MOULTRIE, Ga. — NAMI Moultrie was on hand to congratulate Police Chief Emeritus Frank Lang at the ribbon cutting for Moultrie’s Community Policing office Aug. 23. 

Lang was an early proponent of Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) training and has been honored by NAMI-Georgia for his support of the program. He was part of a team from Georgia who traveled to Liberia to bring CIT to law enforcement in that country.  

“Law enforcement officers are frequently first responders to people in crisis,” said a press release from NAMI-Moultrie. “CIT training facilitates ongoing collaboration between law enforcement and the mental health community.  The training is designed to assist law enforcement officers who respond to incidents involving people experiencing a mental health crisis.”

CIT addresses this need by providing officers with 40 hours of specialized training to respond safely and quickly to people with serious mental illness who are in crisis, NAMI-Moultrie said. Officers learn to recognize the signs of psychiatric distress and how to de-escalate a crisis — avoiding injuries to the officer, injuries or deaths to the person in crisis, and tragedy for the community. In addition, CIT officers learn how to link people with appropriate treatment, which has a positive impact on fostering recovery and reducing recidivism, NAMI-Moultrie said.

“NAMI-Moultrie is pleased to continue their partnership with local law enforcement and will partner with the Community Policing office to expand the number of first responders trained on CIT,” the organization said.

CIT is one of the programs supported with funds raised by NAMIWalks Southwest Georgia. This year’s Walk will be Saturday, Oct. 28.  Members are in the process of signing up Walk teams, donors, and sponsors.  Walk Day is a family-friendly festival open to all citizens. The theme this year is “Making Waves for Mental Health.”

NAMI-Moultrie encourages everyone to “take the plunge” and become involved. Donations can be made and walkers can register on the secure website www.namiwalks.org/southwestgeorgia. For questions and additional information, contact Walk Manager Shannon Bell at 454-1668, shann.mbell@gmail.com, or Lynn Wilson at 891-1725, lynnbw45@gmail.com.