Washington State University Tyler Hilinski locker at the 2018 Apple Cup
The Hilinski Family, Tyler’s Mom and Dad and brothers Kelly and Ryan along with their extended families and some amazing friends created H3H in response to the out pouring of love and affection for Tyler during, and after his life. With H3H we have created a non-profit foundation with the goal of keeping Tyler’s memory alive and generating the funding necessary to support programs that will help de-stigmatize mental illness.
Hilinski’s Hope is partnering with the NCAA Sport Science Institute to encourage evidence-based approaches to bolster mental wellness support for NCAA student-athletes. Brian Hainline, M.D., Chief Medical Officer for the NCAA stated, “January 16, 2018 was an incredibly sad day in college athletics as Tyler Hilinski, quarterback at Washington State University, died by suicide. Kym and Mark Hilinski founded the Hilinski’s Hope Foundation to honor Tyler’s life by working with collegiate athletic departments to promote student-athlete mental health. The NCAA Sport Science Institute is proud to partner with Hilinski’s Hope to identify effective strategies for increasing the adoption and implementation of best practices for understanding and supporting student-athlete mental wellness at all NCAA member institutions. The best practices are clearly described in the Inter-Association Consensus Document: Best Practices for Understanding and Supporting Student-Athlete Mental Wellness (NCAA SSI, 2018) and were developed and endorsed by 25 of the most prominent mental health, medical, higher education, and sports medicine organizations in the nation. Our sincere thanks go out to Hilinski’s Hope for the work they are embracing and the benefit it will have on NCAA student- athletes across the country.
One of the NCAA’s Best Practices is providing education to student-athletes and coaches related to mental health. Over the last year, Hilinski’s Hope has sponsored mental health training at several universities which have included the bystander intervention program Step UP! and mental health curriculum Behind Happy Faces.
We at Wazzu Nation support Hilinski’s Hope and suggest that you will too. Please go to Hilinki’s Hope Foundation and support the effort.
