AIM Center, Inc.

We’re back with another installment of our student-created mental health awareness series in collaboration with Center for Creative Arts. 🧠 Today, we’re highlighting bipolar disorder.

Through this series, students have helped share information, challenge misconceptions, and encourage conversations about mental health and recovery.

Bipolar disorder can impact a person’s mood, energy levels, and daily life, but with the right support, treatment, and community, recovery is possible. At AIM Center, we’re committed to creating a space where individuals living with mental illness can find connection, purpose, and support. Through the Clubhouse model, members can build meaningful relationships, establish routines, and participate in purposeful work alongside peers and staff. This supportive community can help provide stability, encouragement, and a sense of belonging throughout the recovery journey.

To learn more, check out the students’ accompanying blog post here ➡ https://aimcenterinc.org/2026/06/03/lets-chat-bipolar/

We have yet another Clubhouse community celebration to share with you all! ✨

Our very own Executive Director, Jamie Polk, recently completed her Leadership Chattanooga cohort! Leadership Chattanooga is a highly respected leadership development program through the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce that brings together emerging and established leaders from across the region. Being selected for and completing this program over the last 10 months is a significant accomplishment, and we are incredibly proud of Jamie for reaching this milestone!

We know so much of what she has learned and gained from this experience will continue to strengthen the amazing work she does at AIM Center and within the Clubhouse community.

In addition to her role at AIM Center, Jamie currently serves on the board of Be The Change Youth Initiative and is actively involved throughout the Chattanooga community. She has also been a valued part of the AIM family for the past five years, helping advance our mission of supporting mental health recovery and community inclusion.

Please join us in congratulating Jamie on this exciting and well-deserved accomplishment! 🎉🧡

We have another celebration to share from our Clubhouse community! 🎓

Congratulations to Markus on recently graduating from college with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology! Markus earned a 3.967 GPA and graduated Summa Cum Laude, an outstanding accomplishment that reflects his hard work and dedication.

Markus has also been accepted into the Master's in Educational Psychology program at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, where he will begin graduate studies in Fall 2026.

A member of AIM Center's Clubhouse community since 2021, Markus serves on our Board of Directors and is also actively involved with NAMI Chattanooga. We are proud to celebrate his achievements and look forward to seeing all he accomplishes in the future! 🧡

We are thrilled to celebrate our Board Chair, Ashley Evans, CFRE, on being named a 2026 Women of Distinction Nominee! 🤍

Through her leadership at AIM Center, her work at Siskin Children's Institute, and her dedication to serving the Chattanooga community, Ashley makes a meaningful difference in the lives of countless individuals and families every day.

We are incredibly proud of her and this well-deserved recognition!

As Mental Health Awareness Month comes to a close, we are reflecting on a month full of connection, advocacy, and community impact at the AIM Center. 💚

Throughout May, we worked to celebrate recovery, elevate member voices, and continue breaking down the stigma surrounding mental illness. Together, we hosted our Open house, our AIM Center Day of Giving, the second annual Strike Out the Stigma, an incredible member art showcase, community tabling events, shared powerful member stories, and so much more!

We are especially grateful to the Community Foundation of Greater Chattanooga for their generous $15,000 gift through their Mental Health Fund. Their support helps ensure adults living with serious mental illness will continue to have access to community, housing, employment support, wellness services, and most importantly, hope.

We also want to extend a heartfelt thank you to our event sponsors and give-back partners who helped make this month possible: Texas Roadhouse Hixson, Red Robin Gourmet Burgers Chattanooga, Culture Coffee Co. , The Jason Foundation, Inc. -Youth Su***de Prevention and Awareness , Arts Build , Mr. Trophy (Red Bank), and Sunny 92.3. Your partnership helps amplify awareness and strengthen support for mental health in our community.

At the start of the month, we set a goal to raise $25,000 to support our life-changing programs -- and thanks to this amazing community, we are now less than $2,500 away from reaching our goal.

Every conversation, every shared story, every partnership, and every donation helps move our mission forward. Thank you for standing with us this Mental Health Awareness Month and helping create a community where recovery is possible for everyone.

If you'd like to help us cross the finish line, there's still time to make an impact. You can make a life-changing gift here: https://bit.ly/GiveNow-MentalHealthAwarenessMonth

We have some exciting news to share... The nomination deadline for the inaugural Mental Health Hero Awards has been extended to July 15th! ✨

Some incredible nominations have already started to come in, and we are deeply grateful to everyone who has taken the time to recognize the mental health heroes in our community. If you have not yet submitted a nomination, there is still time to help us honor someone making a meaningful impact in the lives of others.

The Mental Health Hero Awards sets out to recognize individuals across our community who are advancing mental health awareness, advocacy, and support. From social workers and healthcare providers to community leaders and AIM Center members, these awards celebrate those who go above and beyond to uplift others and champion recovery, connection, and hope. 💛

Mental health touches every community and every individual differently, and this special evening at The Westin will bring us together to celebrate the people making a difference every day. Most importantly, this event is dedicated to honoring the compassion, leadership, and advocacy of these outstanding individuals, and we need your help identifying them!

In the coming weeks, we will be doing a deeper dive into the award categories, but for now, we invite you to visit our website to learn more and submit your nominations today ➡ https://bit.ly/MentalHealthHeroAwards

Earlier this year, we had the opportunity to work with talented students from Center for Creative Arts who wanted to learn more about mental health resources in Chattanooga and the work being done to support individuals living with mental illness. 🧠

After learning more about AIM Center’s mission and the resources available in Chattanooga, these students helped create a social media series focused on advocacy, education, and reducing stigma surrounding mental illness. Today, we’re highlighting depression.

Depression can affect every part of a person’s life, but support, community, and recovery are possible. At AIM Center, we’re committed to creating a space where individuals living with mental illness can find connection, purpose, and support.

To learn more, check out the students’ accompanying blog post here ➡ https://aimcenterinc.org/2026/05/29/lets-chat-depression/