KALONA

The Kalona Area Chamber of Commerce welcomed their newest member, Hammes Homestead and Consulting, on Friday, March 1.  Owner/founder Megan Hammes joined fellow Chamber members at the Chamber office and received her member plaque.

A longtime employee of the University of Iowa, Hammes struck out on her own in August 2023, establishing a business that offers mental health first aid and workplace wellbeing training.  Mental Health First Aid is the primary course she teaches at businesses around the country, usually to small groups of 5-30 people at a time. 

The eight-hour Mental Health First Aid course is usually broken into two days of training, which she likens to learning first aid or CPR, only for the mind.

“It trains all of us non-professionals how to respond to early warning signs of a mental health challenge, worsening signs of mental health challenge, and also crisis situations,” she says.  “It’s never to go it alone.  It’s almost always to connect to professional help and resources.  It just helps educate people, helps people feel more comfortable talking about it.”

The Kalona resident doesn’t have a local office or storefront, but she can be contacted by phone or email by those who wish to schedule training sessions for their employees or community groups.

Hammes looks forward to bringing more of her training services to the community.   Find Hammes Homestead and Consulting online at hammesconsulting.com or reach her at 319-331-6989.