Actor Mickey Rooney (left) and Bill Sackter. Photo courtesy of Bill's Coffeeshop.

Cheers to RadioIowa for their story on the remodeling and grand reopening of Wild Bill’s Coffee Shop. To read the full story click here.

The coffee shop is a service learning project at the School of Social Work at the University of Iowa. It is operated by adults with disabilities.

The shop is named in honor of Bill Sackter, a man who lived almost 50 years in a Minnesota mental institution. Sackter eventually came to the University of Iowa, where he ran a small coffee service and became a local celebrity.

Actor Mickey Rooney portrayed Sackter in the 1981 film, “Bill.” The heartwarming television movie is credited with raising public awareness of people with mental disabilities.

To find out more about how social workers help people with disabilities, visit the National Association of Social Workers “Help Starts Here” Disabilities Web page by clicking here.

The infamous tongue on a frozen pole scene from "A Christmas Story." Photo courtesy of imdb.com.

For some folks, the holidays just aren’t the holidays without watching their favorite movie or television program of  the season.

Declan Reynolds in "Social Work." Photo courtesy of Julian Benson Management.

Many social workers are concerned about how the media portrays the profession. It will be interesting to see how social workers react to the title of an upcoming movie.

Irish actor, director and screenwriter Declan Reynolds is set to release his independent film,“Social Work,” in March.

Think the film is about the trials, tribulations and joys of social work? Think again. It’s centers on another kind of social worker — the bouncers, coat checkers and other folks who work in a seedy nightclub. To watch a promo clip of the movie click here.

All this leads to these movie questions:

Q: Do you think the title of the movie disrespects social workers and denigrates the job title?   Should social workers ask director Declan Reynolds to change the title before the film release?

The film “Precious” puts a spotlight on many issues social workers confront, including family violence, child abuse, HIV and AIDS and teen pregnancy.

Social workers also play an important role in the gut-wrenching film, which premieres Friday Nov. 6. In fact, pop singer Mariah Carey sheds her diva image to portray “Mrs. Weiss,” a social worker who tries to help the troubled teenager Claireece “Precious” Jones.

But is the film’s portrayal of social workers fair? Do you handle some of the some issues depicted in the movie? “Social Workers Speak” urges you to see “Precious” and let us know what you think. You can post your comments below.

And we can tell you how to reach out to your community and local media to let give them your opinion on “Precious” and its depiction of social work.

How to React to Film:
Are you pleased with how the film “Precious” portrayed social workers or are you upset? If you want to contact your local newspaper, radio or television station to voice your opinion about the gut-wrenching movie, contact Greg Wright at the National Association of Social Workers (GWright@naswdc.org). Greg can give you tips on how to get involved.

How to Find Film:
According to the press, Lionsgate studios will give “Precious” a limited theater release. Is the film playing near you? Go to www.precioustickets.com to find theaters showing the movie and buy tickets.

Ben Foster, left, and Woody Harrelson star in "The Messenger." Photo courtesy of "Moving Pictures."

Director Oren Moverman offered NASW a chance to do an advance viewing of his film “The Messenger” at NASW offices this afternoon. The movie is about soldiers who must deliver news of a death to families.

Most of the audience members were social workers. How did they feel about the film?

They thought the acting by Woody Harrelson, Ben Foster and Samantha Morton was spot on. It is also a good and timely message movie, considering the United States is still losing soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan and troops are returning injured and suffering from post traumatic stress disorder. For more information on how social workers are helping the military click here to vist the NASW’s “Help Starts Here” section on Veterans Affairs.

“I enjoyed it — I thought the acting was phenomenal,” said Sharon Issurdatt, LCSW. “It’s a war movie but different. It shows the after effects.”

However, other social workers in the review audience said the film should have given more attention to the services provided to grieving families after the “messengers” deliver their grim news. The Department of Veterans Affairs hires more masters level social workers than any other industry, and many of these social workers provide guidance to soldiers and their families.

The movie mentioned casualty assistance officers several times but where were the military social workers, several audience members said?

“The Messenger” opened in limited theaters on Veterans Day.