The Fort Dodge and Humboldt basketball teams will be part of something bigger than sports when they meet Thursday in the Dodger gym.

The schools will be part of the Slam the Stigma event, aimed at bringing awareness and offering resources on mental health.

“The event was born when some of us participated in a similar event at Clarion High School in November of 2022,” said Regina Suhrbier, outreach coordinator of the Community Health Center of Fort Dodge and one of the event organizers. “Their event was organized by parents of a student who died by suicide that fall. Students and parents were really engaged and interested in learning what resources were available in the area, and we want to bring that experience to more local schools.”

Fort Dodge and Humboldt will be playing six games that night between freshman, junior varsity and the varsity squads. Games will start at 4:45 p.m. in both the auxiliary and main gyms. The varsity girls game is at 6:15 p.m. and the boys varsity game will follow.

Everyone attending this special event is encouraged to wear green to support mental health awareness.

“Slam the Stigma is a great opportunity for FDSH to continue to raise awareness for mental health and reduce the negativity associated with mental illness. It’s really important that we take advantage of the evening to draw attention to the different support systems available and the seriousness of ignoring mental illness,” said Fort Dodge Activities Director Brandon Ruffridge. “Hopefully, the evening is inspirational and a way to show support for anyone that might be dealing with mental issues.”

During the games, organizations with resources to offer will be available and those attending the games can visit each resource at any time during the games. Everyone will receive a brochure that lists information on each organization.

Attendees are encouraged to bring their brochure to each table and get a sticker and when they have visited all the tables, they can show their brochure at the concession stand to receive a free bag of popcorn or a cookie from the Fort Dodge Booster Club.

“We are so appreciative of Activities Director Brandon Ruffridge and Katie Royster, mental health support specialist/therapist with the Fort Dodge Community Schools, for helping us bring this together for a second year,” Suhrbier said.

According to information provided by the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), a stigma is when someone, or yourself, views a person in a negative way just because they have a mental health condition. Some describe stigma as a feeling of shame or judgment from someone else.

Stigma can even come from an internal place, confusing feeling bad with being bad. Navigating life with a mental health condition can be tough, and the isolation, blame and secrecy that is often encouraged by stigma can create huge challenges to reaching out and getting needed support.

The event is organized by the Community Health Center of Fort Dodge, Community and Family Resources, Webster County Health Department and the Suicide Prevention Coalition for Webster, Hamilton and Wright counties.

Another will take place at St. Edmond Catholic School on Jan. 8 when the Gaels play Eagle Grove in boys and girls games. Eagle Grove was part of the first-ever event in 2022 when the Eagles played at Clarion-Goldfield-Dows.

The group also plans to hold a similar event with Iowa Central later in the season.

Other Slam the Stigma events in the area will be held in Clarion on Jan. 15 (vs. Belmond-Klemme), in Eagle Grove on Jan. 23 (vs. Lake Mills) and at South Central Calhoun on Jan. 30 (vs. Southeast Valley). An event is also being planned between Webster City and South Hamilton schools.

Resources that will be available at Slam the Stigma at Fort Dodge Senior High on Thursday: Webster County Extension and Outreach, UnityPoint Berryhill Center, Crisis Intervention Service, Upper Des Moines Opportunity, NAMI Central Iowa, UnityPoint Health — Eyerly Ball, Grace Counseling & Consulting, TIPP (Teenage Information for Pregnancy Prevention), Fort Dodge Community School District, Central Iowa Community Services, Community Health Center of Fort Dodge, Community and Family Resources and the Webster County Health Department.