By Jerry Pavlon-Blum

17-year-old Hillary Tilles wants to inspire high school students around the country to help The Balanced Mind Foundation by voting in the Pepsi Refresh Contest this month!

Read how she did it! Forward this to every high school student you know.

Hillary Tilles, a senior at Winston Churchill High School in Potomac, Maryland, is an advocate for social justice. Hillary is asking her high school teachers, staffers and students alike to help the The Balanced Mind Foundation in its quest to earn a $250,000 grant from Pepsi by voting every day through December.  Hillary is on a mission and wants to get other kids and their high schools to get involved too. “Get the word out,” she says, “It’s so easy.”

JPB: How did you get inspired to become an advocate for The Balanced Mind Foundation at your high school?

HT: I’m very close with a family, and their son Kevin who has bipolar disorder is just one of the most amazing kids that I know. He’s just beyond his years in knowledge. When Kevin’s mom told me about The Balanced Mind Foundation, I got to know the organization. Then her son Matt showed me his college application essay about it, and I fell in love with The Balanced Mind Foundation.

JPB: Do you have other friends who are diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder?

HT: I have a couple of friends who have it. This past summer, one friend attempted suicide, and that… really, really got to me. I wanted to tell her and others that there are people you can talk to and ways to get help, like The Balanced Mind Foundation. For me, just being able to help one person was unbelievable and being able to help multiple people is life changing.

JPB: So, then you heard that The Balanced Mind Foundation got into the December 2010 Pepsi Refresh Project to win a grant for $250,0000.00 by getting the most votes by the end of the month. What were your first ideas?

HT: First, I thought, I’m going to vote everyday, all three ways—via the website at refresheverything.com, via Facebook, and texting the code 104174 to the phone number 73774. Then I put it on Facebook. But I thought I could do more. So I contacted my youth group, which has chapters, and asked them to vote everyday. Everyone wrote back saying yes, no problem. And one girl wrote back and said her brother has bipolar disorder. I thought — wow, I didn’t even know. Maybe there are other people I don’t know who have a connection to this illness.

JPB: The world’s so small, isn’t? What did you do next?

HT: I went to two teachers I’m really close to at school. My English teacher’s class happened to be in the computer lab, and I asked if there was any way I could get his class to vote for The Balanced Mind Foundation. And he was like, yeah, just write it on the board and say a little bit about it so I can announce it. I said, awesome.

JPB: Fabulous, and then?

HT: Then I went to my History teacher, since he was in the computer lab that day, too, and asked him, and he was so helpful. He said type something up so I can make photocopies for all of my classes and I’ll give it out as homework!

JPB: This is so great, and everyone was so happy to help!

HT: I was shocked by their willingness to help me, and to spread the word to multiple classes, not just that class. I told my English teacher and he said, great idea! I’ll do the same thing and I’ll put it on Edline (an online school communication system). I thought, I could still do more. So I realized, there’s a Bridge Program and a Resource program at my school. I gave them the flyers and they’re sending them out to all of the parents who are involved.

JPB: You’re an inspiration, Hillary, really. Look what one person can do to effect positive change in her community.

HT: It feels good. It just took one day just making connections. I didn’t have to do much, it’s more just spreading the word. I talked to my mom and my dad about all this, and they vote everyday. My mom works at my school and is in charge of adult programs. So, she asked if she could send my flyer to all of those familie , which is 1/3 of the school, both parents and students.

JPB: What do you want other students to do at their school?

HT: I hope that other students will be inspired by what I did and go and do the same things at their school. I did this in just one day and they can too. I’m hoping people will see how easy it is to make a difference. Teachers are so helpful, and students can feel shy or think someone else will do it. We all have busy lives, but we’re always on the computer or texting, so it’s easy to vote everyday. Voting is changing people’s lives if The Balanced Mind Foundation wins. That’s what it’s really about.

JPB: Clubs and fundraising aside, do you think that your school helps kids who struggle with mental health issues, like depression and bipolar disorder? Does your school have programs or does it flex for students struggling from depression or other mental health challenges?

HT: The area I live in is a really great area, but it also means that people are very judgmental. The bullying and depression and things that you can’t really control, I feel like there’s so much more that can be done. People get bullied a lot and our school offers a lot of outlets, but in reality do those outlets help enough? I know a ton of people who struggle with depression and other mental health disorders. If you count ADHD, I have ADHD and it can be really challenging. My school has a lot of support, like my 504 plan gives me extra time on all my tests; that alone helps a great amount, but the willingness of teachers to take the time to talk isn’t always available to you. So having an outside place like The Balanced Mind Foundation can be extremely important to get help. It’s important that kids know that that you can love yourself and have a problem at the same time. 

JPB: That’s beautifully said. The Balanced Mind Foundation finds a lot of different ways to say that everyday, but you just said it to thousands of teens better than we could. Any last bits of Hillary Tilles wisdom I can share with teens who may be struggling, or school administrators reading this?

HT: If someone signals that a peer might hurt themselves, teens won’t go and tell their parents and say, “Hey, Mom, my friend said she wants to hurt herself.” And I didn’t either, not until my friend was in the hospital recovering from a suicide attempt. And that scared me in places I don’t want anyone else to have to be. So, one message is, tell your parents if you hear this.

JPB: Excellent point. Thanks so much for the great work you’re doing on behalf of The Balanced Mind Foundation and all the families it helps feel better.

HT: You’re welcome. Thank you let’s get other high school students to advocate this month to get the vote out in the Pepsi Refresh Project. I want The Balanced Mind Foundation to win!  Remember, vote 3 times/ day, every day in the month of December Here’s how:

1. Vote on Pepsi's website: http://refresheverything.com/cabfhelpsmorekids

2. Vote on Facebook: http://tiny.cc/cabfhelpsmorekids

3. Text the code 104174 to the phone number 73774(PEPSI).

Please also vote every day, all three ways for The Balanced Mind Foundation's coalition partners (who are voting for us to win!) http://www.gooddreams.org/pepsi

If you have any questions, go to www.thebalancedmind.org/pepsi or call 847-492-8510.