WSU Students Create '3 For 3 Burpee Challenge' to Begin Mental Health Awareness Movement, Eradicate the Stigma and Help Hilinski's Hope Raise $2M

PULLMAN, Wash., March 5, 2019 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- WSU STUDENTS CREATE '3 FOR 3 BURPEE CHALLENGE' TO BEGIN MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS MOVEMENT, ERADICATE THE STIGMA AND HELP HILINSKI'S HOPE RAISE $2M TO PROVIDE EDUCATION TO STUDENT-ATHLETES

One year after Tyler Hilinski died by suicide, his memory fuels a movement to help others.

(March 4, 2019—Pullman, WA) – A group of five sport management students at Washington State University (WSU) have launched the 3 FOR 3 Burpee Challenge in partnership with the Hilinski's Hope Foundation 'to get up for those who are down' and destigmatize mental illness with the goal of helping Hilinski's Hope reach their fundraising goal of $2,000,000. The campaign launched at 8:00 AM PST on Sunday, March 3rd.

The Hilinski's Hope Foundation was started by Tyler Hilinski's family to, "Promote awareness and education of mental health and wellness for student athletes. The Foundation's mission is to educate, advocate, and remove the stigma associated with mental illness, while funding programs that provide student-athletes with the tools and resources that support their mental health and wellness." (hilinskishope.org). On January 19th, 2019, Hilinski's Hope partnered with the NCAA Sport Science Institute, "to encourage evidence-based approaches to bolster mental wellness support for NCAA student-athletes" (Hilinski's Hope press release).

The 3 FOR 3 Burpee Challenge campaign name, concept, and launch date (3/3) were all inspired by Tyler Hilinski. Andrew Cooper, one of the students working on this project said, "Tyler inspired us to launch this campaign. He would've been in this class with us. It's hard not to think about where he would have sat.

This morning, Hilinski's Hope posted a video of Tyler's mom, Kym Hilinski, explaining the challenge and its importance. Another student in the group, Barbora Michalkova, explains why they created this video: "We want to turn this class project into a viral movement." Jill Ohlemeier explains, "Mental health affects all of us and it needs be to talked about. Our goal is for teams, influencers, and everyone to raise awareness for mental health by doing three burpees and challenging three people". Drew Bledsoe and Stanford Women's Soccer are helping the students kick start their campaign.

To learn more about the 3 FOR 3 Burpee Challenge, the students who started it, and to donate to the 3 FOR 3 Burpee Challenge, please visit http://www.3for3burpeechallenge.org FOR MORE INFORMATION OR TO SET UP AN INTERVIEW, PLEASE CONTACT: Andrew Cooper, (206) 504-4305; [email protected]

To learn more about Tyler, the mission of Hilinski's Hope and to donate to the foundation please visit http://www.hilinskishope.org

FOR MORE INFORMATION OR TO SET UP AN INTERVIEW, PLEASE CONTACT:
Christine Hilinski Lombardi, (707) 387-8721; [email protected]

SOURCE Hilinski’s Hope