Seaville woman lauded for ?walking the walk' for mental health issues

SEAVILLE ? State Sen. Jeff Van Drew's office released a video this week lauding a Seaville woman for "walking the walk" and raising awareness of mental health issues in New Jersey.

Greta Schwartz, 48, walked about 90 miles over the course of three days, traveling from the Greenfield Wawa to the New Jersey State House in Trenton. She pulled a small wood casket harnessed to her waist that represented victims of suicide and drug addiction.

"You know there's an old saying if you want to talk the talk you've gotta walk the walk, well Greta Schwartz is really doing the walking," Van Drew said. "She literally is walking all the way from Cape May County to the state capital to make a point and her point is how much we have to do for mental health issues to help our people in the state of New Jersey.

"Regardless of what part of the state you're from, regardless of what family you come from, we are all in a similar situation where we have somebody in our family or we know somebody, we have a friend who is affected by this illness," he said.

Schwartz said she wants to make a change in New Jersey so parents have more of a say in the treatment of their children. In the case of older children, the parent might have no say in determining treatment, she said.

"The parents know their kids," Schwartz said. "There shouldn't be a standard set of five questions for the child and no questions for the parent."

She said when a child is suicidal they need to have a lot more public service options. Mental health should not be a stigma or something to be ashamed about, she said.

"Everybody stand up, tell your story, demand change," Schwartz said.

Schwartz got the idea to walk after attending a conference last fall at Stockton University in which former Rep. Patrick Kennedy spoke about mental illness, addiction, and brain disease. Kennedy is the son of former Massachusetts Sen. Edward "Ted" Kennedy and has written a book, "A Common Struggle," about his challenges with bipolar disorder and addiction.

Schwartz said many families face similar problems but do not know what to do. In a May article in The Gazette, she referenced the hundreds of recent drug overdoses in Cape May County over the past couple years, and two Ocean City High School students who died by suicide.

Schwartz dressed as a Spartan warrior and pulled the casket in order to draw attention to mental health issues this election year. She is a former actor and director of the Youth Opera of South Jersey. The walk also raised money for nonprofit groups.