Seventeen years after losing her mother, the pain is still fresh for Nissa Smith.
“She succumbed to her depression through suicide,” Smith explained. “There was such a stigma around it…it wasn’t talked about, you know, we didn’t talk about depression or bipolar… it was something that people were embarrassed to discuss.”
Courtesy: Nissa Smith Smith felt alone in her grief but was able to take steps in her healing by taking part in “Out of Darkness” fundraiser walks hosted by the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.
“I didn’t realize that at the time, but my first walk was so impactful on me, and changed my life, really, because I thought I was alone, like I thought I was alone in my grief,” Smith told FOX 17 News. “I wanted to do something where I could have an effect on our local community, and had always wanted to start my own nonprofit.”
4 One 2 Cares , coined after the name of Smith’s distillery, 4 One 2 in Wayland, was born.
FOX 17 The early days of her nonprofit were filled with small-scale fundraisers, like vendor fairs and a unique adult prom called “Beautiful You,” designed to bring people together for a night of joy and connection.