June 24
Paramount Studios
Hollywood, California

NARSAD’s 2006 Campaign for the Brain Silver Ribbon Weekend Dinner and Art Auction took place on Saturday, June 24th at Paramount Studios.

Silver Ribbon Awards were presented to former First Lady Rosalynn Carter for her ongoing commitment to educating the public about mental health; Dr. Thomas Insel, director of the National Institute of Mental Health, for his leadership and dedication to mental health research; and The Village Integrated Service Agency (“The Village”), a Los Angeles organization that supports and teaches adults with psychiatric disabilities.  NARSAD also presented Silver Ribbon Awards (The Mike Wallace Enlightenment Award) to actress Linda Hamilton for her courageous public support of people with brain disorders and Los Angeles Times reporter Steve Lopez for his in-depth articles on mental health issues.

In addition, Hollywood’s contribution to changing the public’s perception of mental illness was highlighted during the evening, and Thom Bierdz, 2005’s Emerging Artist of the Year, created a painting during the evening, which was featured along with other art provided by NARSAD Artworks artists during the art auction.

The Dinner and Art Auction grossed over $310,000.

June 25
Royce Hall
Westwood, California

On Sunday, June 25th, a free public symposium on mental health research took place at Royce Hall on the UCLA campus. The morning program featured research experts speaking on recent advancements in the understanding and treatment of schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and postpartum depression.

MODERATORS:
Lewis Baxter, M.D., UCLA
Kay Redfield Jamison, Ph.D., John Hopkins University

PRESENTERS:
Tyrone Cannon, Ph.D., UCLA
Vulnerability to Major Psychoses

David Braff, M.D., University of California, San Diego
Update on Advances in Schizophrenia Research & Treatments

Mark Frye, M.D., UCLA
Update on Treatments of Bipolar Disorders

Vivien Burt, M.D., UCLA
Post Partum Psychoses and Depression

MOODS AND MUSIC CONCERT:
The symposium was followed in the afternoon by a free program of music and readings entitled “Moods and Music.” Developed and narrated by New York Times best-selling author Dr. Kay Redfield Jamison, the program featured musicians from the Los Angeles Philharmonic performing works by Robert Schumann, who suffered from depression.