schools are getting ready to open, so we are working with other agencies along with the State Department of Mental Health to provide a curriculum to train teachers and other school personnel how to identify the symptoms in children that may require our services.”

Project Rebound

A similar program was developed by the center called Project Rebound which offered assistance for two years following hurricanes Ivan and Katrina.