National Council for Behavioral Health recognizes the LPD

Published 6:43 pm Wednesday, April 3, 2019

The LaGrange Police Department and LPD Chief Lou Dekmar were recently named the recipients of the National Council for Behavioral Health’s 2019 Visionary Award.

The National Council for Behavior Health chooses its visionary leadership award winners from hundreds of nominations representing the most inspiring leaders in the county. The award celebrates those who improve the lives of individuals experiencing mental illness and who teach us all how we can reach out and do our part.

“I’m very proud that the basis of this initiative was what we’ve done here in LaGrange,” Dekmar said. “We’ve been working with the faith community and nonprofits and our officers have been stepping up and engaging in CIT training in a way that makes a world of difference. That local success led to this international initiative.”

The award was presented on March 26 in Nashville, Tennessee, during the Awards of Excellence Celebration in conjunction with the National Council Conference – NatCon19.

The National Council for Behavioral Health’s Awards of Excellence recognize and honor individuals and organizations in behavioral health care for their ingenuity, hard work and dedication to improving the lives of Americans living with mental illnesses and addictions.

“Chief Lou Dekmar is the first ever winner of this award from a police agency. His leadership of the International Association of Chiefs of Police and dedication to the One Mind Pledge — a program to equip tens of thousands of police officers nationwide with the tools necessary to respond safety and effectively — was an easy choice for the selection committee,” said National Council for Behavioral Health Public Education Director Bryan Gibb. “Personally, I am proud to work with the Chief in spreading the Mental Health First Aid training and expect his impact to continue as he remains dedicated to this important work.”

Hailed as the nation’s premier behavioral health conference, NatCon19 convened with more than 5,000 behavioral health professionals to discuss solutions and outcomes that transform health care.