| To Write Love on Her Arms | |
|---|---|
| Abbreviation | TWLOHA |
| Motto | "Love Is the Movement" "Rescue Is Possible" |
| Formation | 2006 |
| Type | Non-profit organization |
| Purpose/focus | Present hope and find help for people struggling with depression, self-injury, addiction or suicide while also investing directly into treatment and recovery,. |
| Headquarters | Melbourne, FL, U.S. |
| Founder / Creative Director | Jamie Tworkowski |
| Staff | 12 |
| Website | http://www.twloha.com |
To Write Love on Her Arms (TWLOHA) is an interfaith,[1] American non-profit organization[2] which aims to present hope for people struggling with addiction, depression, self injury, and thoughts of suicide while also investing directly into treatment and recovery. Based in Melbourne, Florida, TWLOHA seeks to connect people to treatment centers, websites, books, support groups, and other resources.[3] TWLOHA also encourages people to have honest conversations about these issues, to live in community.
A large portion of the work is dedicated to bridging the gap between traditional treatment (i.e. rehab, counseling, helplines) and the lives of people who need help. Examples of this include music festivals and tours, social networking sites, and schools and universities. Wanting to support existing professional help organizations rather than replace them, TWLOHA also sends a portion of donations directly to such causes as Hopeline, InTheRooms.com, S.A.F.E. Alternatives, Minding Your Mind, and (in Australia) Kids Help Line.[4]
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, Twitter, and Tumblr. TWLOHA had a booth at every stop at Vans Warped Tour for the past five years.
Contents |
TWLOHA was founded by Jamie Tworkowski in March 2006. Prior to that, the seeds of the group were sown by a story written by Tworkowski, about 19-year-old Renee Yohe, who struggled with addiction, depression, self-injury, and attempted suicide. Tworkowski's story, written in February 2006, chronicles Yohe's life five days before she entered treatment. Unable to get Yohe checked into a treatment centre in the meantime, friends offered moral support.[5]
We become her hospital and the possibility of healing fills our living room with life.[5]
TWLOHA began operating as a non-profit organization in October 2006 under the umbrella of Fireproof Ministries.[6] On April 30, 2007, TWLOHA left Fireproof and TWLOHA, Inc. was established in Florida as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. The TWLOHA team is made up of 12 full-time staff members and a rotating group of approximately 6 interns.[7] The organization had their offices in Cocoa, FL until 2011 when they moved to downtown Melbourne, FL.[8]
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 and Facebook 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 responded to over 160,000 messages from over 100 countries and invested over $850,000 in treatment and recovery.[9]
On the FAQ for TWLOHA's official website, it stated that Renee has finished rehab and although she will have to fight her addiction for the rest of her life. Yohe published a collection of journals in a book titled "Purpose for the Pain".[10] Yohe's story has also been turned to a major motion picture titled "Renee". She will be portrayed by actress Kat Dennings. The organization will be prominently featured with Chad Michael Murray portraying Tworkowski. Actors Corbin Bleu and Rupert Friend will also star [11]
TWLOHA has risen to prominence through endorsements of celebrities and bands including Miley Cyrus, Joaquin Phoenix, Christina Perri, Skillet, Boys Like Girls, OneRepublic, the members of Paramore, Jon Foreman from Switchfoot, Sean Smith from The Blackout, Derek Sanders from Mayday Parade, Deon Rexroat from Anberlin, Amy Lee from Evanescence, Bryce Avery from The Rocket Summer, Casey Calvert from Hawthorne Heights, Kevin Skaff from A Day To Remember, Sam Boyd of samspeaks.net and Brendon Urie and Ryan Ross from Panic at the Disco and has a growing loyal fan base. Other supportive bands - even in other countries worldwide, such as Fresno, from Brazil - and musicians include A Skylit Drive, Between the Trees who wrote two songs about Renee Yohe, "A Time For Yohe", as well as the song "The Way She Feels". The Rocket Summer, Fireflight, The Almost, Underoath, All Is Forgiven, Bayside, As We Collide, The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, Skillet with the song "The Last Night", Mat Kearney, and many more.
The organization has been invited to tour with several artists has a medium to convey their message. Some artists include Switchfoot, Anberlin, The Rocket Summer, Athlete, Blue October, MYCHILDREN, MY BRIDE, OH, SLEEPER, and more.
Supporters have said September 10–17 is "TWLOHA Week" and many write "LOVE" on their arms during that week, sharing the story of hope with others. However, there are some regions that observe this day on November 13. The organization address this event and clarified that it was something they did not create, but appreciate their supporters taking on such an active interest in promoting the organization.[12]
YouTube celebrity Kevin Wu of KevJumba and JumbaFund created interest in this organization when he created JumbaFund, a YouTube channel where all proceeds go to a charity voted on by its viewers.[13] Other YouTube celebrities such as SwiftKarateChop (Matthew Brian Brown) have also begun supporting this organization.
In August 2007, TWLOHA was awarded a MySpace Impact Award in the Community Building category.[14]
On September 12, 2008, To Write Love on Her Arms was featured on the NBC Nightly News segment "Making a Difference".[15]
TWLOHA cut all ties and funding to Mercy Ministries, and Teen Challenge in 2008 after discovering their alleged mistreatment of patients.[16] TWLOHA also addresses this on their FAQ section.[17] TWLOHA's support of the LGBT community is evident on their website. They participated in the "Wear Your Purple" Day [18] and have promoted the It Gets Better Campaign.[19]
"Love is the Movement", "Rescue is Possible", "Hope is real, Help is real" 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.
In early 2009, TWLOHA partnered with Kristin Brooks Hope Center to create IMAlive. IMAlive will be the first ever online crisis counseling over instant messenger staffed by people 100% trained and certified in crisis intervention. TWLOHA won $125,000 for IMAlive.[20]
On November 25, 2009, Rolling Stone magazine featured an article about TWLOHA.[20] On November 12, 2009, Jamie invited anyone in the NYC area to join in on the photo-shoot in Washington Square Park. The photos were taken by Peter Yang, whose photo of then Presidential Candidate Barack Obama won "Cover of the Year" in 2008. He later commented after the shoot that this was the largest group of subjects he'd photographed to date.
At the end of 2009, organization founder Jamie Tworkowski received mtvU's Good Woodie Award, which is given to artists whose commitment to a social cause has "effected the greatest change this year".[21]
The TWLOHA Spring 2010 UChapters Tour, "Evenings of Lyrics and Conversation," features music by Damion Suomi, Andy Zipf, and Lauris Vidal.[22]
In March 2010 TWLOHA won the Best Non-Profit Use of Twitter Award at the 2nd Annual Shorty Awards held in New York City.[23]
In October 2010, TWLOHA was part of a piece on CBS Morning News about preventing The Youngest Suicides.[24]
On January 6, 2011 TWLOHA won the 2010 "Must-Follow Non-Profit" Award at the 4th Annual Mashable Awards.[25]
In February 2011, for the second year in a row, TWLOHA was a finalist in the Shorty Awards.[26]
As of January 12, 2011 TWLOHA had reached over 1,000,000 likes on their Official Facebook Page.[27]
On April 5, 2011, Behind the Brand interviewed founder Jamie Tworkowski about the past, present and future of TWLOHA.[28]
In the summer of 2011 TWLOHA launched a new campaign titled "Fears vs. Dreams" which asks people two questions: "What is your biggest fear?" and "What is your greatest dream?".[29]
On October 1, 2011 TWLOHA's first ever high school campaign, "The Storytellers" began accepting applications. The campaign aims to give high school students resources and support to bring awareness about the issues while also fundraising for the organization. The top fundraisers will receive a TWLOHA event at their school for no cost.[30]
On October 6, 2011 Chase Bank announced the five finalists for the American Giving Awards in which the five finalists will share $2 Million in grants. TWLOHA is one of those five and gained the most votes in Round 1 of any other organization.[31]
On December 10, 2011, TWLOHA was awarded a $1,000,000 grant towards their services on NBC's American Giving Awards.
