Gold Medalist Aly Raisman & Philanthropists Jamee and Peter Gregory Honored at 16th Annual HOPE Luncheon Seminar

Hope for Depression Research Foundation (HDRF), held its 16th annual HOPE luncheon seminar at The Plaza Hotel. The seminar focused on “Teenagers and Depression: Addressing the Youth Mental Health Crisis” and research highlights from the HDRF’s renowned Depression Task Force. The event drew nearly 300 guests and raised over $500,000 for life-saving mental health research.

The day concluded with an award ceremony, where Gold Medalist Aly Raisman received the 2022 HOPE Award for Depression Advocacy and Jamee and Peter Gregory accepted the HOPE Community Award.

Master of Ceremonies, Chuck Scarborough began by welcoming guests and spoke about the anxiety that came with the midterm elections and the continued levels of stress induced by the pandemic. He noted that the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the need to address mental health issues across all ages, but especially among teens. After stating the goal of the luncheon was to inspire the audience to talk about mental health within their communities, he introduced HDRF Founder and Chair Audrey Gruss. He stated, “Audrey has been ahead of the curve in mental health for a long time. The pandemic brought mental health to the forefront, Audrey has been talking about it, raising awareness, and building research teams for the last 16 years.”

Gruss took to the podium to discuss the statistics of depression among children and adolescents. She noted that last December, the U.S. Surgeon General declared an emergency in children and adolescent mental health. She stated, “Today, over 40% of teenagers state that they struggle with persistent feelings of sadness and hopelessness.” She spoke about how most adolescents with depression neither told a healthcare professional nor received proper treatment. One of the most staggering statistics she highlighted was that 4,000 teenagers a day attempt suicide.