Creative Pinellas, the county’s umbrella arts support organization, is investing heavily in emotional wellness. This month, it will offer a series of Mental Health First Aid training workshops at various locations in partnership with nonprofit Love IV Lawrence.
“We can show how important the arts are in other ways,” Creative Pinellas CEO Margaret Murray explained. “Not just as entertainment – but their positive impact on public health.”
Participants will receive two hours of self-paced online content as well as five hours of instructor-led training. The one-day workshops will cover topics such as common signs and symptoms of mental health and substance abuse challenges. Additionally, students will learn about how to engage with a person in crisis and how to connect them with help.
The workshops will be open, she said, to anyone who wants to attend. Not just artists.
They will be hosted at the Lealman Exchange (March 25); Dunedin Fine Art Center (March 27); FloridaRAMA (March 28) and freeFall Theatre (March 30). The sessions will be “provided at no cost to participants thanks to nonprofit Safe & Sound Hillsborough with a Love IV Lawrence grant,” according to a Creative Pinellas prepared statement.
These location partners were chosen thoughtfully, Murray added. The team wanted to make sure that there were training opportunities all around the county. Additionally, they wanted to work with organizations that would benefit from the initiative. “We looked at who their members and constituents are.”
Lealman Exchange, at 5175 45th Street N. in the unincorporated community of Lealman, offers programs, resources and services to support area residents. The Dunedin Fine Art Center, at 1143 Michigan Blvd., provides creative classes and workshops for adults and children. Additionally, the organization hosts art exhibits.
FloridaRAMA, at 2606 Fairfield Avenue S. inside The Factory St. Pete, is a walk-through immersive art experience that includes work from local creators. Guests can see a variety of performances by freeFall Theatre, at 6099 Central Ave.
Love IV Lawrence was created to “change the conversation around mental health and suicide,” according to its website. The organization was founded by Vevie Dimmitt after her son took his own life. This tragedy inspired her to take action and help “destigmatize” the topic. Part of the nonprofit’s work is facilitating training sessions.
“I went to see Vevie give a very moving talk at FloridaRAMA,” Murray said. “It was so aligned with what we were already thinking.”
Creative Pinellas is dedicated to providing a variety of resources to the arts community, she explained. The organization has given grants to financially support local talent.
Additionally, it has partnered in mental health-focused initiatives before. In 2021, the agency collaborated on the You Good? Behavioral Health Campaign with the St. Petersburg Arts Alliance, Pinellas Wellness Connection and the Foundation for a Healthy St. Petersburg.
According to Creative Pinellas’s website, the goal was to “create a single, unified message that communicates the availability of and access to support, resources and assistance for people dealing with mental health, behavioral health and substance abuse issues.”
Four local artists were invited to paint murals throughout St. Petersburg that addressed the topic. Creative Pinellas has been working on the first aid training project for about two to three months.
“Mental health concerns are definitely on the rise,” Murray said. “People are feeling much more anxious and overwhelmed.”
Individuals, including those in the arts community, often worry about financial challenges such as rent. Artists also have “unique stressers,” she added. Many experience anxiety regarding performing. “Having to put yourself out on the stage or in the public eye is incredibly challenging for some people.”
Additionally, Murray said, the desire to “create and innovate and then present something new to the world can be very nerve-racking.” In fact, female performers have a higher rate of suicide than the average female population.
In September 2025, the Pinellas County Board of County Commissioners approved the defunding of Creative Pinellas. This has left the organization in a financially vulnerable state. She added that focusing on initiatives such as the first aid training can help the agency “thrive.” Providing mental health programs could offer additional funding opportunities. More so, it can have an impact on the people who have relied on Creative Pinellas’s services.
“Our goal is to make sure that artists and the cultural community feel empowered to drive their own mental health successes,” Murray explained, “and recognize signs of mental health stress in others.”
To learn more about the workshops, visit this link.
Lealman Exchange is co-operated by the St. Petersburg Foundation, which is the St. Petersburg Group’s nonprofit arm. St. Pete Catalyst publisher Joe Hamiltion co-founded the organization.