National Board of Directors
2006-2012
David Lushbaugh
Dave Lushbaugh’s passionate concern for mental health began in 1995, when his then 22 year old college student son came home in the middle of the night talking and acting unsafely. This resulted in Dave following a police car with his son handcuffed in the backseat to the state mental hospital. Dave’s son was later diagnosed with schizophrenia. From the beginning, Dave realized his own lack of knowledge and the general misunderstanding surrounding mental illnesses is detrimental to recovery. In his search for answers he found NAMI. He determinedly strives to become a more well-informed, effective advocate. Dave believes the use of technology can be expanded to improve the lives of people affected by mental illnesses. Dave supports the potential of the new Georgia statewide 24/7 Crisis and Access Link to Services Telephone Line and Web site.
Dave was at the forefront of bringing statewide CIT to Georgia. He currently serves as the Chair of the Georgia Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) Advisory Board. He is a Memphis Model CIT Advisory Board member. He is a member of the Emory University School of Medicine Psychiatry Fellowship Board of Advisors and the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, Metro Atlanta Board.
He was honored in 2006 for his work in mental illness with the Georgia-Pacific Corporation company wide annual Human Services Impact Award. The Fulton County (Atlanta) Police Department made him an Honorary Lieutenant.
Dave has served as the President of NAMI Georgia and NAMI Northside (Atlanta). He is a past chair of the Metro Atlanta Mental Health Regional Planning Board and State of Georgia Mental Health Planning Board Leadership Council. Dave has represented family members at the Carter Center Mental Health Candle Light Ceremony and at CIT and Forums. Dave is a former ER volunteer with Atlanta’s Veterans Administration and Grady Memorial Hospitals and a Certified State of Georgia First Responder in Pre Hospital Care.
Dave, a native of North Carolina, lives in Atlanta with his wife, Linda. Dave, employed by the Georgia-Pacific Corporation, is the Manager of Training Support Services. Dave has 3 adult children.
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