With the ongoing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, many students found themselves facing unexpected challenges while completing their university education these past two years. Yet, the stigma surrounding the discussion of mental health has left many in vulnerable situations, not being able to access the resources that would be beneficial for their well-being.
Drop the Puck for Mental Health is a charity organization founded by Adan Moallemi, Paul Yiodassis and Stefan Lehto-Borich at UBC to advocate for the discussion regarding of men’s mental health to become more prominent in universities. The event began in 2018 and ran for two years prior to taking a hiatus following the COVID-19 restrictions.
As explained by the co-president of the foundation Sebastian Kondratowski, “[Drop the Puck for Mental Health’s] main purpose is ending the stigma and normalizing conversations about mental health.”
The main demographic the team is hoping to reach is university-aged men. "This is due to university-aged men being the biggest demographic to be least likely to discuss mental health. By encouraging the conversation, we want to normalize these discussions. Otherwise, it is very common for men to suffer in silence," Kondratowski said.
The fundraising done by the team goes towards the Canadian Mental Health Organization (CMHA). Kondratowski said the donations go towards the Vancouver Fraser branch of the organization as well as the Urban Resilience Opportunities for Kids (UROK) program, which is "for youth aged roughly between 8-18. The program is about building resilience and instilling confidence in children who have a caregiver who is affected by mental health,” Kondratowski explained.
This year’s event helped fundraise over $48,000 to be put towards funding children to be enrolled into the program.
The team is hoping to go beyond just hosting a one-time yearly event, as the topic of mental health is a necessary ongoing discussion.
As the pandemic put a pause on the in-person event during the 2020/21 school year, the team created a virtual event run by Dylan Amin, Brien Murphy and Jimmy Tse called Miles for Mental Health. This is an event they hope to have students from all demographics of UBC to participate in the years to come.
The event allowed students to sign up as an athlete and pledge to run, bike or swim a certain distance for a set donation amount.
“The event was very successful and COVID[-19] friendly. Everything was tracked through Strava with leader boards. We were able to fundraise over $7,000 for the CMHO,” Kondratowski said.
With the Drop the Puck organization growing yearly, the team wants to ensure their discussions do not just end after the event and that they continuously advocate for organizations throughout the whole school year.
The fundraising page for this year’s event is still open until March 25 and they are hoping to see their donations continue to increase in the coming week.
This article was updated on March 24 to correct the abbreviation.