The Silver Ribbon Campaign (SRC) presented to a group of about 500 people at a conference in Duluth on April 29th. The South High group explained their program and the work they have done at South. Earlier in the year, SRC received the National Alliance on Mental Illness award (NAMI) for reducing stigma and spreading awareness. Sue Aberhold offered the opportunity to present their achievements shortly after.

At the conference, SRC presented on the “benefits [of an SRC type group] and what it is and if other schools were to implement things similar how that would look,” SRC leader, senior Clara Shultz, commented.

Junior Kyra Hood, also an SRC leader, spoke about her personal presentation in SRC and “how often we meet, why we do SRC, and how SRC is special from other stigma reducing groups.”

After their presentation, the group met in a smaller workshop to discuss how to implement an SRC type group in other schools. One of the members of the 25 person group was from Washburn High school.

“Most of the workshop was a presentation where they asked clarifying questions. A lady from Washburn was there and we talked to her mostly about the process of starting an SRC group in their school and how that would work.” noted Schultz.

“One woman said that over the school year they had six suicides, she asked what SRC does if people approach them saying they would hurt themselves,” Hood remembered, “One woman told us about a hotline at their school and how students who needed someone to talk to could call them and just talk.”

SRC is now looking into starting a hotline at South where students can call and talk, no matter what the issue. The group also hopes to help other schools start programs modelled after the Silver Ribbon Campaign.