When Bryce Hunter learned that he would be part of a national committee to address mental health among American youth, he was excited to make a difference.
“I am very interested in mental health,” shared Hunter. “From personal experience going through mental health issues, it's very self-isolating.”
Hunter, who is a junior at Cherry Creek Elevation, was selected to join the Mental Health Youth Advisory Committee member for Creative Visions’ #CreateConnectCare, a storytelling and creative expression campaign for youth mental health and national well-being. As a member, Hunter is responsible for designing, planning, and leading a number of Community Impact Projects this spring in the Centennial community. Hunter joins 16 other young adults around the nation as they work to reduce the stigma around mental health. Hunter’s project is to create a peer support program.
“We wanted to have a peer support program so that while in a state of crisis, students can have friends they can rely on,” Hunter shared. “We wanted to create a space where students felt safe to talk about and express their mental health issues.”
Last summer, Hunter went to HOBY - the Hugh O’Brien Youth State Leadership seminar and with other youth leaders from across the state, where he co-founded MOBY, a statewide mental health youth advisory board program in partnership with the health department supporting mental health policy change. Through that initiative and his service work around mental health supports, Hunter was invited to join the National Mental Health Youth Advisory Committee.
“As a kid, me and my friends hadn’t heard of a lot of mental health initiatives, so I definitely think we need to include everyone in the mental health discussion,” Hunter said. “We also want to destigmatize the idea of men talking about their mental health, which has the potential to reduce adverse outcomes.”
Posted 4/23/24.
