Wow, California! You brought the enthusiasm, the amazing volunteers, and the life-changing conversations to our first-ever Send Silence Packing Fall Tour. There was rarely a dull moment, and each college campus presented a new set of students to educate and learn about. In this all-California tour, we put up displays everywhere from Chico and San Francisco to UCLA and Palm Desert. We met parents, friends, and family who came to the display to visit special backpacks. We spoke with strangers who were supportive because suicide had greatly impacted their lives. We handed out resources to friends who were worried about fellow friends. And we kept working to make sure college students knew where and how to get help.

From readers of the blog to strangers who stopped to talk, we had countless conversations with visitors to the displays. Even those who just took the time to read a few of our story backpacks definitely walked away with a new understanding, and hopefully a desire to speak out.

We each wanted to say a bit about our experiences, so here’s a bit about the tour in our own words:

From Brandon: Back in Spring of 2010 when I first found out I’d be going on the first tour of Send Silence Packing I don’t think I could have fully realized how much of an impact it would have. I’ve been able to see this message affect students, mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, friends, sons, daughters, and myself.

I’ve heard stories in the cities from people that have struggled with the impact of suicide on their own campuses and lives decades ago—when nothing was being said about the issue. Those same people often say how happy they are to see young people taking a stand and starting to speak. I’ve seen students that are in the middle of this all right now. Seeing so many different people (from so many different parts of life) come together over the past three tours has been a consistently amazing experience.

At the time of writing this I’ve been lucky enough to be a part of 36 displays over 19 states. I’ve seen the display next to both oceans and heard thousands of stories from all over between the two. I’ve heard thousands of voices coming together to speak out—and we’re only getting louder.

From Kathryn: I can’t thank you all enough for the opportunity to take the SSP tour on the road in California. It certainly was an adventure, and I loved every minute of the trip (well, except for that 102-degree Palm Desert weather that left me sunburned…) From driving our 16-foot truck to hiking in the beautiful mountains, it was quite the ride. But most importantly, I had the chance to do meaningful work I cared about.

It’s not often people say they love their jobs and mean it, but I can truly say that I had an amazing experience and couldn’t be more pleased with the entire tour. While I only played a small part in the amazing work done by Active Minds, I can still say that I greatly enjoyed having the chance. You all trusted in us to bring you a great display and speak honestly about mental health, and I believe we accomplished just that. So thank you for sharing your stories with me and for inviting us onto your campuses. The eye-opening conversations I had with strangers, friends, and family made me realize how lucky I am to be part of this movement that’s getting stronger every day. During this fall tour we added more than ten chapters alone! So thank you to everyone in California—and everyone at the national office for supporting us, too—for giving us an incredible ride. I can’t wait to come back!

But before we go…

Just because the tour is over doesn’t mean our work is done! There’s a whole lot you can do to continue supporting Active Minds and reaching out to change the conversation about mental health:

Find out about the November 13th annual Save-a-Life Community 5K Walk in San Diego by visiting http://savealifewalk.kintera.org.

We have backpacks from several of the supporters listed below, so be sure to find out more:

Alex’s dad wants to make texting an option for those who need to reach out to suicide hotlines. Learn more here.

Suzy’s parents want to stop suicide internet predators in their tracks. Help them out here.

San Francisco teens need support whether struggling personally or dealing with the death of a loved one. Find out how Break Through the Static does just that.

Visit the Rita Project to find out more about this non-profit that uses the arts to help heal both survivors and those struggling. Their opening celebration at Studeio at art labs is this Thursday, October 27 at 651 Clover St. in L.A. from 7-11PM.

As always, you can follow Active Minds on Facebook and Twitter, and visit the website for resources and more information.

So thank you to everyone who volunteered, attended the events, read the blog, and supported us from all over the country. We’ll leave you with a few photos of our truck all over California. It took quite the trip this fall!

Thanks again, and we can’t wait to see you next year!

UCLA was our final stop on the first ever Fall tour for Send Silence Packing. Active Minds has a huge presence on campus with over 75 members and dozens of new signups throughout the display. We lucked out with sunshine the entire tour and UCLA was perfect weather to wrap things up.

Even though this was our final display we know that the message will continue growing. One visitor said “the first thing I did today was take a picture, send it to my friends, and tell them that this is something they need to see.” We are used to measuring the impact during the event itself as we see thousands of students, staff, and community members pass through each display, but it’s important to remember how long that message continues to echo.

I always see people taking pictures of the backpacks with their phones. These pictures then go onto Facebook walls, twitter feeds, blogs, texts messages, and more. Each display’s impact carries on through our voices and through our sharing. We are always thrilled to see this happening because it’s one of our core ideas: starting the conversation about mental health. Although anyone can help us work towards this goal, we encourage students to take a look at their local Active Minds chapter. If there isn’t one yet, anyone can start one! I spoke a little with Lehren, the chapter president at UCLA about her experiences with being a part of a chapter, which you can hear below.

Thank you everyone at UCLA for your hard work before, during, and after the event as we all work together to continue this message.

After making it through a typical morning commute stuck in L.A. traffic, we were welcomed to the beautiful University of Southern California campus by plenty of volunteers. We got straight to work unpacking the backpacks and setting out our materials while learning about the local resources available to students. Right from the start, we had a terrific outpouring of support from graduate students, parents on college tours, international students, and more. One program volunteer even had experience–he had even seen the SSP display at last month’s Alive & Running 5K display!

One woman who was unfamiliar with Active Minds asked all about the organization. She was quite interested in the cause and was happy to hear we were raising awareness about suicide and mental health. “Mental illness has run in my family for a long time,” she told me. “It started with my father and has trickled down the family tree ever since.”

“My brother, my only brother, was found dead by suicide at age 30. It was a while ago, and no one wanted to talk about it back then. He left behind three little kids, too.” 

She also talked about why suicide awareness is so important to her now. “Now that my brother’s kids are young adults, I need to know they won’t end up in the same place he did. His suicide nearly ruined our family. This is such important work because I want to make sure our future generations won’t be afraid to get help.”

We always love people to take an interest in Active Minds no matter what their age. Suicide effects every generation, and the more people are willing to open up and communicate, the better off we’ll be in seeking and receiving help. 

Given that our display was taking place during midterms, we were thankful that so many people took an interest in reading the stories throughout Send Silence Packing. In fact, so many people took an interest in our display at USC that in addition to us handing out over a thousand informational flyers, USC got a record 35 signups to grow their small Active Minds chapter! 

Despite nearing the end of our California Fall tour, we really enjoyed meeting the teams of volunteers and USC employees who helped bring SSP to the campus. We were right in the middle of downtown Los Angeles, but with the tropical trees and cool breeze, you’d never know it. An improv group performed nearby, students hustled to the library, ROTC training was in effect, and tour groups were going by all the time, but all of the activity just gave us the chance to reach out to more people from so many different backgrounds. We’re so appreciative that we got a chance to meet everyone at USC and hear so many more stories–and we’re thankful to all the interested bikers and skateboarders who grabbed a flier while on the go!

I think the power of community really shined at this event. There were dozens of other booths set up throughout the display. We had a large lawn near the bell tower in the middle of campus and we were joined by dozens of other student groups—Everything from breast cancer awareness to adventure clubs. The students at UC Riverside certainly are active!

We were happy to find that so many students already knew of Active Minds already when we began talking to them about the display. The local chapter here at UC Riverside has over 50 members (with many more that signed up during the event!) and many of their peers are aware of their presence on campus. One of the popular programs that the local chapter brings onto campus is one that involves working with a local animal shelter to bring puppies onto campus during finals to help their fellow students de-stress a bit. Together with everyone helping out during the day, we reached out and interacted with thousands of students throughout the day. It wasn’t all talking though, this incredibly active chapter put a lot of effort into really making Send Silence Packing a massive event at Riverside by including a few of their own supplemental activities to the display. Hundreds of fellow students decorated their own mental health advocacy t-shirts, painted face masks, and participated in lots of other activities.

Speaking of community, I got a lot of questions from people asking what they can do if they see their friends, their family, or their selves showing signs of struggling with their mental health. We are always very happy to have conversations with these people (who are already taking the first important step by talking about mental health) and to see them leave with handfuls of information to help them continue forward. Many of these same people also stop to write in our traveling journal that has joined us at every display of Send Silence Packing. We’d like to take some time to share some of the things people shared during the display:

“It’s essential to have days of awareness to emphasize how detrimental suicide can be. This display has reminded me that students face many hardships and that this issue needs to be addressed with positive intervention and help for those that need it.”
“If you ever need help, don’t be afraid to ask.”
“Very eye opening! I am so glad this came to my own campus. I am so proud of my school right now”
“It’s events like this that make me proud to be a part of the Active Minds family. I’ve seen so many friends and students benefit from our programs on campus. I love Active Minds!”
“I’ve stubbled with mental illness before, I seemed help and it is EFFECTIVE! You can do it!!!”
“I love this display. I’ve actually struggled with depression and self-mutilation in the past and have previously turned to suicide. But hey, I had friends who helped me and it’s been five year since I’ve hurt myself. This project is great and I hope it keeps going. Rescue IS possible!”
“Speak out. I did. It saved my life.”

If you’ve had a chance to come out and see any of the displays, we’d love to hear your feedback over at www.surveymonkey.com/s/backpacks. Thanks!

It was a bright and beautiful morning as our Send Silence Packing truck pulled up to the sidewalk at University of California, Irvine. With a dedicated group of smiling volunteers, Active Minds chair Alexandria, and advisor Jasmine, we started setting up the display at 8AM on the dot. Though our allotted backpack spaces were a bit of a challenge, we nevertheless had a great event and spoke with hundreds of students, faculty, and visitors about Active Minds and mental health.

Homework can wait a few more minutes...

One case particularly struck me, and it was that of Owen, a local who happened upon the display and was brought to our resource tables by a volunteer. He really wanted to share his story, so before writing a long entry in our traveling journal (our large, bound book brought to each stop to capture the written reactions and thoughts of display visitors), he sat down and talked to me about his journey.

Owen explained that he had gone to UCLA in the 90s and had become depressed after a breakup with his long-term girlfriend. “I was depressed and felt I had no one to reach out to. I turned to substances, overusing alcohol and drugs to combat everything, but it only made it worse.“ He felt that he was alone, and that no one knew what he was going through.

Pondering the display

“Though I was a substance abuser, drugs only made everything harder…they were really just a temporary screen that actually made everything worse in the long run. I felt so isolated, and had no one to reach out to. I actually thought about suicide a lot just to stop the pain.”

Owen explained that he sought help with his school’s psychological services, which took him in. After more than five years of intense counseling, the depression lifted off of him. “I had counseling, and in addition, I learned to meditate, and I got clean and sober.” He now leads a normal, happy life, and is so thankful that awareness programs like Send Silence Packing exist. Owen only wishes such awareness had been around when he and his classmates needed it.

Reading before class

He showed amazing strength in asking for help when he knew he was in trouble. And when times were tough, he stuck through it, staying in counseling and reaching out to people who could help him. This story, along with quite a few others we heard at Irvine, really touched us all. In fact, groups of peer educators, counseling center interns, and many counseling staff members on duty all had interesting and valuable one-on-one conversations with students and others throughout the day. We even had help from the members of Spoken Word at Irvine, and they performed during the lunch hour right near the display.

Spoken Word performed some powerful speeches at the event

Volunteering and performing? Now that's dedication!

All of our help was great, but it was several of our dedicated volunteers who made the day so enjoyable. One had never heard of Active Minds until her friend, an Irvine chapter member, told her about it. “I’m volunteering today and now I really want to join!” she exclaimed. She ended up volunteering for the entire duration of the event. After so many sign-ups and so much new interest, we’re sure the chapter will continue to do more great work on campus.

Studying the display

We heard so many stories of struggle at Irvine, but for the thousands of students who pass through at each stop, and for all those who stop to learn more, we believe we’re working to make struggling alone a problem of the past. The folks at UCI are working hard to create an open dialogue about mental health issues, and they’re doing a fantastic job!

Owen truly summed up our Irvine day best.  “I got help, and I’m fine now,” he said. “There is hope.”

Mt. San Jacinto College welcomed the Send Silence Packing display to their beautiful campus this past Thursday. With a terrific mountain backdrop and plenty of enthusiasm, we set up a different sort of display. Rather than gathering the backpacks around a fountain or grassy area, we set up trails of them along several student walkways and stairs. Quite a few passersby commented on the visual impact made by displaying the bags over such a unique and wide area, and we’re glad we could use the space for such a different setup.

The mountains and palm trees made for a spectacular display backdrop

Funded by the Riverside Department of Mental Health, our Mt. San Jacinto stop was a unique one: There was no chapter, but Ana, our fearless leader-in-training, was determined to start a chapter if enough interest was shown. With over 30 students of all ages signing up to attend the first meeting, we all agreed the event was quite a success!

Many groups came out to make our display an event. The Army, the Student Government Association, and about 10 more groups representing local and national organizations came out with booths to complete the display.

Students gather to read a backpack

One of the booth volunteers, Ken, had a program on display that helps those who have made mistakes–including formerly incarcerated individuals—and want to get back on track and get educated. “The people we try to reach out to sometimes have too much pride to ask for help, or they’re scared, or sometimes they’re just tired of running from everything.”  Send Silence Packing is similar in that we’re trying to reach out to individuals who are too afraid to ask for help, or students who are tired of facing issues alone.

Volunteers get friends and strangers alike to stop and ponder the display

A matriculated student, “Pam,” stopped to talk about the display. “I think this is a terrific thing you’re doing, and I just wish Active Minds was here when I was a younger student. I went through suicidal thoughts myself and had no one to turn to. I’m one of the lucky ones who made it through.” Pam was unfortunately left to struggle alone back then, but today, with peer-to-peer outreach, access to treatment and counseling services, and—most importantly—open communication, Active Minds chapters and aware students aim to stop student suicide together.

We enjoy being able to park our truck right at the display--it definitely catches one's eye

Though impending rain caused us to pack up a bit early, our amazing volunteers, along with several viewers who offered to help, made packup a breeze. We left out several story backpacks near the end and were amazed to see a crowd around them for nearly an hour. It’s always great to see how just a few stories can impact so many people.

Even after packup, students kept visiting the display. We made sure they saw many of the personal story backpacks before it was time for us to leave

The Mt. San Jacinto stop, along with the College of the Desert stop, showed just how important it is to reach out to community college students young and old. At both displays we spoke with high schoolers, grandmothers, military students, and part-timers. No matter who they were, they were impacted by the display and got our message loud and clear. The response was amazing at Mt. San Jacinto, and we can’t wait for their new chapter to get up and running!

In case anyone was wondering, the desert is in fact quite warm. This past monday we brought the display to the scenic College of the Desert in Palm Desert. Temperatures soared into the high 90s early in the morning, which certainly feels strange for being October. Luckily, we recently got ahold of a shade canopy to keep ourselves and everyone stopping by the tables cooled off. The heat didn’t stop the students from coming down to the display—in fact we were lucky to to have so many great volunteers with the number of students coming through. Not only did we have the usual campus crowds, but several instructors brought their entire classes down to see the backpacks and read the stories as well.

Yes, there was actually a rainbow in the middle of the display

New backpacks were added to the display, including this one here. We met Alex's dad back in Chico and are happy to have his story--along with all the new stories--with us for the tour

Speaking of extra help, we were thrilled to be joined by Sonya Weisburd (one of the Regional Chapter Managers) from the national office for this display. For a few stops out of each tour we are lucky to have different members from the national office join us at the displays. Sonya made the trip out to California to meet up with some of her chapters face to face and to help out at two of the Send Silence Packing displays.

Students visiting the display

Because of the nature of class times, the crowds tend to come through in waves. During the slower times between classes we get to connect with the volunteers and with the visitors that spend more time in the display, and this is usually when the most stories come out. If there’s one thing I am constantly reminded of during these displays it’s that you never know who might have a story. So many people share their own experiences of where they are or have been through their journey with mental health.

Campus security took a few moments to stop by, read the story backpacks, and discuss the display

I spoke with one student who had started college, dropped out due to struggles with depression and stress (without knowing that any of this could be treatable at the time), hit a low point, and then eventually learned of resources to get the help he needed. After seeking help, he is now back to taking classes and living his life. We spoke about how different the world can feel when you’re dealing with a mental health issue, and about how being aware of it (and of options to treat it) are the first step to getting better. We talked about how these problems don’t need to be hidden and kept secret—that it is ok to feel and to feel openly. When we struggle it’s easy to associate pain with weakness and loneliness with unworthiness—It’s easy to feel guilty if you’re not loving college, a time that everyone says is supposed to be the best in your life. When these associations get made, it’s then easy to want to hide our struggles. We at Active Minds want people to know how important it is to not be silent about the different things we are feeling and experiencing while living—both the good and bad.

Students, families, and even grandparents are part of the fantastic College of the Desert Active Minds chapter, and all came out to volunteer or attend

In addition to the thousands of face to face interactions we have at each display, we also carry around a traveling journal where people can share their thoughts and reactions. There are so many messages of courage, strength, and hope from people that have struggled, are currently struggling, or have watched their friends and family struggle. One visitor was flipping through the journal and pointed out an entry to me that I hadn’t noticed before. It said “Seeing how much everyone misses them made me realize how much everyone would miss me.” After pointing it out she said that she feels the same way, and that before today she didn’t really realize how many options there were to manage these kinds of challenges of living. She also didn’t know there were so many people that cared—but she said she knows now, and she intends to make sure others know as well.

Despite the blistering heat, more than a thousand people came out to learn about the backpacks

Just when we thought we’d adjusted to the California heat, Chapman University delivered a sun-drenched day full of interesting conversations and enthusiastic students. Though many of the volunteers had to take frequent breaks under our campus canopies , we braved the heat and worked to bring our important message to the lovely Chapman campus. 

While setting up and working at these displays, it’s easy for people to think that our job is just to set up, hand out flyers, and leave, but in fact we do far more than that. While we’re at displays, Brandon and I take careful steps to educate but not interrupt, really showing the Active Minds presence wherever we go. But even more than that, we truly do care. We all have mental health, and mental health disorders effect so many people around us. While we’re there to connect people with necessary resources—and not to provide counseling services—we still have open ears and enjoy getting into meaningful conversations with volunteers, visitors, and students alike.

While at Chapman, we spoke with kids, older adults, staff, students, and more. I even spoke with a class being held in the middle of the display, and several professors spoke to Brandon about the display’s visual impact. I also met M.M., an amazing student who had a lot to say about the display, and about mental health and people in general. He brought up quite a few points: Do we listen to each other enough? Do we actually show concern and give useful advice? Are we there for friends, family members, or even strangers? It truly got me thinking. Though we usually only have 8 hours to meet people during any given 1-day display, we try so hard to reach out to people, and to have lasting conversations and help connect people to those who can be there for them. There are people out there who want to help! It may be challenging to find the right sets of ears, but a huge part of Send Silence Packing’s mission is to get people talking and communicating. Given the great response at Chapman and all our previous stops, we can see we’re doing that, but we always value your feedback. Join in on the conversation at https://www.facebook.com/activemindsinc, and tell us your thoughts!

We had hundreds of interested students pass through the display, and many of the students and faculty were already aware we were there due to great campus publicity from the Counseling Center. Send Silence Packing was even displayed on the college’s electronic marquee! Thankfully, we had plenty of volunteers helping with setup, flyering, and packup—everyone from youngsters who handed out SSP buttons to Campus Security, who helped flyer throughout the day. We couldn’t have done it without all the help, and to have a fraternity help load up the truck at the end of the day was the icing on the cake. 

We feel that each stop on our California Fall Tour leaves an impression , and we’ve been getting great help from our college campuses so that we’ll never forget a college! CSU Long Beach made a backpack, Pitzer gave us some keychain swag (as well as a terrific donated backpack filled with mental health advocacy statements inside), and Chapman gave us a school-emblazoned pack complete with a stuffed panther mascot. We’ve had many friends and family come to see backpacks, and more still who are interested in donating. In fact, we’ll be getting several new story backpacks in just a few days, when Sonya, our wonderful Western Regional Chapter Manager at  www.ActiveMinds.org, comes out for a few displays! We’re thankful that so many people have been donating packs in honor of their loved ones, and we’ll be adding their stories to the display immediately.

It’s off to the desert now for several displays out near Palm Springs. We’ll be working hard in the hot sun, but we urge you to get involved and do your part as well! Remember one thing as you go about your business this coming week: Talk to your friends, family, and even strangers about mental health. We must share our stories and listen to one another, and together, we can work to change the conversation on mental health.