Saturday is The 'Stomp Out Stigma' Walk For Mental Health

The event raises money for Mental Health Awareness and Suicide Prevention.

The Walk Is This Saturday, May 21 at GVSU's Downtown Campus

We will get started at 8:00 am in the Seward Parking Lot of GVSU's downtown campus, 520 Lake Michigan Drive. The walk will commence at 9:00am and is free to participants as long as you register. If you raise over $100 for the cause, you will also receive a commemorative T-shirt. The walk will take place rain or shine.

If you're familiar with my show, you know I've mentioned my mother suffering from mental illness when I was growing up. So I saw first hand the stigma that is placed upon people who suffer from these diseases. If someone has a physical ailment, entire communities will rally around that person, as they should, but often times victims of mental illness suffer in silence, without support of family or friends.

We would like to raise enough to help erase that stigma.

I am the captain of a walk team for WFGR, and if you can't make it out, but would love to help us out, you can contribute here. We are real close to our goal, so every little bit helps.

Where Your Money Will Go If You Help Us Out

Proceeds from the walk benefit the Mental Health Foundation of West Michigan's be nice. programs and awareness throughout the community. Through the be nice. action plan (notice, invite, challenge, empower) we are able to educate students about mental illnesses and encourage them to exchange stereotypes for understanding, compassion, and acceptance.

You can learn more at the Stomp Out Stigma home page. It is the goal of Stamp Out Stigma to change perceptions and reduce the stigma of mental illness and substance use disorders by encouraging people to talk about them.