Send #WarmWishes to Someone in the Hospital for Our 2018 Holiday Card Drive

It can be hard to keep your spirits high when you’re spending your holiday season in the hospital, going through medical testing, receiving therapy or missing out on celebrations in general. That is why, last year, The Mighty launched its first holiday card drive to remind those who spent their holidays away from their loved ones that they were not alone. We partnered with McLean Hospital and our amazing community sent in more than 10,000 handwritten cards to people facing mental health challenges. It was truly remarkable.

This year, we want to continue the Mighty holiday tradition of sending love, support and #WarmWishes to others. We’re again partnering with McLean Hospital in Belmont, Massachusetts, to deliver Mighty mail to children and adults with mental illnesses. We’re also proud to partner with St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee, to send messages and artwork to display on TV screens throughout the hospital.

Our card drive will be a little bit different this year — we’re going digital! This way, we can reach more people than ever. Be sure to read the instructions below because we’ll be sending this year’s #WarmWishes to McLean and St. Jude two different ways.

Either way, though, it’s simple to get involved! Post a Thought to our site, with the hashtag #WarmWishes and either #McLean or #StJude depending on which hospital you want this message to go to (hint: you can send several to each!). We have more detailed instructions below. You can do as many messages as you’d like — in fact, we encourage you to. Let’s spread some love and support.

How to Send #WarmWishes to #McLean:

We’ll be individually printing all of the digital messages you post for the children and adults with mental illnesses at #McLean on cards with artwork from members in The Mighty community. Please keep these under 300 words for our printers!

• To send your #WarmWishes to #McLean, start by posting a Thought on The Mighty.
• In the Post menu, choose Post a Thought. This will open a pop-up window.

• If you want, add a title for your Thought in the Title field. Make sure to include the hashtag #WarmWishes and #McLean. We recommend signing your messages: Sending #WarmWishes, [your name]
• Write your holiday message in the Your Thought field.
• When you’re finished writing your message and adding your hashtags, select the Post button inside the pop-up window to finish sharing.
• You’ll find your post in your Profile. People who follow you and people who follow any hashtags you used will see your Thought in their Mighty Homefeed.

Submit artwork to be chosen for the front of the cards here. 

How to Send #WarmWishes to #StJude:

We’ll be sending the children and young adults at St. Jude the digital messages you post and artwork you submit to display on TV screens throughout the hospital.

• To send your #WarmWishes to #StJude, start by posting a Thought on The Mighty.
• In the Post menu, choose Post a Thought. This will open a pop-up window.
• If you want, add a title for your Thought in the Title field. Make sure to include the hashtag #WarmWishes and #StJude. We recommend signing your messages: Sending #WarmWishes, [your name]
• Write your message in the Your Thought field.
• When you’re finished writing your message and adding your hashtags, select the Post button inside the pop-up window to finish sharing your Thought.
• You’ll find your post in your Profile. People who follow you and people who follow any hashtags you used will see your Thought in their Mighty Homefeed.

Submit artwork to be displayed throughout the hospital here. 

We’ll be collecting the #WarmWishes you post until December 12, so submit as many as you can, or send this link to your friends and family so they can send their #WarmWishes too. Help us reach 20,000 messages! Let’s spread more holiday love and support than ever.

And because it’s not just people in the hospital having a tough time this holiday season, we may share some of the messages we receive in a future post or on social media. You can also share your art and messages with us on social media using the hashtag #WarmWishes.