The Arizona Cardinals marked the start of Mental Health Awareness Month by hosting a mental health peer-to-peer support panel on May 1. The event took place in the Dignity Health Training Center auditorium and included Cardinals cheerleaders, players Trey McBride, Elijah Higgins, and Valentin Senn. Students from Red Mountain High School attended in person, while classrooms across the state watched via livestream.
The panel focused on sharing personal experiences and strategies for maintaining mental health. “Any time is a great time to have these conversations,” Trey McBride said. “This is the prime age. They’re exposed to so many different things. They see so much stuff with social media and all of the above. I think being here to talk about the struggles that we go through, how to get through those struggles, and whatever the case may be, is very important. A lot of these kids are facing that.”
Character Playbook, an NFL initiative, partnered with the Cardinals for this event. After the discussion, students participated in activities at the indoor practice facility focused on movement and stress relief techniques. Gift bags were also assembled by students for non-profit organizations.
Former Cardinals players Michael Bankston, Earl Watford, and Hamza Abdullah attended as well. Bankston spoke about checking in on friends regularly as part of his role as President of the NFLPA Phoenix Former Players Chapter.
The Arizona Cardinals are a professional football team in the NFC West division according to their official website. The team serves the greater Phoenix area according to their official website and hosts home games in Glendale according to their official website. The franchise is recognized as the oldest continuously operating professional football team in America according to their official website, having captured an NFC championship in 2008 according to their official website.
Reflecting on why these conversations matter regardless of status or achievement level, McBride said: “You could be the best in the world at what you do. You could be anybody, but everybody’s going to struggle with something. The fact that we’re here talking about our struggles and things that we’re going through, I think it is eye opening for these guys to see.”
