By AILEEN JANEE CORPUS

The Redlands East Valley High School Mental Health Awareness Club held a suicide prevention event during lunch on Thursday Sept. 8, 2022.

The booth was held in observance of National Suicide Prevention Week which is from Sept. 4 to Sept. 10. 

“I think that it’s good that more people are talking about mental health and the stigma around it,” said sophomore Eliana Campa, “So, the booth was really cool because people were able to talk about what mental health is and why it’s important.”

At the booth, there were pins with green ribbons for mental health awareness, candy for students, and a positive affirmation station. There students were able to write positive anecdotes on notes or on a poster that will be hung up at REV. Finally, an interactive mental health check was available where students could have placed a paint dot for how they were doing in a certain section. 

“I was in charge of the positive affirmation notes,” said Mental Health Awareness Club Vice President and senior Amélie Palacios, “and I saw that many students were more than happy to leave a kind note for a student that would need it in the future.”

“[Mental Health Awareness Club’s] goal is to provide a safe space to learn, talk and listen to each other,” said Mental Health Awareness Club President and senior Sarinna Schwendiman. 

Mental Health Awareness Club’s next event is their annual Mental Health Fair where multiple clubs from REV and organizations from the county hold educational booths with games, giveaways or resources.