11/05/2025
“I went to the Peer Support Ping Pong tournament outing on Saturday at East Side Pies. This has been a monthly event for about the last 8 months and the folks who are served at ASH have really benefited from it. They've made friends with regular customers who show up every month for the tournament, and they really enjoyed the competition and camaraderie. This means they were getting practice with talking about things other than mental illness, their treatment plan, etc. Unfortunately for all of us, East Side Pies has temporarily discontinued the event due to logistical problems. This was sad for me because I'm a member of the Friends of ASH Volunteer Services Council (VSC), which exists to support the folks at ASH and provide things for them that the State is not legally allowed to. The good news is that the ASH folks really still enjoy the outing itself! I got to spend time talking to those folks and to Max Healy, the Peer Support Specialist who coordinates and supervises the outing.
The folks I talked to from ASH were so happy because they had earned the privilege of having weekend passes with their family. One of the men said he and his family went to Walmart and out to eat. He used to play football and was passionate about talking about the position he played. Another said he got to attend his niece's Quinceañera, which was wonderful for him because he got to see many family members. He loved watching the movie that was playing on the TV (Mrs. Doubtfire), and we all laughed at some of the scenes!
I asked them all if this was still a good outing for them, since there was no ping pong tournament. They all said it was still a treat for them to get out of the hospital to the real world, as there's not much to do on the weekends. I let them know that the VSC cares about and supports them and that we fund outings like this. They all thanked me and said it really makes a difference to them. I wish everyone could see how these folks are working to get back to their lives and how important outings like this are to their morale.
Please consider making a donation to Friends of ASH, it will be put to good use." ❤️ -Janice Godspeed
