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NAMI Brazos Valley asks Brazos County for funds to expand peer-led, culturally responsive mental‑health support
Summary
Demetrius Collier of NAMI Brazos Valley presented to Brazos County officials requesting funding to expand peer-led, culturally targeted support groups, virtual access, and training partnerships across seven counties; no funding decision was made at the meeting.
Demetrius Collier, executive director of NAMI Brazos Valley, asked Brazos County officials for funding to expand peer‑led, culturally responsive mental‑health programs that would serve Brazos County and six surrounding counties.
Collier said untreated mental illness places costs on law enforcement, jails, emergency rooms, schools and families, and that NAMI’s community‑based, peer‑led approach can reduce crisis calls and incarceration while increasing access for rural residents.
NAMI Brazos Valley provides free education, support and advocacy and told county officials the requested funds would expand culturally specific programs — including a Spanish‑language sharing group and other cultural dialogues — hire program coordinators, support training for peer facilitators and provide technology so rural residents can join virtually. “Some people feel better when they’re with their peer, someone that they can actually trust,” Collier said.
Collier listed the counties NAMI serves as Brazos County plus Burlington, Grimes, Leon, Madison, Robertson and Washington and said services are offered both in person and virtually to reach residents with limited local access to care. He said NAMI partners with MHMR to provide mental‑health first aid training and is pursuing partnerships with local providers to negotiate reduced treatment rates for clients who need clinical services beyond peer support.
He described plans to pilot and then sustain programs with volunteers and community partners, and said the organization will track attendance, participation, feedback and measures of mental‑health literacy and stigma reduction. Collier also said NAMI seeks to provide some outreach or presentations to people who are incarcerated and to link them to supports after release.
Collier told officials that the work is cost effective, saying counties can avoid higher downstream costs; he characterized the prevention return as “4 to $7” in downstream savings for each dollar spent on prevention. He said the requested funds would help NAMI hire staff to answer outreach calls and train peer facilitators so more people can use the groups.
After the presentation there were no questions from the room. A county staff member asked for a 10‑minute break so the group could review outside‑agency requests and budget numbers; no funding decision or formal vote on the NAMI request was announced during the meeting.
Collier thanked officials for past support and for the opportunity to present.
