TULARE COUNTY, Calif. (
KSEE/KGPE
) – A call to nostalgia – the Ice Bucket Challenge that many people in the Central Valley and across the globe engaged in is back, now to spread awareness about mental health, and Tulare County is joining in.
Tulare County Sheriff Mike Boudreaux
joined the challenge
after learning about it from his daughter and being challenged by her. Boudreaux says he felt inspired to see high school children joining the challenge to spread the word about mental health and wanted to participate in this year’s challenge, just like he did back in 2014.
“I was really inspired, quite frankly, of all these high school students, all over our county, that they were really trying to bring awareness to the issues of mental health and those in need of mental health services and I thought, you know, if I can get out there and just give a little message to help spread the word, of course I’ll do it.”
This year’s USC Speak Your Mind Ice Bucket Challenge brings awareness about the importance of talking about mental health. It began with a
social media post
from students at the University of South Carolina back in March with the purpose of normalizing mental health to the point that it is
discussed as normally as physical health
.
Those who nominate their peers are letting others know they are people with whom they can “speak” their mind.
Boudreaux says he wanted other leaders in Tulare County to spread the word, not only within the county, but also throughout the nation. He chose leaders covering the whole county, from south to north. He says many leaders, from teachers to law enforcement, have taken on the challenge. He says about 200 people have been challenged in the county to his knowledge.
The sheriff nominated Visalia Police Department Chief Jason Salazar, Porterville Police Department Chief Jake Castellow, and Lindsay Police Department Chief Rob Moore. Out of the three, Salazar already
responded and completed the challenge
, while nominating Visalia Fire Chief Dan Griswold, who has also
already responded.
You can watch a video compilation of all three officials completing the challenge in the video player above.
In the end, Boudraux recalled his experience, saying his son and daughter made sure to put “extra ice” in the bucket, to which he said, “It was cold.”
To learn more about the University of South Carolina’s MIND team,
click here.
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