Recently I attended the annual awards luncheon of the Suffolk County Mental Health Association. It was a wonderful opportunity for me to introduce New York City Voices to some of our Long Island neighbors, who were not yet familiar with our publication. Whenever I share a copy of Voices with someone who is seeing it for the first time, the response is always the same -- Wow! The folks at the Mental Health Association were so impressed that they expressed interest in becoming a part of Voices by contributing articles. I will be meeting with them shortly to discuss the details and I hope everyone who reads Voices is similarly able to introduce it to someone new.
But what I really want to tell our readers about is Bonnie DeRosa who was the keynote speaker at this event. Bonnie is a very dynamic, up-and-coming talent who is a special friend to the mentally ill.
Bonnie's passion for advocacy began 22 years ago when a family member was diagnosed with schizophrenia. The family immersed themselves into learning everything they could about mental illness. Bonnie accompanied her mother to a national NAMI (National Alliance for the Mentally Ill) convention back in 1987 and it was there that she was provided with the impetus to advocate. After being moved to tears by a speech given by Laurie Flynn (NAMI's executive director at the time) she thought, "People really need to see this." In fact, she credits NAMI with being the only support system at the time that was able to reassure the family that her family member's illness was not their fault, which they had been previously led to believe.
After earning a degree in Fine Arts from the University of Massachusetts in Boston, working as an actress, and occasionally directing industrial films Bonnie combined her talent and passion by creating RGP ("Reel Good Producer") Productions, based out of Cambridge, Massachusetts. By combining her production skills and professional background with her personal desire to advocate on behalf of the mentally ill population, she set out to produce videos and documentaries to educate the public and eradicate stigma.
Her very first video was "On Our Way to Understanding" which was a promotional piece intended to educate the general public as well as family members about the misconceptions surrounding mental illness. The video was shown to civic organizations, community groups and schools in the Massachusetts area. The video also outlined resources available for those individuals suffering with mental illness.
Her second production, "The Crisis Prevention Plan" was a collaborative effort with the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health and two other agencies to devise a crisis plan detailing how individuals with mental illness can avoid hospitalization should an emergency arise.
Her three latest projects in development are titled, "The Lows in High School," "The Rally of Civil Rights," and "Estate Planning for our Future." Currently in production is "Mental Illness from the Inside Out -- The Anatomy of an Advocate," featuring Moe Armstrong, a Boston man who gives a true-life testimony of what it means to live with a brain disorder. What makes this film so compelling is that rather than using actors, she uses actual consumers so the "the true face of mental illness [is] undiluted by the summary comments from professionals."
And this brings me to the icing on the cake! Bonnie's company has always been "from script to screen," and as the company began to take shape, she continued to be involved in every aspect from writing and producing the scripts, to editing the film and raising money for the projects. At one point during production, she met consumers on the set, or heard about other consumers who needed an opportunity. She offered to bring some in as volunteers, and over time she witnessed that something amazing happened! The extreme positive effects the consumers derived from being a "professional" and being exposed to the professional world became obvious -- so much so that Bonnie employed them! Little by little what evolved was a hands-on program called the RGP Project where consumers are brought in behind the scenes to assist with production.
Bonnie beams and becomes animated when she tells how the program has developed to the point where consumers come on board for technical training in all aspects of film production. She boasts about the consumers that are actually employed by her and are a vital part of her crew. She considers their opinions to be the equivalent of "going to the source" -- getting a consumer perspective on what are fundamentally consumer products. The motto at RGP Productions is "Try hard and do your best!"
It is Bonnie's belief that a critical void for consumers in terms of re-joining the workplace is exposure to the professional world. She says, "I know for me, the best training I ever got was not the particular job itself, but first being perceived as a professional. One of my first jobs was as a secretary for an Editor. My co-workers all perceived me to be a qualified professional since I was in the role of someone who was connected to the editor. I, in turn, rose to the occasion -- learning by others' expectations of me. The reactions of others mold you professionally, teach you how to behave and are the foundation to a strong work ethic.
Because of their illness and long hospital stays, many consumers have been absent from the workforce during their formative years and have not had the opportunities afforded to most of us. The subtle, yet important professional posture can make you or break you in the job world. And you only do as well as you are expected to do. So, perception is reality. At RGP, it's really not so important that a consumer master a particular piece of technology -- though it would be terrific if he did -- but more important that he recognize and appreciate the very real 'professional' attitude one should be taking when out in the professional world."
The only glitch for Bonnie in this near perfect fulfillment of her life-long dream is the difficulty in raising funds for production. While Bonnie is creative, charismatic, and sensitive to the needs of the mentally ill, getting out the message becomes difficult without sponsorship or funding. She considers herself a "daughter of the cause" and is now exploring organizational sponsorship. She hopes an organization like NAMI or other institutional leader will want to provide capital so she can continue her work.
In the early days of the company, Bonnie remembers the original crew members asking, "Can consumers actually work for us?" Bonnie and RGP Productions have undeniably and emphatically proved that they can!
For more information on RGP Productions, call (617) 234-8993.