Meet the faces of our 2021 Mental Health Month Collection! These amazing advocates are members of Mental Health America’s Young Mental Health Leaders Council and are transforming mental health in their communities, proving that even one person can make a difference in the world of mental health for everyone. Leading by example, they’re talking openly about their mental health and making it easier for other people to do the same. Simply put – they’re what IDONTMIND is all about. Here’s just a quick look into who they are and the incredible work that they’re doing.

Cyn Gomez is a mental health advocate who identifies as nonbinary. They’re currently a UC Berkeley undergrad and will be attending Stanford for their Intensive Law & Trial Program in Summer 2021. Outside of school, Cyn is a student poll worker, food kitchen volunteer, and ambassador for the non-profit organizations Tangible Movement and LivingWorks. Cyn enjoys reading and public speaking, enjoying discussions on the importance of mental health, human rights, and social justice.

Cyn is making a difference in the mental health community by playing an active role in both the macro and micro conversations happening right now on mental health. By sharing their experiences, Cyn is creating the visibility they wish they had growing up.

Cyn is making a social impact by listening to their friends when they share their mental health journeys or struggles. They also teach coping strategies and take an active role to help with crisis mitigation, creating stronger community mental health.

Marcus Alston was born and raised in Howard County, Maryland. He went on to play D1-AA Football at Saint Francis, where he was a member of the 2016 NEC Championship team. He graduated from Saint Francis in May of 2018 with a major in Management Information Systems and a minor in Cyber Security Administration.

In September 2018, he was diagnosed with several underlying mental illnesses which he was dealing with for a decade. This put Marcus in a dark phase, but it helped him find his purpose. A year later, Marcus founded Alston for Athletes, a sports mentoring and scholarship program that emphasizes mental health awareness. Alston for Athletes’ goal is to partner with local high schools and colleges to provide mentorship and scholarships to the younger generation of student-athletes who are struggling with their mental health.

Over the past two years, Marcus has been working on a scholarship and mentoring program for high school and collegiate student-athletes. In early 2021, he launched a new venture that will provide Mental Health First Aid training to coaches, athletic directors, and trainers.

Coming from a Chinese American community that prioritized fulfilling the model-minority stereotype above all else, Claire Yu quickly realized that there were many cultural, social, and personal barriers that prevented students like her from speaking freely about mental health.

Because of this, she searched for "small" ways to start conversations – writing about mental health days in the school newspaper, speaking out against the school district's approach to screening its students for mental illness, and running in 5Ks dedicated to destigmatizing mental health. Eventually, she joined the Asian Mental Health Collective and worked with the Asian Mental Health Project. Through collaborating with these groups on making mental health resources more accessible to the AAPI population, she realized that working within existing structures could be just as impactful as building something from the ground up.

Through her work with Mental Health America and the Young Mental Health Leaders Council, Claire hopes to do everything in her power to serve as a cheering squad and support system for other youth – especially those with ethnic backgrounds that make it harder for them to have an open dialogue about their mental health.

100% of proceeds support the IDONTMIND campaign at Mental Health America