Peggy Riggs Email and Phone Number

I effectively manage a caseload of 20+ clients within a 14 County area. I consult with clients as well, to aid them in creating treatment recovery goal plans and objectives. I'm responsible for compiling data throughout the month and performing key measures within a given deadline each month. I encourage clients to get involved in social, recreational and other therapeutic activities to enhance interpersonal skills and develop social relationships.

I work with people between the ages of 15 to 30 that have had their first psychotic break. We try to prevent them from having a second psychotic break and assist them with their medication, coping skills and in learning how to better manage their mental health issues.

I speak to a variety of groups about my personal experiences with mental illness. However, the majority of my presentations are given to police cadets across Texas to help them better understand how to deal with those they encounter with mental health issues. The cadets often question me on topics such as how to handle mental patients in jail, the best way they, as an officer, can differentiate between subjects on illegal drugs versus those under duress from mental illness and how mental health issues and a changing society will impact them as a police officer. Every presentation I give is nothing short of rewarding and fulfilling to me in a variety of ways. I always look forward to seeing the progression of a cadet in training to a full-fledged police officer, able to take the knowledge I have provided them and use it to better serve and protect our community. I look forward to working with other law enforcement agencies in Texas in the near future.

Through the help of many grants over the past several years, my team and I have finally been able to bring our project to fruition. We have opened a COSP (Certified Operated Service Program) in Longview. We are one of a few COSPs in Texas. We finally secured a building to operate out of and in the next couple weeks will be finalizing details before we open. COSPs are peer run service programs that are administratively controlled and operated by mental health consumers and emphasize self-help as their operational approach. We will offer classes, programs and activities such as financial studies, group interaction, games, movies, computer classes, job skills training, exercise, health and nutrition, resume writing, Seeking Safety, WRAP, WHAM, horticulture, cooking, art therapy and more. As mentioned earlier, the highlight of a COSP is that it is led by, operated and run by the members. After three years of working on this project as a team, we hope to open in late October 2017.For more information, please email peggy.riggs@communityhealthcore.com.

I teach clients of Community Healthcore a researched-based curriculum called Seeking Safety. It molds substance abuse with PTSD. It's a very challenging, yet rewarding position to watch the participants navigate through the program over a period of 12 weeks.

I was responsible for negotiating and maintaining B2B Interactions as well as growing the customer base through direct marketing services.

I wrote for the annual Progress Edition. The segments focused on local businesses and their impact on the East Texas area.

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