CW: Brief mentions of suicide and loss
I have always seen the struggle of mental health. Whether it be through my family, my friends or even myself. From the age of 9 to 16, I actively went and benefited from therapy services. When it comes to the costs of affording these services, many struggle. In my personal opinion, nobody should have to choose between household needs, and mental health assistance. That is where The Gray Matters Collective and Foster’s Voice organizations come in. For those who have read some of our writing team members other works, you might be familiar with The Gray Matters Collective. In case you aren’t, its a non-profit mental health movement founded by Augustana Alumni Haley DeGreve in 2019. What started as a handful of chapters has grown into a large number of chapters of various backgrounds and ages. I personally am a member of both the Quad Cities Young Adult chapter and Augustana’s chapter as a member of the Leadership team!
The other partner who is receiving the money raised from this gala is Foster’s Voice, a group created in honor of Foster, a loved son and friend who passed from suicide at 19. His family honors him and others lost through suicide every day but especially at this event. This is because through Foster’s Fund, people who cannot typically afford therapy and other mental health services are able to receive the healthcare access they need. As of last week, the fund was empty but by the end of the night it was once again full!!! Ready for more people to improve their quality of life through taking care of themselves.
This is the event’s third year and since I had begun taking an interest within this group my senior year of high school I had always wanted to become more involved and attend as many events as I was able to. Thankfully through volunteering to set up balloon arch ways and help make the magic happen, I was able to attend alongside my mom. Throughout my years of advocacy work, my mom has been there right by my side and in turn has gained many experiences and appreciation for the work I do and the connections I have made.
The night was full of drinks, tasty food, and many touching speeches and presentations that left me teary eyed and encouraged. There was also several auctions, as well as the traditional Mr. Starry Night Pageant, where several male mental health advocates fundraised and “competed” for the Mr. Starry Night title. Not only was it great to see people young and old coming together for this great cause, I also applaud the show of healthy masculinity that was shown by all 4 of the contestants.
This work is year round and I’m proud of Haley, and all of the other amazing volunteers and voices in the advocacy army for standing up for all of the stars in the sky who are no longer with us and all of the amazing people who are still struggling to this day, including myself.
