- Multimedia campaign features 41 Canadians from all walks of
life relating the impact of mental illness on their lives and
inviting you to the mental health conversation
- Join in on Bell Let's Talk Day by talking, texting and getting
engaged on social media – and drive Bell's donations to mental
health at no cost to you
- Total Bell Let's Talk messages of support since 2011 are
expected to exceed One Billion on January
30, Bell's total donation to mental health programs to pass
$100 Million
- Learn 5 simple ways to help end stigma and download the Bell
Let's Talk toolkit at Bell.ca/LetsTalk
MONTRÉAL, Jan. 3, 2019 /CNW
Telbec/ - Bell Let's Talk Day 2019 is coming up on Wednesday, January 30, and this week marks the
start of the mental health initiative's national awareness campaign
leading up to the world's biggest conversation about mental
health.
The campaign features 41 Friends of Bell Let's
Talk, Canadians from around the country telling their personal
stories of living with mental illness and inviting everyone to join
in on January 30 to drive awareness
and action in mental health. Supported by a wide range of Canadian
media organizations, the campaign is appearing nationwide on
television networks, radio, social media and out-of-home
advertising, in newspapers and on movie screens.
"I'm proud to be part of the Bell Let's Talk campaign again in
2019 and to share my ongoing story of living with bipolar
disorder," said lawyer and mental health advocate Beth Beattie, who appears in multiple elements
of the campaign. "Alongside all the Friends of Bell Let's Talk, I
encourage everyone to join the conversation on Bell Let's Talk Day
so that people who live with mental illness know that they can
reach out to get the help they need."
"Thank you to Beth and everyone in this amazing group of
Canadians for sharing their personal stories from such a diverse
range of perspectives, and for encouraging all of us to talk openly
about how mental illness affects us. The more we talk, the faster
we move Canadian mental health forward," said Mary Deacon, Chair of Bell Let's Talk. "Canada
leads the way each year with the biggest mental health conversation
in the world, and I invite everyone to get engaged this
January 30 as we reach some
incredible new milestones: more than a billion total Bell Let's
Talk Day messages of support, and a total Bell donation to Canadian
mental health programs surpassing $100
million."
Bell Let's Talk also welcomes back the leaders who get people
talking about mental health, including spokespeople Howie Mandel, Marie-Soleil Dion, Michael Landsberg, Michel Mpambara, Stefie
Shock, Mary Walsh and Étienne
Boulay, and community ambassadors Toronto Maple Leafs Head Coach
Mike Babcock, pro golfer
Andrew Jensen, comedian Kevin Breel, retired CFL player Shea Emry, singer-songwriter Séan McCann,
veteran Bruno Guévremont, comedian Jessica
Holmes, musician Florence K and actress Véronique
Bannon.
"Mental illness affects each and every one of us in some way,
and we have to continue to talk about it and work together to help
end the stigma if we want to keep making progress," said Olympian
and Bell Let's Talk Founding Spokesperson Clara Hughes. "On behalf
of the Bell Let's Talk team, I encourage all Canadians to build on
what we've accomplished together and continue to lead the world in
declaring that mental health matters to all of us."
Join the conversation on Bell Let's Talk Day
Launched
in 2011, the annual Bell Let's Talk Day is the most high-profile
event in the national Bell Let's Talk mental health initiative. By
getting engaged in the mental health conversation across a wide
range of communications platforms on Bell Let's Talk Day, you
directly drive Bell's donations to Canadian mental health programs
all year round.
Bell donates 5 cents to Canadian
mental health programs for each of these interactions on Bell Let's
Talk Day at no cost to participants beyond what they would normally
pay their service provider for online or phone access:
- Talk: Every mobile and every long distance call made by Bell
wireless and phone customers
- Text: Every text message sent by Bell wireless customers
- Twitter: Every tweet and retweet using #BellLetsTalk, featuring
the special Bell Let's Talk emoji, and every Bell Let's Talk Day
video view at Twitter.com/Bell_LetsTalk
- Facebook: Every Bell Let's Talk Day video view at
Facebook.com/BellLetsTalk and every use of the Bell Let's Talk
frame
- Instagram: Every Bell Let's Talk Day video view at
Instagram.com/bell_letstalk
- Snapchat: Every use of the Bell Let's Talk filter and every
Bell Let's Talk Day video view
Total Bell Let's Talk Day interactions since the first event in
2011 stand at 867,449,649 and are expected to exceed 1 billion on
January 30. Bell's funding commitment
for mental health, including the company's donations based on Bell
Let's Talk engagement and its original $50-million donation to launch the initiative, is
now $93,423,628.80 and expected to
surpass $100 million on January 30.
Last year, Bell Let's Talk set all-new records with 138,383,995
messages across all platforms, growing Bell's funding for Canadian
mental health last year by $6,919,199.75. #BellLetsTalk was the most
retweeted Twitter hashtag by Canadians in 2018 and became the
most-used Canadian hashtag of all time.
The 5 simple ways to help end the stigma
Together, we
can all help end the stigma around mental illness with the 5 simple
ways developed by Dr. Heather
Stuart, the Bell Mental Health and Anti-Stigma Research
Chair at Queen's University:
- Language matters – pay attention to the words you use about
mental illness
- Educate yourself – learn, know and talk more, understand the
signs
- Be kind – small acts of kindness speak a lot
- Listen and ask – sometimes it's best to just listen
- Talk about it – start a dialogue, break the silence
About Bell Let's Talk
The Bell Let's Talk mental
health initiative is focused on 4 key action pillars: Anti-stigma,
Care and Access, Research and Workplace Leadership. Since its
launch in September 2010, Bell Let's
Talk has partnered with more than 900 organizations providing
mental health services throughout Canada, including major donations
to hospitals, universities and other care and research
organizations.
To learn more, please visit Bell.ca/LetsTalk.
Media inquiries
Jacqueline Michelis
613-785-1427
jacqueline.michelis@bell.ca
@Bell_News
@Bell_LetsTalk
SOURCE Bell Canada