World Mental Health Day and Ten Years of the Social Café at Kronstad

On Tuesday, October 14, we celebrated World Mental Health Day – and the 10th anniversary of the Social Café at Kronstad DPS.

The celebration brought together both old and new friends of the café, with warm greetings from Mayor Marit Warncke, Division Director Randi Louise Møgster, the management at Kronstad DPS, and Deputy Leader of Erfaringssentrum, Sigve Knutsen-Moss.

Artist Solveig Algrøy delivered a musical stand-up medley that hit just the right note. With sharp and playful observations, she gave the management, peer support workers, us in Psykiatrialliansen, and the regular café guests a good-natured roasting – much to everyone’s amusement.

“The café has become a hub for lived experience and peer expertise. It’s a place where people connect, make friends, and find a sense of belonging. We believe that community and social connection are vital parts of good mental health,” said peer support worker Solveig Bartun Rob.

The café opens its doors every Tuesday, even on holidays and vacations. The annual World Mental Health Day events at Kronstad DPS always draw a full house – “thanks to the free food and cake,” as Algrøy joked. As tradition has it, there was both a stair race and a football match, with gift cards awarded to the fastest woman and man, and to whoever came closest to the median time. This year, Psykiatrialliansen took the win in the football match.

A heartfelt thank-you to Kronstad DPS, the dedicated peer support workers, and – above all – our wonderful café participants and everyone who continues to keep the Social Café alive, week after week.