Ambassadors Dream Up New Avenues for Change
By Koby Hrynkiewicz
Over the past several months, the main focal point of our group meetings was the continued search for a project idea for our 2020 summer session. We, the Somerset County 4-H/Middle Earth Student Ambassadors for Community Health, discussed many possible topics to pursue. These included art installations around town, cultural landmark installations to showcase the history of the town, installation of more green spaces, and the promotion of mental health awareness.
We narrowed down these topics to two general issues that we found pertinent to the community: mental health and environmental awareness. Afterwards, we decided to consult professionals in these fields to use as resources for our future projects. In January, we hosted a mental health panel, in which we invited several mental health professionals including local therapists, school counselors, and organizations that address mental health issues in the community. They spoke with our group about the meaning of mental health, mental health issues specific to Bound Brook, and possible solutions to combat these issues.
Following this panel, we were able to utilize our discussion and continue narrowing our plan that we will execute in the following months. During the panel it became evident that both students and parents in Bound Brook are need of mental health education. In order to normalize this issue, we discussed hosting town-wide events such as 5K races, and music concerts that promote mental wellness and eliminate the negative stigma of mental health, in a positive, fun way. We also discussed the possibility of having different mental health organizations come to events as well as presenting donations to a mental health charity of our choice.
Although we are working to finalize a plan for the mental health aspect of our project, we also hope to pursue the issue of environmental awareness. Like our mental health panel, we would like to host a similar event to learn more about environmental needs in the community and help pinpoint other possible projects. So far we have been able to successfully identify elements of our project and have set up a framework for our goals. In the following months, we will continue to cultivate our project and work out the final details in planning for our summer session.