In honor of May Mental Health Month, Seattle's Great Wheel will glow green on May 1 – 4

SEATTLE - May 1, 2019 - PRLog -- NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness – Washington State (http://www.namiwa.org) (NAMI Washington) – along with its 19 NAMI Affiliates across Washington State, is kicking off May Mental Health Month with a special ceremony at Seattle's Great Wheel starting at 7:00pm today.

To mark the community's commitment to advocating for the mental health of Washington State citizens and sponsored by We Work for Health Washington (https://www.weworkforhealth.org/in_our_states/Washington), the Wheel's 500,000 LED lights will dazzle the skyline of the Emerald City in green for four days starting with a celebration at Seattle's Waterfront Park at 7:00pm today. The lighting will be followed by a brief speaker program and performance by alt-rock band, Gypsy Temple (https://www.gypsytemplemusic.com/), who are partnering with NAMI Washington to raise awareness and help remove the stigma that youth living with mental illness face.

"NAMI Washington is proud to light the Seattle Great Wheel green to kick-off May Mental Health Month for the third consecutive year," said Lauren Simonds, Executive Director of NAMI Washington.  "We see it as a celebration of mental health and the eradication of stigma."

Simonds said the organization is working to expand early intervention and youth mental health awareness efforts through its middle and high school "Ending the Silence" (Ets) program.  "In King County alone, EtS is reaching more than 3,000 students annually - and we look forward to expanding this initiative with our 19 affiliates in communities large and small throughout Washington State.  We are grateful to partner with Gypsy Temple on these efforts."

Gypsy Temple will perform a new song, "Up Becomes Down," written by 20-year-old front man, Cameron Lavi Jones and dedicated to a friend experiencing depression. "Each of us in Gypsy Temple has a direct connection to mental illness – either personally or with the people we care about. The "Hold your Crown" project, inspired by lyrics in the new song, is about making sure that we are all supporting each other and promoting healthy and empowering ways to overcome mental health struggles.  It is about youth speaking to youth and letting them know they are not alone."

Throughout the month of May, NAMI will promote its WhyCare? (https://www.nami.org/whycare) campaign to share the importance of mental health treatment, support and services to the millions of people, families, caregivers and loved ones affected by mental illness. The campaign will also issue a challenge to address broken systems and attitudes that present barriers to treatment and recovery – learn more at www.nami.org/whycare.

SEATTLE GREAT WHEEL CEREMONY

May 1, 2019

7:00p – 8:30pm

Seattle Waterfront Park, 1301 Alaskan Way, Seattle WA 98101

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ABOUT NAMI WASHINGTON

NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, is the nation's largest grassroots mental health organization dedicated to improving the lives of individuals and families affected by mental illness. NAMI Washington provides educational resources and events, statewide outreach, public policy advocacy, and organizational support for state affiliates. Learn more at www.namiwa.org.