Community gathers at Fresh Check Day

By Francisco Omar Fernandez Rodriguez Arts & Features Editor

Izabela Gage / THE GATEPOST

Fresh Check Day was hosted in the McCarthy Center forum on April 8. Several groups ran tables, including Wellness & Prevention, SEALS, the Counseling Center, and many more. Pamela Lehmberg, director of Wellness & Prevention, said Fresh Check Day is an annual fair about mental health. “It’s a way for people to increase their understanding of resources available on campus and locally,” Lehmberg said. The fair helps promote mental health and suicide prevention, she said. “It’s a way to destigmatize seeking help,” Lehmberg said. Nicholas Marinelli and Isabella Baldino, a program specialist and program coordinator from Connecticut Children’s Office for Community Child Health, said they are part of the Fresh Check Day programs team. Marinelli said, “It’s a mental health awareness and suicide prevention program for college campuses.” They help students learn about the available resources for them, and they teach what are some of the “risk factors” students can identify in their peers, he said. Baldino said to set up these events they work with a program coordinator from the campuses who reaches out to them. These coordinators get volunteers and staff to run the booths. “It’s just a really great event to bring the entire campus community together,” Baldino said. The two of them ran a table beside Jennifer Siegal, the manager of communications and programs at the Parmenter Foundation. She said their booth focuses on the UGrieve program, which is a new program meant to teach students how to support each other when experiencing a loss, either on campus or off. Angela Crocker, the executive director of the Parmenter Foundation, said over the past few years they have started to work with the Jordan Porco Foundation in order to help college students learn about the UGrieve program. “It’s not just for somebody who’s had a loss. It’s really for the friends who want to support somebody who’s struggling,” Crocker said. She said it was exciting to see so many students attending the fair. “It’s just been really great to see how much the students care about themselves and each other,” Crocker said. Jordan Lyon, a sophomore nutrition major and SEALS member, helped run the 9/10 table. According to the Fresh Check Day website, one in 10 college students contemplates suicide. They want the other nine to be able to recognize and help whoever is struggling. Lyon said they talk about “knowing warning signs and action steps and ways to help friends, family, peers - kind of anyone if they’re seeing certain signs.” Some of the warning signs are isolation, changes in someone’s behavior, depression, and self-harm behavior, she said. The “action steps” include asking direct questions to the person who’s struggling. “Many may think that those might give them the idea to do so, but it will absolutely not, and it will instead help them voice their feelings about what’s happening,” Lyon said. The next step is calling a professional, she said. Therapy pets from Pets & People were at the fair as well. Maria Davis came with her therapy dog Belle, who is a Great Pyrenees, she said. “She’s 2 years old. She’s been doing therapy work since she was 4 months old,” Davis said. Mary MacInnes came with her therapy cat George, a Siberian Forest cat. “He’s been with Pets & People now for almost four years,” MacInnes said. At the CIE’s table, Jerome Burke said they are promoting overall wellness. “A big part of wellness is your mental health, right?” Burke said. He said they want “a campus where all of our students feel included.” They decided to emphasize the words diversity, equity, and inclusion on their posters and shirts to show their support, he said. He said they have resources dedicated for the LGBTQ+ community because it’s “something that’s very important to the CIE - making sure that marginalized communities are still supported.” Nathalia Faria is the case manager and coordinator of Student Support Resources, and she said being involved in “something greater” helps with mental health. The table featured several nonprofits, some of which donate to the Rams Resource Center, she said. Sgt. Harry Singh of the University Police stood beside other officers near their table and the police dog, Ramsey. Singh said they are a resource for the university community available 24/7. “We’re always here to engage, we’re always here to listen, and we’re always here to basically help out with anything they need while they’re here for the semester,” Singh said. Josh Clark, a grad student, ran the table for Veteran and Military Services. On the table was a bowl of small balls with various “stressors” written on them. The bowl usually has water in it, but this year they opted not to for cleanliness’ sake, he added. The balls float, and trying to hold them all down with one hand is impossible, he said. “Basically, what it’s all about is understanding your stressors and understanding to reach out for help in different ways,” Clark said. Oliver Swanson, a junior international business major and a SEALS member, said their table focuses on teaching students about safe substance usage. He showed them healthy dosages of weed and alcohol “so that people can consume more mindfully and keep themselves safer and other people safer and look out for people,” Swanson said. Amy Young-Sadler, the harm reduction coordinator for the SAFE Coalition, said they work mostly out of Framingham and help people with substances. They teach people how to use Naloxone and how to use test strips to test for drugs, she said. Young-Sadler said part of their job is “just to talk to folks about how they can keep themselves and other people around them that they might know safe if they’re using substances.” Maggie McNeill is a program manager from Call2Talk, and she said they provide free confidential support 24/7. They focus on helping people who feel suicidal and are in a crisis, though they will help anyone who calls regardless, she said. Emily Mercier, a senior biology major, helped run the Pre-Health Club’s table. “This table is about the mental-health effects of working out,” Mercier said. They ask attendees questions about how exercise affects mental health, which leads to a conversation about the benefits of exercising, she said. Bianca Furtado, a senior psychology major, helped run a table for the Psychology Club and the Psi Chi honors society. “We’re here to just improve self-esteem and also build strong connections with others,” Furtado said. They had thank-you cards and journal prompts to help express gratitude and mindfulness, she said. Laila Jenkins, a senior psychology major and president of the Black Student Union, had posters where participants could write what their safe space is. They wanted to help students remember to use that safe space when they’re feeling depressed, because it should be a good place to decompress, she said. Kait Eller, a junior hospitality major, and Kennedy Thompson, a sophomore hospitality major, are both in SGA and ran a table comparing mental health to taking care of a plant. Eller said, “We believe that taking care of your mental health is a lot like taking care of a plant. You need sunshine, you need movement, you need sustenance.” They had blank pots for attendees to decorate, and they provided both seeds and soil for everyone, she said. Abrianna Ouellette, a senior psychology major, helped run the FSAB’s art-focused table. Their goal was “to promote how art is a positive impact on mental health and mindfulness in general,” Ouellette said. They gave out coloring books and pencils and helped participants make their own slime, she said.