Champions are raising awareness and starting conversations within existing community groups. To say we’re excited is an understatement.
Meet You Are Collective!
Rebecca and Michael head up this company focusing on mental health in Kelowna, BC. To increase community and resources, the You Are Collective team hosted their first-ever event on trellis called Strike Out the Stigma.
You Are Collective created this event to expand specific sectors within the larger mental health community, with the goal of forming and building stronger relationships between charities and other local organizations. Teams included members from
While playing baseball, these teams were able to talk about mental health, sharing resources and experiences between the various support service providers in the local mental health community.
Why Strike Out the Stigma?
After continually hearing how challenging it was for local organizations to find the resources, help, and community they needed, You are Collective started thinking about ways they could solve that problem or help plan out that solution, and Strike out the Stigma was born!
Food Trucks, local vendors, and businesses all took part in this fun day of gameplay.
What advice would you give to other champions out there?
Simply give. Make it a habit and not a reward. Make it part of your lifestyle. Collaborate with others in the community. So many local businesses either donate time or products or resources to the cause.
You Are Collective is a local Okanagan initiative to raise awareness and increase education for mental health and illness. When Michael and Rebecca first sought out to raise money for mental health, they did it based on the lack of resources and accessibility they noticed while going through their own struggles. They often felt alone and isolated as the stigma around mental health and illness affects us whether at work, school, home, or in public. By providing safe spaces to have open conversations about mental health, Michael and Rebecca are closing the gap in the mental health community by using apparel and their voices as a vehicle for their movement.
We’re so thankful for all the work that You Are Collective is doing in our community and beyond!
Got questions about how you can make your next event like Strike out the Stigma?
We’re here for you!
