by media | Sep 8, 2022 | Featured News, Information, Live, Media Releases, My Pharr, News, News, Police Department, Police News
Pharr PD Mental Health Unit to Host 2nd Annual Mental Health Awareness Fair on Friday, 9/9 @ 7pm
Pharr, Texas – The City of Pharr and the Pharr PD Mental Health Unit will be hosting the 2nd Annual Mental Health Awareness Fair with the theme “Stick by Me” to bring awareness and local organizations together to provide information to the community.
The event will take place on Friday, September 9, 2022, from 7 pm – 9 pm at the Pharr Vanguard Academy Nature & Birding Center (1025 S. Richmond Dr.) in Pharr.
“Everyone is invited to join us as we work together to advocate for Mental Health Awareness during this fun family-friendly event,” said Pharr Mayor Ambrosio Hernandez, M.D. “I’m proud to see the great work our Pharr PD Mental Health Unit is doing in advocating for awareness and bringing our local organizations together with our community to educate everyone on the services and assistance that are available to address mental health,” he added.
The event will feature mental health booths, a glow stick vigil, speakers, testimony, and a walk. For more information, contact Officer N. Zepeda at [email protected].
All media and the public are invited to attend.
DETAILS
WHAT: Pharr PD Mental Health Unit to Host 2nd Annual Mental Health Awareness Fair
WHEN: Friday, September 9, 2022, from 7 pm – 9 pm
WHERE: Pharr Vanguard Academy Nature & Birding Center (1025 S. Richmond Dr., Pharr, TX 78577)
MEDIA ADVISORY
Media Contact: Yuri Gonzalez
Phone: (956) 310-2139
Email: [email protected]
by media | Aug 19, 2022 | Featured News, Information, Live, Media Releases, My Pharr, News, News, Police News
Pharr Hosts Sen. Cornyn for Mental Health Roundtable Discussion & Press Conference
Pharr, Texas – City of Pharr leaders were excited to host U.S. Senator John Cornyn at a roundtable discussion on local Mental Health initiatives and federal legislation with regional leaders and law enforcement agencies. Pharr city commissioners welcomed Cornyn and individuals representing collaborative agencies including Tropical Texas Behavioral Health, the Hidalgo County District Attorney’s Office, DHR Health Behavioral Hospital, and the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, among others.
Cornyn opened the discussion by providing attendees with an overview of the importance of mental health treatment for local communities, especially in the wake of the recent mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas. Cornyn lauded his efforts to pass key legislation in the U.S. Senate for the Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Reauthorization Act of 2022. The legislation reauthorizes expiring programs under this initiative and also expands the use of multi-disciplinary response teams and provides resources and mental health training for law enforcement officers. The Act also enhances access to mental health services.
“We appreciate Senator Cornyn’s efforts to promote and support mental health legislation through which innovative and collaborative programs like the Mental Health Unit are made possible, and we are seeing a direct impact on our community,” said Mayor Ambrosio Hernandez, M.D. “This type of compassionate intervention that they provide is working to save lives, and we are so proud of the work that the Mental Health Unit is doing in our city for our residents,” Hernandez added.
Pharr City Commissioners and City Manager/Police Chief Andy Harvey provided Cornyn with an overview of Pharr’s innovative Mental Health Unit. The Unit, founded in 2020 through a collaborative initiative between the Pharr Police Department and Tropical Texas Behavioral Health, utilizes trained mental health officers and a clinician to respond to incidents where an individual may be experiencing a mental health crisis and get them the help they need. The Unit was recently awarded a $550,000 grant by the U. S. Department of Justice to expand its services and was recognized earlier this year as “Organization of the Year” by the Texas Crisis Intervention Team Association.
The visit included a brief and intimate testimonial by an individual who was helped by the Mental Health Unit, and he thanked them for changing his life after experiencing a crisis. He now has a steady job and credits the Unit for helping him through his situation. At a press conference after the roundtable, Cornyn remarked, “If we can get people the help they need and access to that care, that protects them from being a danger to themselves or others as well.”
“The challenge of mental health affects every family in America,” Cornyn continued. “I’m so happy to be here in Pharr and to hold this up as a great example of what can be duplicated in other parts of the state and other parts of the country,” Cornyn added.
Pharr Commissioner Ricardo Medina, Senator John Cornyn, and Pharr Commissioner Ramiro Caballero
(l-r) Pharr Assistant Chief of Police Joel Robles, City Manager/Police Chief Andy Harvey, and Tropical Texas Behavioral Health Chief Operating Officer Mike Taylor
MEDIA ADVISORY
Media Contact: Yuri Gonzalez
Phone: (956) 310-2139
Email: [email protected]
by media | Aug 17, 2022 | Featured News, Information, Live, Media Releases, My Pharr, News, News, Police News
City of Pharr and Sen. Cornyn to Host Discussion on Mental Health this Thursday, 8/18 @ 10:30 am
Pharr, Texas – The City of Pharr and U.S. Senator John Cornyn will host a roundtable discussion on local Mental Health initiatives and federal legislation with regional leaders and law enforcement agencies.
The event will take place at 10:30 am this Thursday, August 18, 2022, at the Pharr ONE Northside Center (1121 East Nolana Loop) in Pharr.
All media are invited to attend.
Please see the Media Advisory released from Senator Cornyn’s office below for more information.
MEDIA ADVISORY
Media Contact: Yuri Gonzalez
Phone: (956) 310-2139
Email: [email protected]
by media | Aug 3, 2022 | Featured News, Information, Live, Media Releases, My Pharr, News, News, Police Department, Police News
Pharr City Manager Chief Andy Harvey Named New LEITF Co-chair
Pharr, Texas – The City of Pharr is proud to announce that earlier today, the Law Enforcement Immigration Task Force (LEITF) named City Manager Chief Andy Harvey as the new LEITF Co-chair.
The announcement was made in the following press release:
Chief Andy Harvey Named New LEITF Co-chair
PHARR, TEXAS — Chief Andy Harvey of Pharr, Texas — on the border with Reynosa, Mexico — is a new co-chair of the Law Enforcement Immigration Task Force.
Harvey currently serves as Police Chief and City Manager of Pharr and has been outspoken about the need for better border and immigration policies, including in testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee about policing and immigration in 2019.
He assumes his leadership role at a pivotal moment for border and immigration reforms. In polling earlier this year, about 4 in 5 respondents said they would support “Republicans and Democrats working together on immigration reforms that strengthen border security, create a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants who came to the United States as children, and ensure a legal, reliable workforce for America’s farmers and ranchers.”
“What’s actually occurring in our local communities is important to the larger conversation surrounding immigration. We are all less safe without commonsense immigration reforms and practical, effective border security. Let’s work together to make our nation safer,” said Chief Andy Harvey of Pharr, Texas.
“Chief Harvey’s more than 26 years of public service and leadership experience, spanning positions in law enforcement, the military, and city government, as well as his expertise in immigration are welcome assets as he joins the task force’s leadership,” said Sheriff Ed Gonzalez of Harris County, Texas.
Chief Harvey’s fellow co-chairs are Sheriff Ed Gonzalez (Harris County, Texas) and Sheriff Margaret Mims (Fresno County, California).
View the release in its entirety here: https://leitf.org/[2022][08][harveycochair][].
by media | May 12, 2022 | Featured News, Information, Live, Media Releases, My Pharr, News, News, Police Department, Police News
Pharr Police’s Therapy K9 Ammo to Visit Nurses at DHR TOMORROW, Friday, 5/13 @ 11 am
Pharr, Texas – The Pharr Police Department’s Therapy K9, Ammo, will visit nurses at the DHR Health Women’s Hospital, this Friday, May 13.
As we know, a nurse’s job can be tedious and stressful at times, since they play a vital role in the medical community and are constantly helping save lives. We realized this more than ever, when the pandemic hit and changed our lives forever.
That’s why the Pharr Police Department is thrilled to be able to bring to joy, smiles and comfort to the dedicated, hard-working nurses at DHR.
Ammo will take part in the Hospital Week Celebration that will be held at the DHR Health Women’s Hospital.
Nurses will have the opportunity to interact with and pet Ammo, who has undergone months of specialized training to be deemed a therapy K9.
All media is invited to meet Ammo and his handler Officer Alfredo Ortiz of the Community Engagement Unit.
DETAILS
WHAT: Pharr Police’s Therapy K9 Ammo to Visit Nurses at DHR Health Women’s Hospital
WHEN: TOMORROW, Friday, May 13, 2022, from 11 am to 1 pm
WHERE: DHR Health Women’s Hospital (5502 S. McColl Rd.) in Edinburg, TX
Point of Contact at Event: Officer Danny Garcia (956-648-6264)
Pharr Police’s Therapy K9 Ammo
(more…)
by media | May 2, 2022 | Featured News, Information, Live, Media Releases, My Pharr, News, News, Police Department, Police News
Pharr Police Department Mental Health Unit Awarded Organization of the Year by Texas CIT Association
City management congratulates the Pharr Police Mental Health unit for their recent recognition as the “Organization of the Year.” They received the distinction at the CIT Association’s Annual Conference. We are Team Pharr.
Pharr, Texas – The Pharr Police Department’s Mental Health Unit was awarded “Organization of the Year” by the Texas Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) Association at its annual conference held this past weekend. The recognition is a well-deserved honor for the members of Pharr’s Mental Health Unit for the work it is doing to provide specialized police responses to individuals with mental illness or who are experiencing a mental health crisis.
“We are seeing the positive impact that the Mental Health Unit is directly having in our community, and to be recognized by a statewide association that focuses specifically on the relationship between law enforcement and behavioral health is a great honor,” said Pharr Mayor Ambrosio Hernandez, M.D. “We want to congratulate the members of the team on this notable distinction, and look forward to continuing to implement innovative community policing efforts such as this to benefit the public safety and wellbeing of our community,” he added.
Pharr’s Mental Health Unit was created in December 2020 to help educate officers about how to respond to cases in which a person is experiencing a mental health crisis. The goal of the unit was to improve policing and train officers to respond appropriately to such scenarios without having to resort to excessive use of force or jail time. The Unit has partnered with the local mental health authority, Tropical Texas Behavioral Health, and was recently awarded a $550,000 grant by the U.S. Department of Justice to continue its efforts.
The Texas CIT Association is a non-profit organization comprised of law enforcement, corrections, the mental health community, and advocacy groups to provide standardized training, support, and education in responding to those affected by mental illness and/or those who are experiencing a mental health crisis.
“The goal of the unit is to provide resources for people in crisis and provide them the help they really need first,” stated Police Chief Andy Harvey.
“We are honored to have been awarded this recognition by this network of our peers in the field across the state who understand the importance of having this specialized Mental Health Unit, which has helped to de-escalate situations and ultimately, save lives,” Harvey added.
PRESS RELEASE
Media Contact: Yuri Gonzalez
Phone: (956) 310-2139
Email: [email protected]
Page 7 of 10« First«...56789...»Last »
