Dare You To Love is excited to partner with WellnessWare and their initiative to fundraise for mental health awareness and suicide prevention. We sat down with WellnessWare's founder, Anna Grace Sutherland, to hear her heart behind her brand and her future goals.
1. What made you want to start fundraising for mental health to begin with?
In 2019, I noticed so many people around me having really intense struggles with mental illness and it broke my heart. I knew that I wanted to do something about it, but I wasn’t sure what. I kid you not, I woke up in the middle of the night one night and I just heard “conversations save lives.” I wrote it down and decided I wanted to spread that message in any way I could. When I decided to sell merch, I felt The Lord pushing me to donate 100% of the earnings. So I did, and that has been the goal ever since.
2. How much money have you collected and donated since you started fundraising?
Just around 2 grand. I honestly cannot believe it. I never imagined I would be able to say something like that.
3. What events led you to create your brand WellnessWare?
When I moved away from home in mid-August, I had basically decided that after 4 campaigns, I wouldn’t be doing another one. However, once I got settled at school, I experienced new levels of anxiety that I hadn’t felt before. I started talking about it with people in my life (friends, parents, etc.) and I felt my passion for mental health awareness start to stir up again. After attending a Suicide Prevention Awareness event on campus, my friend Sydney, my roommate Brooklyn, and I went back to my room and started brainstorming. I told them I wanted to launch another campaign, but I wanted to do it differently than I had in the past. We eventually decided on going with a RedBubble account (for now ;)) and we went with the name WellnessWare. I’m not ashamed to admit that I’m completely obsessed with the name, either.
4. What are some things you are excited about for the future of your organization?
I’m excited to eventually launch my own website, as well as expanding our company! These things are definitely on the horizon for WellnessWare. I’m also excited about the expansion we’re experiencing until now. Up until two weeks ago, I was the sole person in the company that was in contact with manufacturers. Now I have design consultants, creative marketers and more!
5. What are some of your favorite resources to point people to who struggle with their mental health?
First and foremost, I will always recommend therapy. I tend to put it like this: “If you have strep throat, I can do what I can to make you comfortable. I can make you soup, make sure you’re staying hydrated, and give you over-the-counter meds that might temporarily relieve your symptoms. A doctor, however, has the right tools to really make a difference in your physical health. The same goes for your mental health. If you’re struggling, people in your life can be there for you, they can actively listen, they can even give you advice to give comfort and provide temporarily relief, but a therapist has the tools to help in ways they cant.
Other resources I recommend are IDONTMIND, World Health Organization, and the National Alliance on Mental Illness.
6. How can people find you and WellnessWare online?
People can search “wellnessware” on RedBubble, or click the link in my Instagram bio (@anna.suth) or follow WellnessWare on Instagram at @wellnessware.
More WellnessWare socials coming soon!!
Dare You To Love has eight designs on the WellnessWare site (view below) among the other WellnessWare featured designs for you to choose from. All designs are exchangeable for printing on multiple different products from apparel to electronics and office supplies. And the best part is 100% of ALL proceeds are donated to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention to help save lives and help those affected by suicide.
To view all the WellnessWare designs and the Dare You To Love featured designs click the below.
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