We had a blast partnering with SIMS Foundation on this project!
We’ll let SIMS Foundation tell the story of how it happened:
Earlier this month, we hinted that we had something special in the works, and we’re so excited to share our #HellYesSIMS project with you all!
Mark Jensen of The ABGB approached SIMS recently with a potential project for #MentalHealthMonth. The idea was simple: a postcard with a message of love and support that we’d send to as many SIMS clients as possible. The front of each postcard was blank, save for a border, and our mission was to have all 700 postcards hand designed with drawings, messages of hope, and anything else our creative volunteers would come up with.
We put out a ‘Top Secret’ call to our respective volunteer bases, asking them to participate based solely on the desire to spread some love back into the world.
The call was heard loud and clear, and despite not knowing what they were signing up for, we got an enthusiastic response.
Last Tuesday, we got together with SIMS and ABGB #HellYesProject volunteers at the SIMS office for a night of pizza, beer (both generously provided by The ABGB), and art. We had a few suggested phrases and artistic designs, but asked our volunteers to draw anything they thought would brighten someone’s day. The results speak for themselves.
Our #HellYesSIMS postcards began arriving in mailboxes earlier this week, and we’ve been thrilled to receive messages of thanks from recipients through email, social media, and in person. We want to say thank you right back to everyone for making Austin such a special place to call home.
We couldn’t have done it without these incredible volunteers who brought their creativity, love, and compassion to our office, making #HellYesSIMS Night one that we’ll always remember:
Brittney Lewis, Casey Butler, Chris Jarret, Courtney Black, Demeca Hobbs, Jessica Page, Lucia Coxon, Mott Leonino, Renee Doyon, Shelby Moss, Stephanie Frignoca, Valentina Coxon, Victoria Watson, and anyone we may have missed (we hope we didn’t)!
A huge thanks to Mark and The ABGB for making this all happen and documenting it so well.
Finally, a big thank you to Ellen and Eric Pieper at Homestead Creative for generously donating their time and effort to design and format these postcards. We have worked with Eric and Ellen on multiple projects over the years, and their passion and huge hearts have made them feel like part of the SIMS family.
#MentalHealthMonth is almost over, but the conversation continues! If you want to keep the momentum going, share why mental health matters to you on social media with the hashtag #HellYesSIMS, and help us end mental health stigma.
❤️🎵❤️🎵
-SIMS Foundation