North Canton Middle Schoolers Bring Mental Health Resource to the Community
The “Better Box” idea began with Tessa, a 6th-grader in TomTod’s What If 101 program, where middle schoolers were asked a simple question: “What if you could create something to help your community?”
After learning about the mental health challenges in her community, she wanted to create a box full of resources that can be checked out at the local library.
During 2023 Camp What If, Tessa championed her idea and rallied others like Kaelyn and Emma to join her. They created a prototype of what the box would look like, pitched the idea to the community, and took steps toward making it a reality.
“What if we made it easy for people who are struggling with their mental health to check out one box full of resources from the library?”
Better Box team honored at the Feast of Ideas
What is the Feast of Ideas?
The Feast of Ideas is TomTod’s annual fundraising gala! But it’s also so much more than that. It is a community-wide celebration of middle schoolers. We provide supporters with an exclusive experience to connect with middle schoolers and opportunities to give throughout the night. At the same time, the night centers around middle schoolers. Our Guests of Honor are celebrated and provided the opportunity to share their stories with caring adults.
What are Guests of Honor?
Kaelyn and Tessa, two of the Better Box students, were Guests of Honor at 2024’s Feast of Ideas. Guests of Honor are middle schoolers from recent TomTod programming who share their experiences alongside Community Champions (adult community leaders who believe middle schoolers matter). At the 2024 Feast, Kaelyn and Tessa were interviewed by Jeff Dafler, President & CEO of the Canton Regional Chamber of Commerce.
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