You don't have to carry this ALONE
When Someone You Love Is Struggling, So Are You.
NAMI Blue Water Area serves St. Clair County families, partners, and friends who are standing beside someone with a mental illness. Because loving someone through this is its own kind of hard, and you deserve support too.
Caregivers
If you've sat in a courtroom trying to understand words like guardianship and conservatorship and felt like navigating the system is a second job. If you're exhausted in a way that sleep doesn't fix. If you just want to fix it, we see you.
Individuals
If you've felt like a diagnosis instead of a person and you're looking for people who get better with you, not people trying to fix you, we see you.
Loved Ones
If you've felt helpless watching from the outside, wanting to help but not knowing how. If you just want somewhere to talk without being a burden on the person you're worried about, we see you.
Upcoming Events
MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORT SERVICES IN PORT HURON & ST. CLAIR COUNTY
We gather every month because showing up for each other is what we do best. All of our monthly gatherings are free, peer-led, and open to anyone who needs them. From peer support groups to board meetings, all are welcome, no experience is necessary, no registration is required (but always appreciated so we can plan ahead). Find a meeting that works for you and come as you are.
Attend
In-Person Peer Meetings
In-Person Peer Meetings
Take the next step in your journey with mental health and surround yourself with people who understand.
Donate
Support Our Cause
& Outreach
Help Us Help
Your donation makes free peer support groups possible for families who are struggling and don't know where to turn.
Facilitate
Get Trained
Become a Group Facilitator
Join our growing NAMI Blue Water Area team and support families through their journey with mental health as a Peer Group Facilitator.
Ways to Get Involved
Frequently Asked Questions
Our meetings follow a simple, welcoming structure: a brief welcome and introductions, a check-in, an open group discussion, and a closing. Participation is always voluntary. You can share as much or as little as you'd like. There will be no pressure or spotlight on you to participate - you can opt out, and we will keep the conversation moving. You can also always change your mind and join in the conversation. Meetings are always guided by trained peer facilitators who have actual lived experience supporting a family member with mental illness. Everything shared in the room always stays in the room. Many of our meetings end up being places where caregivers, friends, and family unburden themselves. In the beginning, most people come to meetings expecting to find a solution or a "fix" for their current situation. Over time, they realize that there is no fix, but there is adapting, learning, and finding ways to support themselves as they support their loved ones. Being the one who is keeping things together is a lot to carry. At our meetings, you can set your burdens and worries down with people who truly do understand in their own way what it is like to be constantly giving. You will find that you are not alone.
Meetings are held at the St. Clair County Community Mental Health Building (Room 110)
The address is:
3111 Electric Avenue
Port Huron , MI 48060
The building has free parking.
The best entrance to come in through to be closest to the meeting room is off of Electric Ave.
If you arrive after 5:00pm for one of our meetings the doors will be locked. The building is locked after 5pm. Please contact the event facilitator to let you in.
Please don't worry about coming late. A lot of our family members and peer group attendees work varying hours. You will not be on the spot or disrupt the group if you are late.
These groups are for adults who have a family member, loved one, or someone close to them living with a mental health condition or illness. You don't need a diagnosis of your own, you just need to be navigating someone else's or close to someone who is navigating a mental health journey. Whether you're a parent, spouse, sibling, adult child, or close friend, if you are close to mental illness, this space is for you.
Mental health refers to our overall emotional and psychological well-being. Everyone has it, and it fluctuates throughout life.
Mental illness refers to diagnosable conditions that affect thinking, mood, or behavior, such as depression, bipolar disorder, or schizophrenia.
You may also hear the phrase mental health condition. This is often used as a broader, more inclusive term that encompasses both diagnosed mental illnesses and other experiences that affect mental well-being, even when a formal diagnosis isn't present or hasn't been given yet. Many people and organizations, including NAMI, use "mental health condition" because it reduces stigma and better reflects the full spectrum of what people experience.
The bottom line is that these terms are often used interchangeably, and the label matters far less than the experience behind it. You can have good mental health while managing a mental illness. You can struggle with your mental health without having a clinical diagnosis. And you can be affected by a loved one's mental health condition without having one yourself.
All of these experiences are valid, complex, and welcome here.
The good news is that you have already started your journey in getting the support you need by simply reading these words. That is no small step. The next step is to come to one of our family peer support meetings. You don't need to have answers, a plan, or even know what you need right now. Many of the people who show up for the first time feel exactly the way you do: depleted, overwhelmed, desperate to fix their situation, and unsure where to turn. Our peer facilitators have been there too. You don't have to explain yourself or justify how hard this has been. Just show up. If you're in immediate crisis, please reach out to the SCCCMH Access Line or call or text 988.
People come for many reasons. Some are in acute crisis, some have been supporting a loved one for years and finally decided to stop doing it alone, and some want to be in a room where they don't have to explain themselves or justify their decisions. What keeps people coming back is the same thing: they feel understood in a way that friends, therapists, and even other family members sometimes can't provide. They are getting the support they need instead of being the ones to support everyone else. This is peer support from people who are living it, not people who mean well but have never had to make the impossible choices you make every day.
Yes. All NAMI Blue Water Area Family Support Group meetings are completely free and open to the community. No insurance, no referral, no registration required, no questions asked.
Yes. Free parking is available at the St. Clair County Community Mental Health building where we host our Peer Family Support Groups and our Board meetings. The parking lot expands around the entire building. We meet in room 110 and the closest entrance is the one closest to Electric Ave.
Essential Mental Health Resources
Explore our list of mental health resources available in Port Huron, St. Clair County, throughout Michigan, and nationwide.
CRISIS SUPPORT NOW
Get help knowing when to call a Mobile Crisis Unit, First Responders or an Access Center.
Conversations
NAMI Podcasts and Webinars are for people interested in learning more about mental health. Listen in to learn more about personal stories of hope and recovery, expert advice and research, and strategies for ending stigma and living well.
Articles
The NAMI Resource Center brings everything you need into one place. Explore mental health information by condition, topic, population, or resource type, and find articles, guides, videos, personal stories, and more to support you or someone you care about.
Donate
This will feature text to explain the memberships / donations and direct to NAMI national
How has NAMI helped?
Backed by decades of lived experience and evidence-informed programming, NAMI stands as the nation's leading voice on mental health. Our impact is best told through the voices of those we serve. Read the testimonials below to see how our local affiliate turns isolation into connection, confusion into clarity, and struggles into stories of recovery.
NAMI holds a special place in my heart because of both my personal and professional
experiences with mental health. I have seen firsthand how education, advocacy, and
compassionate support can change lives and bring hope to individuals and families. As
a mental health therapist and community member, I am proud to support NAMI's
mission of reducing stigma, increasing access to resources, and reminding people that
they never have to face mental health challenges alone.
Alisha
It is so moving to see the amount of collaboration and support in our Family Support Group each month. Though the group members start out as perfect strangers, no one ever leaves the group feeling alone. I truly wish I had this resource sooner in life to find comfort and guidance in times my family member was in crisis. I hope that our Family Support Group continues to grow so that we can continue to reach the many other local family members of those with mental illness searching for someone who understands.
Tori
We learned so much from others just like us.
Aisha
Thank you for understanding us like no one else.
David
About NAMI Blue Water Area
How It All Started
NAMI Blue Water Area was founded in late 2023 in Port Huron, Michigan. NAMI formerly had a chapter in the Blue Water Area that had not been operating in several years. While the St. Clair County area has incredible resources for those with mental illness, our community was lacking specific resources for the families of those with mental illness. NAMI Blue Water Area was founded in hopes of reaching St. Clair County family members who are struggling with mental health issues in their families.
Our Board Members & Facilitators
Tori Ferres
President & Group Facilitator
Tori Ferres has been the President of NAMI since 2023. As a family member of an individual with mental illness, Tori uses her lived experience in her role as a Family Support Group facilitator. Tori is a local attorney who practices civil litigation.
Lisa Arnett
Vice President
Peer Recovery Coach & Peer Support Specialist.
Emily Uppleger
Treasurer
Tax Director serving middle market companies with advanced technical skills for advising and overseeing performance of accounting, attest and tax client engagement activity.
Alisha Bisnett
Secretary
As Secretary of the Board, I am committed to supporting our mission of promoting
mental wellness and strengthening our community. I am a licensed mental health
therapist and local business owner, leading a trauma-informed counseling practice. My
clinical work focuses on couples, teens, and somatic therapy, with a passion for helping
individuals and families build resilience, heal from trauma, and create meaningful,
lasting change.
Elizabeth Martinez
Member At Large
Account manager for UHS - behavioral health connections. She has over 5 years experience working in behavioral health and over 10 years working in Healthcare. Building and maintaining strong relationship with community partners to drive business. She is a dedicated advocate for mental health.
Vicki Shevnock
Family Support Group Facilitator
Systems Coordinator at St. Clair County.
Lisa Bassett
Family Support Group Facilitator
Get In Touch
We are here to assist you! Reach out for support or questions.
Email | bluewaternami@gmail.com
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