Kevin Pelletier is the president of TWLOHA’s UMass-Lowell chapter. Recently Kevin was awarded the Massachusetts Coalition for Suicide Prevention Youth Leadership Award for his volunteer effort in TWLOHA’s University Chapters program. Meet Kevin…
1). Kevin, how long have you been involved in TWLOHA’s University Chapters program?
I went to one of the first MOVE conference’s in Cocoa, FL back in March of 2009. It was an extremely life changing experience for me, and I have made friends that I still stay in touch with on a daily basis. From there, I came back and started talking to people about starting a UChapter on campus. I found an advisor and an E-board. In the fall of 2009, we became one of the first 15 UChapters to launch in the country!
2). How did you first hear about TWLOHA?
My freshman year of college started out very heavy for me. I saw a poster about Jamie, Denny, and Zach Williams coming to my school and looked into it. The story put me in tears, and that night was so memorable for me. Being in a room full of people talking about these things, and then sitting on stage with Chad Moses for over an hour after just talking about life. Sitting there with Chad allowed me to realize that people really did care, and this organization meant everything they stood for. I knew after this night that I wanted to become very involved in this organization.
3). Why did you choose to begin a UChapter on UMass-Lowell’s campus?
Seeing the amount of people at that event, I knew I wasn’t alone in believing these things mattered, and that they aren’t talked about a lot. Most of these issues are things I have struggled with, so it really hits my heart. Once the idea of doing things with TWLOHA and actually being able to help other people was there, I felt like I had found a purpose to life. What better way to live than helping other people? I realized that maybe the reason I struggled with everything I did was so I could relate to others and help them. It’s been a very powerful and rewarding experience.
4). What has been the most rewarding part of having a chapter on UMass-Lowell’s campus?
Seeing redemption and seeing people being grateful for what we are doing. Hearing that because of us, people have started going to counseling, have celebrated 6 months of sobriety, have really felt comfortable opening up and sharing at our meetings. Being able to have an amazing first year thanks to the help of my officers, Zach, Lindsey, Katie, and Seth. It’s been great seeing other people willing to put hours of work each week into this UChapter, because they believe it matters that much.
5). What was the most successful event your chapter organized this year?
I’m going to have to go with two, because I think both are equally sucessful in different ways:
1. We had a meeting last year about addiction. People started sharing their experiences, and their stories and struggles. The conversation went all over the place, but it was all connected and almost everyone in the room had shared something. There were very few dry eyes by the end. People felt extremely close. Because of that meeting, I saw people starting to talk to each other more that they didn’t really know. People hanging out outside of UChapter meetings and events, and staying in touch. Seeing friendships come from these meetings mean more than any sentence I could try to put together to describe it. Oh yeah, and the meeting ended in the best way ever, a group hug.
2. The main event in which Jamie and Denny spoke, and Ryan from Sleeping At Last performed. Having almost 200 people in a room because of something we had done. Ryan’s music was amazing. For weeks after, the lyric “You we’re meant for amazing things” was all over our campus. Jamie told the story of how TWLOHA started, and shared more. Denny told his story of a struggle with addiction and ended it with saying that “You matter” in a way that went right through everyones ears into their hearts. I have made so many friends and have had so many great conversations from that night, as many other people also did. This night was a perfect example of community. From people helping set up hours before, to people staying over an hour after to have a quick word with us and get to know each other.
6). We heard you recently won a leadership award from the Massachusetts Coalition of Suicide Prevention, will you tell us about this?
Yes I did! I was nominated by Elyse Lemaire, our UChapter advisor who is a counselor at our school, along with working with MCSP. I will be accepting my award at a breakfast next Friday along with a few other people. I’m looking forward to meeting a lot of people who are in this field and being able to discuss how our UChapter can work with them! I’m accepting my award and giving a speech right before a Senator….makes me a little nervous haha. But I am very honored and thankful to accept the award on behalf of myself and the UChapter. I’m thankful for everyone who helped out last year and participated in events because they believe this mattered.
7). What would you tell a student who is thinking about starting a chapter but hasn’t?
WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?!?!?!?! It really is an incredible experience. Go to a MOVE conference, meet Aaron and Michelle Moore, Kaitlyn, and everyone else. You will learn how to start a conversation in your own community and also how to start a UChapter at your school. Creating a place where people feel okay to talk about these things and being able to offer the ideas of hope and help to other is so powerful. School can get very stressful, and sadly we are all all stuck going to class and doing assignments we sometimes don’t like. It makes me start to question what the point of it all is. Having the UChapter here gives me a purpose. There’s never been a doubt in my mind or heart that everything I put into this is worth it. It’s an amazing opportunity to grow as a person by learning leadership skills, learning how to organize events, meeting people, making friends, and knowing you’ve impacted someone else’s life. “We are broken people helping broken people” is a saying TWLOHA believes in. You don’t have to be “perfect” or have life figured out for yourself. The beauty in this is walking through these college years with others and relating to the desire for answers to questions and being stuck in difficult moments. The beauty isn’t the pain itself, but the fact that you aren’t experiencing that pain alone and you are allowing others to have the chance to not be alone in these struggles.
If you have any questions, or are interested in starting a UChapter, email [email protected] or email us at [email protected]“