What a day! On Friday March 22, Forefront in the Schools welcomed nearly 150 students and staff from schools across the Puget Sound region for Day of Hope. This is one of our favorite events every single year, bringing together schools in our program to share their work on comprehensive suicide prevention in their communities, including stories of belonging, care, and resilience. 

Day of Hope is an opportunity to connect, celebrate, and learn new skills for students and staff participating in Forefront’s school-based programing.

A highlight was keynote speaker Jen Kulik, PhD (SilverKite Community Arts), who talked about the importance of connection as a protective factor against social isolation and loneliness, and how you can build connection through play and the arts—especially theatre. Crisis Connections and NAMI Washington shared resources, messages of hope, and tangible suggestions for how young people can support each other. Educators participated in a community of practice around prevention in their schools, sharing information, successes, and ideas—and came away wanting more time to connect with each other across school communities. Lunch brought opportunities to connect and celebrate in different ways when Muckleshoot Tribal School representatives shared a traditional prayer with the community, and UW mascot Dubs II joined us for photos and puppy love.

 And most important of all – students from each school shared stories about the work they have done in their school communities this year to promote suicide prevention and mental health. From building connections through affinity spaces, promoting schoolwide campaigns, and even an op-ed in The Seattle Times, we were thrilled to celebrate their successes! 

We are grateful for the opportunity to work with all participating schools, whose work makes us hopeful for the future! In addition, Forefront is especially thankful to foundry10 for underwriting Day of Hope 2024 and to the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) for their continued partnership around our school-based programs.