According to the National Alliance on Mental Health, one in six adolescents in Virginia reports experiencing a mental health disorder each year, Cameron K. Gallagher among them.
Gallagher struggled with mental health and depression during her teenage years. Despite her personal challenges, she decided to plan a 5k in her community to raise awareness about teen mental health called “SpeakUp5k.”
She wanted others to be able to be seen and encouraged them to reach out for help if needed. Unfortunately, after completing a personal goal of running the Shamrock Half Marathon, Gallagher passed away at the young age of 16 due to an undiagnosed heart condition.
The Cameron K. Gallagher (CKG) Foundation was founded by her parents, Grace Gallagher and David Gallagher, to fulfill her dream of raising awareness of teen depression and anxiety.
No Eagle Left Behind (NELB) partnered with the CKG Foundation to host a mental health fun run for the first time last year, raising money for the foundation and spreading awareness. Due to last year’s success, they decided to host the run again this year.
NELB is a club dedicated to supporting students in the school and broader community. Godwin senior and NELB leader Alexis Ralston said, “Mental health is a huge issue in today’s society and I think that it is important that kids are able to get the help they need. [NELB] focuses on trying to get students at Godwin the help they need in whatever form they need it in.”
For Ralston, the most difficult thing that went into planning the run was the advertising inside and outside of the school. “We had to reach out to groups, hang fliers, talk during lunches, and send a lot of emails. We also had to decide on supplies, decorations, and food, which took us enormous amounts of time,” said Ralston.
Ralston hopes that NELB will continue to grow over the next few years to be a bigger support system to those who need it. Ralston said, “I think it is important to continue to reach out to students and groups to support them in their mental health journeys because NELB has already been there for so many people when they needed it.”
This year’s mental health fun run attracted a larger turnout compared to the previous year’s. Godwin senior and NELB leader Nathan Wright said, “Last year we raised around $500 despite rain on race day. This year we raised around $750.”