On Valentine’s Day, both the Women’s and Men’s Basketball Teams showed love to the new chapter of Morgan’s Message on campus.

Morgan Rodgers was a women’s lacrosse player at Duke University and died by suicide in 2011 after battling with anxiety, depression, and the feeling of low self-worth.

Her twin sister and mother started Morgan’s Message following her death to continue her legacy and eliminate the stigma surrounding mental health within the high school and collegiate student-athlete communities.

To commemorate, the women’s team wore blue ribbons in their hair or on their shoelaces. The men’s team wore blue tape with a personal message or about a person close to their hearts, to support mental health.

“We asked the coaches first, but they had the opportunity to write on the tape who they are playing for, whether it be Morgan or someone close to them who died from suicide,” Advisor, Sarah Perry said.

The Double-Header dedication game was started by Perry who is in her first year as assistant women’s lacrosse coach.

“This is the second chapter I’ve started,” Perry said. “I was a co-advisor at N.C. Wesleyan, and now I’m doing it all by myself. Taking on the lead role as what I like to call staffulty, since I teach and coach.”

Perry said she loves this and is in the process of taking the next step to become an at-large ambassador.

“It’s more than coaching. It’s more than just knowing them on the field or in the classroom. It’s getting to know who they are, how they think, and how they are as an individual,” Perry said.

Senior, Elijah Jones is someone who is involved with the chapter of Morgan’s Message on campus and plays for the men’s soccer team.

“I’m doing this for my own personal reasons, and I’m very passionate about mental health and men’s mental health,” Jones said. “So being the only male on the executive board is kind of cool because I get to spread the word and be the example for the group to be a voice and spread the message of mental health.”

Jones said he goes to therapy often and has enjoyed it enough to recommend it to his friends.

“We are a growing club, looking for new members and excited for the opportunity to start a chapter on campus and grow from here,” Jones said.

Another student involved is junior Hannah Huffman.

“As someone who struggled with mental health, I feel like it’s a good thing to be a part of to just help spread awareness for mental health,” Huffman said.

Huffman said about 80 people were interested in signing up for the club.

“Dedication games is our biggest thing, and on campus getting the majority of student-athletes involved and emphasize the idea of human over athlete,” she said.

Morgan Rodgers started battling anxiety and mental health problems when she was a senior in high school.

The first time around, she received support and professional help that proved beneficial at the time, according to morgansmessage.org.

In January 2017, Rodgers had a knee injury sidelining her for the entire season.

According to the website, she was determined to return to the field, undergoing surgery and dedicating herself to an intensive rehabilitation program.

But after this injury, Rodgers struggled with this change because she felt she lost control within her life.

She battled with feeling she was not living up to her expectations, and her feelings of isolation from the team and stress caused by other relationship issues brought a return of anxiety and depression.

This time, Morgan kept family and friends in the dark as she battled her mental health.

In result, Morgan took her own life July 11, 2019, at 22 years old.

To see Morgan’s full story and ways to become an ambassador you can go to morgansmessage.org.

If interested in joining the college’s chapter of Morgan’s Message, go to Ferrum College Morgan’s Message on Instagram for more information.