Mental Health Awareness Partnership

On April 28^th, Astros first baseman Jose Abreu, the Astros Foundation, the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) of Greater Houston and Happy Jack announced a new partnership to raise awareness on the importance of mental health and suicide prevention. “All of us have days where we wake up with a crooked smile, and that is okay… Young people are coping with their mental health at various levels and for various reasons, and NAMIWalks Greater Houston is a beautiful and impactful event to raise awareness about the importance of mental health. Together we can share with youth that it’s okay not being okay and we can open the door to real solutions,” stated Abreu at the press conference. Abreu and the Astros Foundation will host events through May, which is Mental Health Awareness Month, and the rest of the year.

The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) is the nation’s largest grassroots mental health organization dedicated to building better lives for the millions of Americans affected by mental illness.

Happy Jack is Jack Nathan. Jack created HappyJacksWorld to raise awareness and fund access to mental health resources. 15% of each HJ sale is donated. Jack wrestled with anxiety and depression - he simply wanted to help other kids know that they were not alone. Jack left us suddenly and accidentally on 7/3/20 at the age of 19, due to fentanyl poisoning. He was a survivor of mental illness- not a victim. Together we can make life better for kids like Jack.

The first event that the partnership announced was the NAMIWalks Greater Houston on May 20th at Sam Houston Park. Abreu attended the event and kicked off the walk with a special ribbon cutting. All members that registered individually as walkers on Team Happy Jack 79 received a commemorative Happy Jack 79 t-shirt that was autographed by Abreu.