On Thursday, May 16, East Coldenham students and staff participated in the 4th Annual Walk a Mile for Children’s Mental Health. Organized by School Counselor Allie Riker, this event is held in celebration of May as Children’s Mental Health Awareness month.

Students were pledged by family and friends to walk or run the mile wearing green, the color of mental health awareness. This year, $1000 was raised in pledges, an all time high for the event. All proceeds from the event are enthusiastically donated to Voices United for Change, champions of Mental Health in Orange County.

Each year leading up to the event, a “coping skill of the day” is read on the morning announcements to get the kids thinking about their own mental health, or simply put, “being healthy in their minds.

“During the event, students had the opportunity to complete a feelings word search and color a picture of Stiggy, the anti-stigma elephant, “It is never too early to begin the conversation about mental health. By introducing the concept at a young age, I hope that the stigma of having a mental illness is erased,” Riker said.