TOLEDO, Ohio — The Toledo Walleye are working with the Mental Health and Recovery Services Board of Lucas County to host the first mental health awareness night at the Huntington Center on Friday. The doors open at 6:00 p.m. and the puck drops at 7:15 p.m. for the game against the Fort Wayne Komets.
The hope? To break the stigma surrounding mental health.
"We want to be the ones promoting [mental health] to the community," said Taylor Vandenbroek, the event and fan entertainment coordinator for the Walleye. "Letting everybody know that the Walleye are a safe space to talk about your mental health. To be able to have those conversations and talk about those things and know that we are a safe space for you to have those conversations."
The MHRSB will have resources for attendees, along with talk sessions from public figures.
Former defenseman Simon Denis and team psychologist Ruth Ann Tetz will be narrating "Hockey Talks" before the start of the game. Tickets are $19 and the event has a 200 person limit.
Throughout the game, fans can find the MHRSB table in the concourse.
"For the resources, we have been working with the (MHRSB)," Vandenbroek said. "They have been able to give us resources, phone numbers you can call, apps that you can get on your phone and different local community partners that they work with on a daily basis."
Following the event, the Walleye and the board expressed their hope for the community to utilize their resources.
"Well you know, it's OK to not be OK, is what we hope people will take away from that. And when you're not OK, it's okay to reach out for services," said MHRSB Executive Director Scott Sylak. "We want to just talk about the access that we have available in our community and the quality providers that are ready and willing to help people in their time of need."
The Walleye and the MHRSB plan to continue partnerships in the future and expressed their hope to continue breaking down a variety of stigmas impacting community members.
"Beyond just what we've already stated, stigma is still really prevalent in our community and this is a great way of reaching audiences that we might not normally talk to and just let them know that everybody needs a little help now and again," Sylak said.