Miami Lakes task force OKs May 3 farmers market outreach, forms NAMI walk group

The Miami Lakes Mental Health Task Force voted to staff a table at the town farmers market on Saturday, May 3, and approved forming a task-group to participate in the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) walk, members said during a planning discussion.

Those measures were part of broader planning for Mental Health Awareness Month in May, including a push to promote an existing festival (mentioned for the 15th) and to solicit sponsorships, banners and volunteer shifts. Task force members discussed using a QR code linking to the Town of Miami Lakes website for resource updates, reprinting flyers, and getting vendor quotes for tents, chairs and setup.

"I'm gonna be there," Task force member 1 said about attending the NAMI walk, and urged others to use their networks to distribute flyers and social media posts. The group voted aloud and the motion to attend the farmers market on May 3 passed with verbal "aye" responses from members present. A separate motion to create a group for the NAMI walk was seconded and approved, the meeting recording shows.

Members discussed budget and vendor costs. One member said a banner quote from a local vendor the group used previously ran between $200 and $300; another suggested reserving larger sponsorship funds (a previously cited $1,300) for the festival and using smaller grant funds for an educational workshop. Task force members reported a prior public-awareness allocation of $3,250 (mentioned in the meeting) and discussed setting a baseline sponsorship amount (members referenced a $250 figure during the planning discussion) intended to cover basic costs like tents and tables.

On outreach and design, members agreed that a QR code pointing to the town's resource page would allow contact information to be updated centrally if phone numbers change. The task force also agreed to ask the town communications contact for help with a "save-the-date" flyer and to seek a vendor quote for event setup and rentals so sponsorship tiers can be set to cover those baseline costs.

The group assigned next steps: confirm the farmers market reservation, coordinate volunteer rotations for the May 3 table, register a task force presence for the NAMI walk, obtain updated vendor invoices/quotes for June or July planning, and later seek required council approval to designate festival proceeds to the identified beneficiary (the group noted that formal approval at a future council meeting would be necessary).