The Kim Foundation’s Year in Review

2016 was a great year for The Kim Foundation to celebrate 15 years of making a difference in our community.  We take time to reflect on the past year’s accomplishments and growth by remembering our biggest moments from 2016.

January – The Kim Foundation along with Bellevue Public Schools, Bellevue Christian Center, and Bellevue faith communities held the #RealTalkSuicide event with more than 200 youths and adults in attendance.  The event focused on suicide prevention with yellow ribbon training, a panel discussion, and resource booths.

The foundation was honored at Metro Magazine’s Big Event with an award for Best Event: Best Speaker/Guest from the “A Time for Hope & Healing” luncheon held in 2014 with Mariel Hemingway.

February – The Kim Foundation was invited by Ralston High School to present a suicide prevention session to its entire student body.  Thousands of high school students were reached during the presentation.

The foundation, along with volunteers, handed out bracelets at both the UNL men’s and women’s basketball games as part of the Don’t Be Sidelined campaign.  Thousands received the message that “mental illness is treatable” throughout the game.

March – The Kim Foundation delivered a suicide prevention presentation to nearly 500 students at Ralston Middle School.

The National Council for Behavioral Health held its national conference in Las Vegas.  The foundation was able to send two employees to the event to join more than 5,000 other behavioral health professionals from around the country.

The foundation received a generous $10,000 grant from the National Council for Behavioral Health that was designated by BHECN (Behavioral Health Education Center of Nebraska) when they were recognized for their innovative work in workforce development.

The Kim Foundation and the NAMI committee worked together on the Tomato Soup and Grilled Cheese Luncheon held at C&A Industries.  This year’s event brought in the largest amount raised to date and all the proceeds were given to NAMI – Omaha.

The foundation also participated in C&A Industries’ Corporate Health Fair and shared newly updated brochures.

April – The Kim Foundation took part in the Aureus Nursing Health Fair which was the first time the health fair was held at this location.

The foundation helped coordinate the Habitat for Humanity/ReStore Drive with a spring cleaning theme at C&A Industries to collect home improvement items.

The foundation also had the opportunity to attend the Officer of the Year luncheon honoring members of the Omaha Police Department with whom we work closely at the foundation.

May – The Kim Foundation partnered with WOWT to produce a week of segments focusing on suicide prevention and awareness that ran from May 1^st through May 5^th.  A suicide prevention special also aired during May on WOWT.

Buffalo Wild Wings’ “Eat Wings, Raise Funds” allowed supporters of the foundation to dine and donate 10 percent of their bill to The Kim Foundation.

The foundation kicked off its first art and creative writing contest for students in grades 6 – 12.  In recognition of May being Mental Health Awareness Month, students from Douglas and Sarpy counties were invited to participate in the “Hope and Healing through Creativity” contest.

The foundation, along with volunteers, handed out Don’t Be Sidelined bracelets and worked a booth at the UNL baseball game to share the message that “mental illness is treatable” reaching many baseball fans.

The first Metro Area Suicide Prevention Coalition Meeting was held on May 24^th with more than 40 people in attendance. Julia of The Kim Foundation and Melissa of Region 6 Behavioral Health led the meeting, discussing issues in the community and identifying the coalition’s goals.

June ­– The 2016 Annual Nebraska Behavioral Health Conference took place in Lincoln and the foundation participated by hosting a booth.  The staff was also able to attend many educational workshops throughout the conference.

Julia served as the Nebraska state captain and attended Hill Day in Washington, D.C. along with seven other Nebraskans.  It was three days of sessions with national leaders and networking with peers and colleagues from all over the country while advocating for those impacted by behavioral health issues from the community.

BHECN’s School Mental Health Conference was held on June 3^rd and The Kim Foundation was very involved in the planning of the event.  The foundation also hosted a booth and participated in the conference that focused on trauma in our schools.

The summer RESPECT trainings were hosted by The Kim Foundation.  Many from the community attended the workshops to learn more about the plays that RESPECT puts on for schools throughout Nebraska.

The Don’t Be Sidelined thank you luncheon was held at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, NE to show appreciation to all the partners for their support of the campaign over its four years.

The foundation staff participated in a Gallup Strengths Finder workshop to learn about their individual strengths and how those strengths can benefit the team.

July – The Metro Area LOSS team celebrated its one year anniversary with a small reception of appreciation on July 25th for the members who dedicated their time and experience to the team over the year.

The foundation helped coordinate the “Back to School Drive” for C&A Industries to collect school supplies for Completely KIDS.

August – The Kim Foundation, along with Region 6 and other partners, introduced a new public awareness campaign focused on suicide prevention, called 13minutes.  A public service announcement for the campaign was recorded and is currently showing on WOWT Channel 6.

The campaign’s informative website, www.13minutes.org, was also created and is a great resource for people to learn about the warning signs, how to help, and how to change suicide statistics.

The 13minutes campaign was officially launched at the MAHA Music Festival.  The campaign was also invited to host a booth in the community village and was featured on each t-shirt.

In addition, the foundation was busy holding its annual Organizational Fair with more than 40 mental health organizations from the community participating in the event.  It was held at C&A Industries and received a very positive response.

September – In honor of Suicide Prevention Day on September 10^th, the community could dine at Le Peep or Buffalo Wild Wings and a portion of their bill would be donated to The Kim Foundation.  Donations were also received this month from ReRuns R Fun, the nation’s largest non-profit children’s consignment sale.  The Kim Foundation was thrilled to receive more than $3,000 from the organization.

October – The month of October was filled with numerous presentations and booths surrounding the 13minutes suicide prevention campaign.  The foundation worked at many schools’ parent-teacher conferences while sharing suicide prevention information.

Julia also had the opportunity to participate in the National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention Executive Committee meeting held in Washington, D.C.

The foundation coordinated the United Way drive at C&A Industries to assist programs in the community raising nearly $80,000.

November – The annual luncheon, “A Time for Hope and Healing”, was held on November 9^th with guest speaker Dr. Thomas Joiner.  The event was well received with more than 450 in people in attendance.  Guests were also able to participate in an extended session with Dr. Joiner where a memorial activity took place along with a panel discussion.

The Metro Area LOSS Team was honored to receive the “Organization of the Year” award during Ted E. Bear Hollow’s Grief Conference held on November 18^th.

December – The Kim Foundation was named as a finalist in Metro Magazine’s Big Event awards celebration.  The foundation was nominated in the category, Best Event: Speaker/Guest with Kevin Briggs.  The winner will be announced on January 19th.

The Kim Foundation was asked to present suicide prevention information to Ralston Middle School’s entire student body and also to students in Iowa at Underwood High School.

The Kim Foundation exceeded its goals for presentations and community booths this year.  We were able to do 135 presentations to schools, churches, businesses, and clubs, which reached more than 12,120 people.  The foundation was also able to host a booth at 42 different conferences and health fairs.

To end the year, the foundation was proud to be able to donate more than $400,000 in grant money to behavioral health programs throughout Nebraska.

2016 has certainly been a year full of activity for the foundation by building awareness, educating the public, and providing resources.  We look forward to 2017 and the positive impact that The Kim Foundation will continue to have in the community!