Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services was elated to host our first gala event in four years on Thursday, June 1, 2023 at the Skirball Cultural Center’s outdoor Taper Courtyard.

On behalf of Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services, we extend our deepest gratitude and appreciation for your incredible support for our Mental Health Heroes event and campaign. Thanks to your generosity and dedication, we are thrilled to announce that we raised more than $600,000 to support our vital mental health, substance use, and suicide prevention services. Your contributions have the power to change lives and create a future where everyone has access to high-quality care that recognizes the inseparable nature of mental health and physical well-being. Together, we are making a difference in the lives of countless individuals, providing them with the hope and healing they deserve.

To all of our guests, donors, event honorees, staff, and volunteers—thank you for being our Mental Health Heroes!
The heightened groundswell of mental health awareness we have seen over these past few years is matched by a wave of incredible need. The lack of access to mental health services and supports remains for many children, teens, and adults—especially in communities where discrimination and injustice limit that access. To address the increasing youth mental health epidemic, Didi Hirsch expanded our youth mental health services in 2022 with the acquisition of Teen Line, the nation’s leading peer-to-peer mental health support hotline. In 2022, Teen Line responded to more than 6,500 calls, texts and emails from youth across the country (and even the world!).

Over just the last 15 years, Didi Hirsch has helped more than 1.8 million individuals. Despite the significant impact we have made Didi Hirsch remains committed to answering the call of expanding and deepening our support to more people in crisis. As a founding member of the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline and one of the first crisis lines to offer bilingual Spanish support 24/7, we lead 988 in California in partnership with 11 crisis centers across the state.

In this time of crisis, Didi Hirsch is proud that more than 1,000 dedicated staff and volunteers are able provide high-quality, compassionate care to 189,000 people annually across our programs. This event enables us to raise vital resources that will change lives and propel us to a future where everyone can thrive with access to high-quality care that treats mental health and physical health as inseparable.

Event Legacy

We are deeply proud of what Erasing the Stigma has built over the decades. Didi Hirsch took a lead role in sparking positive conversations about mental health in 1997 by presenting former second lady of the United States Tipper Gore with a Leadership Award at its first Erasing the Stigma Awards.

Since then, we have honored dozens of artists, advocates, researchers, writers and sports figures who have kept the conversation going. Past honorees include Dustin Hoffman, Quincy Jones, Carrie Fisher, Selena Gomez, Congressman Jamie Raskin, former Congressman Patrick J. Kennedy, Terry Bradshaw, Melissa Rivers, Judy Collins, Rick Springfield, Kid Cudi, the NFL Players Association and Lady Gaga’s Born This Way Foundation. Because of their advocacy, there is less shame and silence around mental illness. We are excited to recognize this year’s impressive honorees, celebrate the past 80 years of work at Didi Hirsch, and look forward to the future with the Mental Health Heroes event.

Scroll to Top