Perfectly You: Calgary artists create journals to support youth mental health

After two years of isolation and the pandemic, emerging studies have shown that the mental health of the country’s youth has been suffering.

Many students were unable to access their social groups as many classrooms moved to an online format throughout the two years, and the demand for mental health support for children and youth continues to grow.

That’s why Wood’s Homes and Southcentre Mall have partnered up ahead of the back-to-school season with a campaign dubbed Perfectly You to help local youth.

Alexandra Velosa, marketing manager for Southcentre Mall, says the campaign is a vital way to raise funds and awareness to provide access to resources that can help young people manage their mental health.

“We’re focusing on mental well-being, self-confidence, and self-expression while inviting all the students to have their own style, express themselves how they want to,” Velosa says of the journal campaign that encourages students to express themselves in notebooks.

“We created journals because journals are a tool that is not just used at school, but also used when people are dealing with mental issues, mental problems.”

Connecting with the community

On Fridays and Saturdays, there will be a display (in front of Sporting Life) where people can learn more about programming. Volunteers will be selling the journals, created by local artists Maya Corona and Yiting Hui, to help children write down and process their emotions through difficult times.

The profits will all go towards Wood’s Homes’ mission to create and support families through providing mental health services. The journals will also be available for purchase at select mall retailers on other days of the week.

“[We created the display] so that people know that when they are looking for resources or support, they have it at this organization and with these journals.”

With school starting in the fall, Velosa hopes people remember that it is important to focus on their mental well-being.

“I hope to be able to connect the community with the resources that they may need,” Velosa says. “My main takeaway is that kids, remember that being yourself is the best you can do. You just need to embrace who you are and just bring that to the table and be proud of what you have.”

The campaign runs until Sept. 18.