VOCAL CO-OP

Consumer Owned & Operated Programs

Welcome to the VOCAL CO-OP. We are a collective of peer-run, grassroots mental health programs in Virginia. All our programs are designed, led, and governed by people who have been diagnosed with mental illness.

We offer connecting communication and enjoyable peer support so that peer-run mental health program leaders are living their visions and achieving their goals. We serve peer-run program leaders who seek change, peer support, and growth with mutual, professional community building.

There are over 25 peer-run mental heath programs in Virginia – Drop In Centers, Employment Centers, Training Programs, Warm Lines, Advocacy Projects, Recovery Groups, and more. As people who have personally experienced mental illness, we work to create programs that respect the inherent worth and dignity of all people, regardless of their current or past mental state, diagnosis, or use of medications.

We offer peer-run recovery programs free publications, scholarships, consultations, workshops, trainings institutes, program development, mini-grants, newsletters, toolkits, website, resources and information to help create recovery and wellness programs in our state. We also advocate for increased funding and support for peer programs on statewide and regional levels. We work to help mental health leaders and policymakers understand the value of peer-run programs, and keep up-to-date on the wonderful and important things recovery programs are doing in our state.

VOCAL is 100% peer-run. All of our staff and all of our board are people in recovery from mental illness.

To learn more about peer-run programs, we invite you to visit our Directory of Peer-run Programs in Virginia. To find out about upcoming events, scholarships, updates and opportunities, we welcome you to visit our VOCAL CO-OP Newsletter.