To Write Love on Her Arms
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To Write Love on Her Arms, also known as TWLOHA, is an American non-profit organization which aims to present hope and find help for young people struggling with problems such as depression, drug addiction, self-injury, and suicide. Based in Central Florida, TWLOHA seeks to connect young people to treatment centers, websites, books, support groups, and other resources. TWLOHA also encourages young people to have honest conversations about these issues, to live in community, and to seek help for these treatable conditions.
25% of all TWLOHA proceeds go directly to therapy and recovery through National Hopeline Network, Mercy Ministries, Teen Challenge and (in Australia) Kids Help Line. TWLOHA committed to supporting these organizations each month for the rest of 2007, with a fundraising goal of US$100,000.[citation needed]
The group's main exposure comes from musicians and bands who wear the organization's distinctive T-shirts in photographs and performances, however it has recently gained more and more public exposure through merchandise and public community websites such as Facebook, MySpace and Bebo. TWLOHA had a booth at every stop on the 2007 Vans Warped Tour.
As of April 2008, Hot Topic started carrying TWLOHA shirts, which makes Hot Topic the first chain to ever carry TWLOHA merchandise. Within 2 weeks TWLOHA shirts were one of the biggest selling shirts in Hot Topic, but due to the use of profanity and religion in the story printed on the inside of the shirts, they were ultimately pulled from the store at the end of those 2 weeks. The shirts that were unsold were given to Hot Topic employees. The story is currently being re-worked to comply with Hot Topics policies so they can continue to carry the shirts.
[edit] Community Exposure
TWLOHA has risen to prominence very quickly through endorsements of celebrities such as Hayley Williams from Paramore, Amy Lee from Evanescence, and Brendon Urie from Panic at the Disco and has a growing loyal fan base. Over 233,000 fans on Facebook since being added to the application (as of February 2008). In addition, Facebook groups for TWLOHA have increased three-fold since early 2007, with nearly 50,000 Facebook users associating themselves with groups related to the organization. As well, the "Love Is The Movement" project, although separate to the actual organization, had more than 380,000 members who dedicated themselves to writing "love" on their arms and sharing the message of the organization on February 13th, 2008 -- and any day thereafter.
In 2008, bands like Switchfoot have been on tour in support of this organization. The Up In Arms Tour has been across America spreading awareness of instances of depression and suicide amongst young people in attempt to be an agent of change to those suffering and those affected by these issues.
[edit] History
TWLOHA was founded by Jamie Tworkowski in March 2006. Prior to that, the seeds of the group were sown through the story of 19-year-old Renee Yohe, who struggled with addiction, depression, self-injury, and attempted suicide. Written by Tworkowski in February 2006, the story chronicles Yohe's life five days before she entered treatment. In addition to the story, T-shirts were printed and sold in Orlando to fund Yohe's drug treatment, and a MySpace page was created to serve as home base for the project. Bands such as Anberlin and Switchfoot showed their support and began wearing the TWLOHA T-shirts right away, and TWLOHA's MySpace page began to receive messages and comments from young people struggling with the same issues that Yohe faced. What began as an attempt to help one person in Orlando quickly generated wide interest – to date, TWLOHA has heard from young people in all 50 states as well as many from Canada, Mexico, Australia and the United Kingdom (among others). TWLOHA began operating as a non-profit organization in October 2006 under the umbrella of Fireproof Ministries. On September 1, 2007, TWLOHA left Fireproof and TWLOHA, Inc. was established in Florida as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. TWLOHA uses a team of part-time help and volunteers to respond to the growing volume of MySpace messages and emails.[citation needed] The group recently leased an office in Cocoa, Florida, which will allow them to expand.[citation needed] In August 2007, TWLOHA was awarded a MySpace Impact Award in the Community Building category.[citation needed]
May 25-31 has been called "TWLOHA Week" and many write "LOVE" on their arms during that week, sharing the story of hope with others.
"Love is the Movement", "Rescue is Possible" and "Stop the Bleeding" are slogans often used by the organization. "Stop the Bleeding" is the slogan TWLOHA uses for live events, which combine music, art and speaking.
