Written by Tara Whiteman-Fager with contributions from Jennie Hughes
Teen Team No Stigma (TTNS) is a subgroup of Team No Stigma which was founded by Lisa Miller over two decades ago due to the loss of her brother from suicide. Lisa began working intimately with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) in Chicagoland using volunteering as an action step to help her move through the grieving process. She named the team No Stigma to point out that mental health struggles are nothing to be ashamed of and that communicating about the topic is essential for many reasons.
Over the years, Lisa has raised awareness and funds to help fight and prevent suicide.
Upon meeting Tara and hearing of her journey with mental health, she invited her to be an active member of Team No Stigma.
Once Tara's children reached the age where they could understand, they created their own teen team following in the name and footsteps of Team No Stigma. They are united in their mission to seize the awkward, which helps stimulate much needed conversation in and among their peer groups.
Kole, Tara's middle son, a passionate athlete and academic, knows and understands the stress and demands that are put on teenagers today. In 2021, he recorded a video of himself, with permission, speaking briefly about the topic and his mother's story.
With his mother as a mentor, he has continued to spearhead the Teen Team No Stigma team and it has grown little by little each year with reaching community as a whole as the goal.
This past Sunday, the quaint but powerful team of teens and their parents met at a local forest preserve, walking one day after the Out of the Darkness Chicagoland Neighborhood Walk which was held on the 14th at Montrose Harbor.
Kole and his family have been walking this walk together, for years! In 2022, they extended the invite to other community members to walk with them, hosting the walk in the suburbs, making it more accessible for the busy teens to participate.
Their 2024 goals were:
To raise awareness and funds to support the AFSP mission. 80% of every dollar that is raised is used to support the fight by:
funding scientific research
educating the public about mental health and suicide prevention
advocating for public policies for mental health
suicide prevention and supporting survivors of suicide loss and those affected by suicide.
This year, each teen team member used social media, parental connections or their entrepreneurial skills to begin drawing attention and funds to this important cause.
Chloe, a sophomore at Palatine High School, set up a rock painting event in the office space of Hands On Family Health, P.C. Chiropractic clinic, a shared office space with Now's The Time, where community members could drop in to paint, shop or pickup educational resources provided by the AFSP.
Mia was featured in last year's blog and mentioned in the podcast: Pardon the Interruption for her sticker business. She designed and sold AFSP Teen Team No Stigma stickers to support her fundraising efforts this year. Her inventory even made it to a California based art boutique, OB Mindful Goods. A special thanks goes out to Diana for supporting Mia's endeavor.
Another top fundraising teen member includes Cooper, who is a red ribbon winner for the AFSP for his achievements in supporting the cause.
In addition, Kole's team even inspired the creation of another teen and mother based team, Ben & Jess, who were successful in helping TTNS accomplish their 2024 goals of raising awareness through the roof in their community and raising funds.
The fundraising goal for TTNS was set at $2,600.00. With so much support from the community, they surpassed their goal coming in at $2,966!
If you are interested in participating in next year’s 2025 campaign, please reach out to Tara or Kole to see how to get involved!
Key terms:
Action Step | Action steps are specific actions that are made to reach the goals you have set. They should be concrete. |
A term used by AFSP and other organizations that focuses on the idea that while it may feel a little difficult or awkward to speak to your friend about your concerns about them, if you accept the feeling as natural, you can move past the awkwardness and start a helpful/meaningful conversation. |
988 is the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. If you are struggling with mental health concerns, consider calling or texting for support.
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