A new campaign encourages conversations about mental health and connects people who may be struggling with resources to help.

FINDLAY, Ohio — September is National Suicide Prevention Month, and a new campaign in Hancock County is looking to connect people in need to resources that can help.

Let’s face it: Conversations about mental health can be uncomfortable, difficult and downright awkward for everyone involved.

But groups in Hancock County are looking to embrace that discomfort while tackling a serious issue.



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Speaking up about mental health challenges can feel “really awkward.”

Dan Metzger, a pastor at St. Mark’s United Methodist Church in Findlay, said it can be difficult to approach someone who may be struggling.

“It can be awkward to go to a friend and to say, ‘Hey, are you struggling? Is there something going on? You haven’t seemed yourself lately,’” Metzger said.

That’s why the Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services Board is working with local partners in Hancock County to “embrace the awkward” through its Make It Awkward campaign.

St. Mark’s United Methodist Church in Findlay is one of those partners.

Metzger said the campaign is intended to help close a gap between people experiencing a mental health crisis and the agencies and individuals who can offer support.

“One of the things we know is that there’s sometimes a gap between the people who are experiencing a mental health crisis and all of the agencies and the people who are really good at helping to support people in the middle of those things,” Metzger said.

Kati Rinker, with Family Resource Center of Northwest Ohio, said the campaign was prompted in part by what she said was an increase in deaths by suicide recorded in Hancock County early in 2026. 

“When we started this campaign, we had already had six confirmed deaths by suicide by March when we started, which was significantly higher than past years,” Rinker said.

The campaign aims to reach people who may be searching online for information or resources.

Rinker said videos are tailored to groups that local organizations recognize as having elevated suicide risk, including veterans, older adults and people who work in agriculture.

“The videos are populations that we recognize as historically higher risk. We targeted veterans, the aging population and individuals in agriculture,” Rinker said. “It’s really just attention-grabbing videos that direct people toward the Make It Awkward website, which again gives resources.”

MakeItAwkward.org connects people who need help, or want to help, with resources to help. A similar national campaign called Seize the Awkward, also provides resources — including scripts and prompts that break down how to start those “awkward” conversations and what to say during them.  

Metzger said the campaign is designed to reach people across different backgrounds and circumstances.

“We know that it’s not just one kind of person who might be struggling with mental health, and so we wanted to really reach out to a lot of different kinds of people,” Metzger said.

Videos and resources are tailored to a range of groups, from students to people in agriculture and law enforcement.

Teresa White, director of the Fort Findlay FOP Lodge 20 Foundation, said the campaign also addresses mental health challenges within the law enforcement community.

“We’ve experienced three suicides in the last 12 months in Hancock County law enforcement. So this campaign, I believe, will save lives,” White said.

White said the campaign answers questions people may have about how to approach someone in law enforcement who may be struggling.

“This campaign answers that question: Make it awkward. Ask them how they’re doing, follow up with them, continue to check in with them,” White said.

Metzger said community connections can help counter feelings of loneliness.

“The thing that we know is that community is really kryptonite to this feeling of isolation that so many people have,” Metzger said. “Being able to have conversations and reach out to people in these situations is so important.” 

The campaign was launched earlier this month, and organizers plan for it to become a year-round resource.

If you or someone you know is in crisis, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.