MayFest Response 2017

This past Saturday, the Thing With Feathers team attended an event in our hometown of Carrollton, Georgia known as MayFest. It was the first such event that we have had the pleasure of attending. The response we received was absolutely phenomenal. We were provided the opportunity to connect with dozens of people from around our area who were very excited about what we’re trying to accomplish. We cannot begin to express our gratitude to those who helped support us, whether it be through purchases or just by word of mouth. And of course, we would like to give our tremendous thanks to our friends who took time from their days to personally help us out. We couldn’t have done it without you. We would also like to take this opportunity to share some of the highlights of our experience, some of the stories we were told, and people we were privileged to meet.

Before anything else, we would like to thank the city of Carrollton for the wonderful support and encouragement we received in response to our vision. We had hoped that most people would be receptive to what we are trying to do, but we could have never predicted just how much people became excited and even thankful when they found out what we are trying to accomplish. We spoke to representatives from local charities, fellow non-profits, our local Boys and Girls Club, and people of influence in our community.

Also among our visitors were representatives of our local NAMI chapter. They were incredibly supportive of our organization and spoke to us about plans to increase their range of impact in our community. They mentioned plans to help educate people around our area in hopes of creating a community and an environment ready to provide hope and help to those who need it. These are great people we enjoyed talking to, and we are incredibly thankful not only for their support, but for our common goal. We are excited to see what the future holds for them and hope to be able to lend a helping hand.

Beyond this, several individuals who visited us even shared their stories of why our cause meant so much to them personally. These moments by far meant the most to us. We are elated and touched to see how much our mission and our movement mean to those who have been affected by illness or stigma. We heard stories from people who had suffered their own bouts with mental illness, had seen loved ones go through the struggles of illness, or who had been affected in other ways.

In short, we couldn’t be more happy with the response and support that we garnered from our community thanks to our first public event. The thanks we received, the hope that we saw passed to people, and the excitement surrounding our movement have given us even more hope that what we are doing is primed and ready to make an incredible impact in our world. We are thankful to know that we have the support of so many people from our home town to back us up.

#HOPESINGS