I am deeply impacted by my volunteering with Hope for Hallie, a nonprofit founded in memory of Hallie Jackson. Hallie was my older neighbor. From the time our brothers became friends in first grade at SRS and our dads found out that they grew up vacationing at the same lake in New Hampshire, our families developed a close bond — and I looked up to Hallie. Hallie was there for special days, like being the assistant at my 7th birthday “spa” party, giving manicures and painting faces. Whether at family parties or on vacations together, Hallie was always attentive to me and made sure I was included with the older kids. When I was told that she passed away by suicide that October day in 2019, time seemed to stop.

Despite unimaginable loss, Hallie’s parents, Christine and Kevin, chose courage over silence by founding Hope for Hallie in 2020 to transform the conversation and combat the stigma around mental health. Hallie was a constant for me, and knowing she struggled silently made me want to help. Children and adolescents are experiencing challenges like anxiety, depression and suicidal ideation at increasingly higher rates, and they need to know they are not alone. 

I volunteer at many Hope for Hallie events like the Color Run and the Annual Golf Outing. Last year I was honored to be invited to be the Strath Haven High School representative for the first annual Youth Wellness Summit. In that role I worked with Christine, the Executive Director, and the team of other area high school student representatives to plan, promote and implement this event that educates attendees about mental health resources. The need for the services Hope for Hallie provides has been shown by the response from the community — in the many families and teens asking for support and by the people who attend fundraising events and make donations to ensure that Hope for Hallie can provide that much-needed support. 

Like Hallie was to me, I’ve taken to babysitting for many families in Swarthmore. And as these children grow into teenagers, I want them to be able to talk to me about anything that's on their mind, whether they need help with school projects or need to vent about friend drama. I want to help them however I can, even if it means just listening. This gave me the incentive to study psychology and childhood development at SHHS so I could learn more about the way that people think. Now I’m preparing to go off to college where I will major in psychology with an emphasis on child and adolescent mental health, so that I can help children and teens understand their feelings better and learn how to work through them rather than hiding them. 

Through Hope for Hallie, I’ve grown emotionally and intellectually. I’m grateful to be part of this impactful organization that provides therapy sessions to at-risk adolescents and brings thousands of community members together at events. Hope for Hallie brings many different people into this crucial conversation, from municipal leaders to teens who simply need someone to listen — and I’ve gotten to meet people that I never would have known. I’ve developed skills to support others and become a leader who can mobilize communities. I help build grassroots support for mental health awareness, impacting one person at a time. Change often begins with one sincere connection that invites another person to feel seen and heard. I want to continue building the Hope for Hallie movement of care and connection one conversation at a time. I plan to turn my personal mission into a lifelong one — combining research, advocacy, and community to make sure no young person feels alone.