Find Your Anchor is a grassroots movement aimed at suicide prevention, awareness and education.
email -- findyouranchor@gmail.com
instagram -- @findyouranchorbox
facebook -- facebook.com/findyouranchor
---
Find Your Anchor is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization registered in Chicago + Southern California.
---
First things first, what is Find Your Anchor?
(Check out our infographic)
Mission: Simply put, the goal of the Find Your Anchor movement is suicide prevention, awareness, and education.
---
The premise behind Find Your Anchor is that each person needs an anchor. "Establish an anchor — a dependable, stable, secure base that you can hold on to, one that keeps you firmly planted, no matter what winds or storms may come."
Find Your Anchor doesn't assume to be the anchor, or have all the answers, rather, it sets out to create a community of anchors, all with the help of some little blue boxes.
The physical form of Find Your Anchor is a small blue box packed with various materials designed to inspire, soothe and offer support. These boxes are then launched in public places (the library, the Vegas strip, etc.) to be found by those in need; specifically those close to suicide in one way or another.
The boxes are intended to be organic in the sense that each person can add to the box their own inspiration and anchors before passing it along.
You may have some questions…
---
But, wait, what exactly is in a Find Your Anchor box?
The physical form of Find Your Anchor is a small blue box filled with all kinds of goodness; cards, posters, phone numbers and more. We’d love to tell you what the more is, but we don’t know ….that’s where you come in. These boxes have and are being launched throughout the country. You may see one in a library, on the subway, or even outside the zoo. The idea is that those in need should pick up the box and use it and once they are in a better spot, they should add to it and pass it on.
So, who are the ones in need?
That part isn’t up to us, that is up to those who find a box. If it seems like something they need, at that point in their lives…it’s all theirs; if not, they are asked to leave it for someone who is in need. But, we imagine those in need to be anyone who has been or is impacted by suicide; either because it is a thought which has crossed their mind, or because they are close to someone who has turned to suicide, or even thoughts of suicide.
Is suicide really a serious problem in our country?
Yes. There are an estimated 48,000 suicides per year and 1,424,125 attempts. That is too many. We believe that there is help, there is hope and there is an alternative. We don’t claim to have all the answers, knowing that it is unique for each person, but Find Your Anchor is one small piece in a sea of positive and safe alternatives. Although there's no guaranteed means of prevention, we know that support is crucial, connection matters and that the more help and resources the better. Each person needs an anchor.
Some statistics:
- Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death for Americans. 1
- Suicide is the 3rd leading cause of death for Americans age 15-24. 2
- Males die by suicide four times as often as females, but there are three female attempts for every male attempt. 1
1 AAS Facts about Suicide and Depression
2 CDC Suicide Fact Sheet
How did it get started?
Legend has it that Find Your Anchor is the brainchild of a brilliant, but troubled artist (who was probably starving too)…actually, it doesn’t matter how it started, or even when. What matters is that it keep moving forward, that it keep growing, that we (all) keep adding to it.
---
// Honors & Awards
- 2023 Anthem Award Winner - Bronze (Find Your Anchor GIPHY Channel)
- 2022 Los Angeles Times Orange County Visionaries
- 2022 GDUSA Responsible Designers to Watch
- 2021 GDUSA American Graphic Design Award Winner (Please Stay)
- 2021 Mental Health America + IDONTMIND Speaker
- 2021 City of Mission Viejo - Keynote Speaker
- 2021 Hope Means Nevada Speaker
- 2020 320 Festival Speaker
- OCCF 2020 Social Innovation Fund Recipient
- 2020 Mental Health Grant Recipient - QC4QR
- GDUSA 2018 Package Design Award Winner
- Speaker - 2018 American Association of Suicidology Conference
- 2018 Songs That Saved My Life Grant Recipient - Hopeless Records (check out the video!)
- Commencement Speaker - 2018 Art Institute of Chicago
---
