Goal: increase mental health education, awareness, and advocacy
Gainesville, Fla. – On Thursday, October 10th, 2019, Meridian, the region’s leading wellness provider, along with NAMI Gainesville and Gainesville Opportunity Center, held its inaugural Kindness Matters event in honor of World Mental Health Day. This Gainesville-based event encouraged community members through word of mouth and various social media sites to do something kind for another person during World Mental Health Day.
Leading up to the Kindness Matters event, Meridian’s staff and volunteers held a complementary dog wash at Squirrel Ridge’s dog park. Gainesville Opportunity Center painted a mural at the Gainesville Marketplace garden. NAMI Gainesville headed to the University of Florida on the 10th to hand out educational brochures to the students along with sweet snacks.
The Facebook event made over 1000 impressions and many supporters posted their act of kindness on October 10th throughout the day. One person wrote letters to all of her students sharing her appreciation of them. Another person bought coffee for a stranger. And one individual even offered free tech repair to anyone who got their request in by October 10th.
Preparations are already underway for next year’s Kindness Matters 2020! The Facebook event is live and interest is growing every day. Follow along as participants share their “not-so-random” acts of kindness leading up to a 2020’s World Mental Health Day, which conveniently falls on a Saturday, so you can expect Meridian to host a momentous event! Details to come.
To learn more about Meridian and this event, please call Stephanie Esposito, Director of Partnerships and Engagement, at 352.213.8306 x8630.
