Behind every win, there is a team of people who worked long and hard to make it a reality. At Hope for the Day, we have a small but dedicated staff who work to further the mission and make our proactive suicide prevention projects come to life through outreach, education, and action.

This article is a peek behind the curtain into the minds that make up Hope for the Day as they share what made them proud during 2022.

Deno Andrews, Hope for the Day’s Executive Director

“I feel like we have a wonderful, dedicated team of people that are doing some of the most important, and sometimes under-appreciated work. But make no mistake, everyone in this organization is making a real and measurable impact. I'm proud of our team, our work, and our dedication to fulfilling our mission. I couldn't have dreamed of a better team of people to work with to accomplish our goals.”

Marketing & Events Team

In 2022 the Marketing & Events team attended more events than ever before. From Summerfest in Milwaukee, WI to Furnace Fest in Birmingham, AL and Lollapalooza in Chicago, IL, we spent the summer meeting people where they’re at and starting the conversation about mental health and proactive suicide prevention.

This months-long stretch of outreach at festivals and fairs is known as our events season. To make this happen, the team did much planning, designing, packing, and traveling. Here are their thoughts on the process:

Becca Milligan, Marketing and Events Director

“Events Season is always my favorite time of the year, but working with the marketing team to decide on our set-up for our festival season was probably my favorite project this year. We spent a few meetings just brainstorming and walking through what things would look like, how they would work or be created, what the audience's reaction would be and it ultimately came down to what we thought would be most fun, while still getting our message across quickly. Our team is really great at thinking about things from all different angles and really taking the details into account, so when we all get in a room with ideas flowing, the energy is incredible.”

Erick DeSantiago, Lead Graphic Designer

“My favorite project worked on in 2022 was our “What gives you hope?” event setup that allowed community members, workplace partners and festival guests to share with us what gives them hope on a giant Scrabble board. As a designer, it’s very easy to step back and reside in my design cave, however, at Hope For The Day, I am immensely grateful that I get to create work and then have the opportunity to see first hand how our community interacts with our designs from signage to setups to merch! This was especially impactful because it was the first time in a long time that we got to interact with people and spread hope in person after the pandemic.”

Mary Grace Ritter, Multimedia & Events Coordinator

“I am so proud of the work that our team has done this year, especially all the time, thought, and heart that went into making our events season a success. Every long brainstorming Zoom call, hour spent in a too-full van, and late night packing up after a festival was done so that we could impact as many people as possible. It's so rewarding to hear people share their stories with us and to see so many share what gives them hope on our Scrabble board activity.”

You can read more about our Summer of Hope here.

Development Team

Throughout 2022, the Development Team cultivated partnerships with individuals, businesses, and organizations to spread the message that it’s ok not to be ok. From our beer project Hops for the Day to streamers who Stream for Hope and our Proactive Workplaces mental health educations, the Development Team helps people take action within their communities.

Throughout each of these projects, they couldn’t do it alone. Here are the Development Team’s insights into their year:

Tyler Wagner, Manager of Partnerships and Development

“It has been very fulfilling watching my coworkers grow. Everyone is here at Hope for the Day for their own, usually personal, reasons and it has been a very satisfying experience watching so many people learning, challenging themselves and developing professionally, while doing something for a cause they are so passionate about.”

Apoorva Katikaneni, Manager of Partnerships and Development

“Being able to help organizations create proactive workplaces, educate their staff, and provide resources for mental health has been very fulfilling. Seeing the feedback staff have after the education has encouraged us to continue doing our work!”

Bev Schwartz, Development Coordinator

“I am extremely proud of the Development team for supporting, mentoring, and continuing to adjust through this past year. Whether someone has a new idea to explore, someone wants to try out an extra task, or having to adjust to the world around us, the team continues to move forward and show grit while holding integrity. I am so proud to be a part of a team that is creative and willing to teach each other what they know, thank you <3.”

Education Team

This year Hope for the Day received the Community Partnerships Grant from the Illinois State Board of Education. This grant has allowed us to bring our signature mental health education The Things We Don’t Say into even more classrooms in Illinois. It is providing us the tools to expand our horizons to provide our education to as many people as we can — including students, faculty, staff, and families.

The Community Partnerships Grant has been a great accomplishment for Hope for the Day. Here are the Education Team’s thoughts on the impact of this grant:

Allison Herman, Director of Education

“Going into schools and teaching students, staff, and parents about mental health and proactive suicide prevention has been so incredible! I'm so glad we can provide free tools and resources to schools in Illinois. I can see how much of an impact we're making!”

Kira Berkoff, Education Coordinator

“I'm so proud of my entire team for our hard work fulfilling this I.S.B.E. grant! Everyone's taken on a huge role in ensuring that we're successful, and I feel like we're all equally motivated to blow the metrics out of the water. We may not be a huge team, but the fact that we were able to educate over 1,100 people in 2 1/2 months feels incredible.”

Maria Requena, Education Instructor

“I don't think I have a big win, rather a lot of little wins. I love whenever anyone comes to me after an education to tell me how they connected to it, what spoke to them. Sometimes they tell me how their perspective has changed and how they want to try to approach things in the future. I love seeing this and it makes me hopeful in creating a more compassionate community around us.”

Each member of our staff spent their year working on different projects, but all working together for the same goal: to prevent suicides. Their actions embody our mission and pillars of outreach, education, and action.

Thank you to everyone on our staff who helped make 2022 a successful year!

Hope for the Day’s Staff Wins & Accomplishments of 2022