Foundation of Hope | Mental Illness Research

Our mission is to conquer mental illness by investing in groundbreaking scientific research and mental health initiatives.

[Foundation of Hope | Mental Illness Research @walkforhope]

The official 2026 Walk for Hope commercial has arrived!

This year, we’re taking a new path to Umstead, with a reimagined route that gets walkers off much of Glenwood Ave. and onto a brand-new journey to the park.

Watch it. Share it. Then join us on the journey!

🚨 Early-Bird Registration ends MONDAY at midnight!
Don’t wait. Sign up now: https://t.co/TMRAKdtcxQ

🗓️ Sunday, October 11 | Angus Barn | 10 a.m.

[Foundation of Hope | Mental Illness Research @walkforhope]

In just 19 days, we’re TURNING UP THE HOPE at the Angus Barn! Join us Sunday, October 11, for the 38th Annual Walk for Hope & Festival.

Haven’t registered? You’ve got ONE MORE DAY TO SAVE! We’re extending the $70 adult registration rate through midnight tomorrow, September 23. After that, it increases to $80.

Bring your crew for a scenic 5K walk, live music from Liquid Pleasure, Angus Barn burgers, cold drinks, and activities for all ages.

It’s a day of fun with an urgent mission: funding breakthrough scientific research to create better futures for everyone affected by mental illness.

Register now and save $10!
https://t.co/TMRAKdtcxQ

[Foundation of Hope | Mental Illness Research @walkforhope]

WE KNOW THE COLORS. YOU KNOW WHAT TO DO. 👀

Our annual Guess the T-Shirt Color Contest is back for the 38th Annual Walk for Hope & Festival!

What colors will our walkers and volunteers wear on Sunday, October 11? Make your picks for a chance to win an Angus Barn gift card!

HOW TO ENTER:
🎨 Check out the 16 color options in the graphic.
👕 Choose one color for WALKERS and one for VOLUNTEERS.
💬 Comment below with your two picks, labeled “Walkers” and “Volunteers.”

Enter on Facebook, Instagram, or X—one entry per person total, please!

WHAT YOU COULD WIN:
🥇 $100 Angus Barn gift card: Guess BOTH shirt colors correctly to qualify.
🥈 $50 Angus Barn gift card: Guess the WALKER shirt color correctly to qualify.

We’ll randomly select one winner for each prize from the qualifying entries.

⏰ Enter by Wednesday, October 7 at 11:59 p.m. ET.

Winners will be announced after the Walk for Hope & Festival!

We’re keeping our lips sealed. Drop your guesses below! 🤐👇

[Foundation of Hope | Mental Illness Research @walkforhope]

LET THE BIDDING BEGIN! 🎉

The auctions are officially open for Evening of Hope on September 16 and Igniting Hope on September 17, featuring incredible trips, experiences, dining, art, and one-of-a-kind finds.

You don’t have to attend to win! Anyone can bid from anywhere. Explore the auctions now and check back throughout the week as new items are added.

Every bid helps advance mental illness research.

✨ Evening of Hope: https://t.co/w8cgA1Y81P
🪩 Igniting Hope:
https://t.co/P6muqHhqcd

[Foundation of Hope | Mental Illness Research @walkforhope]

One month to go. Time to turn up the hope!

Our community has already raised over $400,000 toward our $1.1 million goal. Incredible!! But now it’s time to kick it into overdrive and close that gap!

The simplest way to help is to spread the word.
Did you know we have a digital toolkit?
Check it out here: https://t.co/vTcvYedRMB

Download our brochure, this year’s commercial (and the extended cut!), facts about the Foundation and more to share with your network.

Every person you inspire to get involved brings us closer to breakthroughs in mental illness research that can change and save lives.

Let's make the 38th Walk for Hope one for the history books!

Sunday, October 11 at the Angus Barn.

If you haven’t registered yet, now’s the time: https://t.co/TMRAKdtKno

[Foundation of Hope | Mental Illness Research @walkforhope]

It’s time to spread the word! 💚

Walk for Hope yard signs, date toppers, brochures and posters are now available for pickup at the Angus Barn. Place a sign in your yard, display a poster at your business or share brochures with the community to help us reach even more people.

More people = More Impact (and more fun!)

Let’s make this our biggest year yet and blow past our $1.1 million goal for mental illness research together!

📍 9401 Glenwood Ave., Raleigh, NC 27617

Supplies are located on the porch of the Event Office, across the parking lot from the restaurant and next to the Kicking Booth.

Thank you for helping us spread hope.

Join us Sunday, October 11, at the Angus Barn
Sign up today: https://t.co/TMRAKdtcxQ

[Foundation of Hope | Mental Illness Research @walkforhope]

As we approach the 38th Annual Walk for Hope, it is important to remember why we walk: to fund the mental illness research that can change and save lives.

We are proud to support Drs. Rebecca Stephens and Marissa DiPiero of UNC Psychiatry with a two-year, $58,540 Seed Grant for their study, “Early Neighborhood Context Shapes Neuropsychiatric Risk in Children.”

Using more than 20 years of data from the UNC Early Brain Development Study, the researchers will examine how neighborhood factors, including access to quality education, health resources, green space, and economic opportunity, relate to brain development, cognitive abilities, and symptoms of anxiety and depression from infancy through adolescence.

The study will also explore whether improvements in neighborhood opportunity are associated with better developmental outcomes. Because environmental risk factors can be changed, this research could help guide earlier, more targeted interventions and community investments that give more children the opportunity to thrive.

Every dollar raised through the Walk for Hope helps make research like this possible.

Research is hope. 💚

Learn more about this study: https://t.co/mMpEeYCz7U
Sign up for the Walk: https://t.co/TMRAKdtKno

[Foundation of Hope | Mental Illness Research @walkforhope]

MILESTONE UNLOCKED: 1,000 WALKERS! 🎉

We thought we’d add a few surprises along the way when we announced the new journey for this year’s Walk for Hope.

Over the weekend, our early registration total surged past 1,000—which means we have a winner!

Congratulations to Dallas K. of Durham, our 1,000th registered walker! You’re taking home two limited-edition Foundation of Hope hats. We’re so excited you’ll be joining us on October 11!

With 41 days to go, the journey is only picking up speed.

Next stop: 2,000 walkers. And keep watching, there may be another surprise waiting somewhere along the way. 👀

Join us: https://t.co/TMRAKdtcxQ

[Foundation of Hope | Mental Illness Research @walkforhope]

We’ve passed 900 registered walkers for the 38th Annual Walk for Hope!

We’re on our way to 4,000+, and we thought we’d make the next milestone even more fun. Our 1,000th registered walker will receive TWO limited-edition Foundation of Hope hats—one to wear and one to share!

Only a few hats remain. Will you be #1,000?

Register now: https://t.co/TMRAKdtcxQ

[Foundation of Hope | Mental Illness Research @walkforhope]

🚨 RAFFLE ANNOUNCEMENT🚨

1. Domestic Air Travel for Two Courtesy of @Delta
2. $1,000 Bailey’s Fine Jewelry Gift Card
3. $250 Second Empire Gift Card

1 ticket — $5
5 tickets — $20
10 tickets — $30

100% of proceeds directly support mental illness research!

And don't forget, Walk for Hope Early-Bird Registration Ends TONIGHT at Midnight!

Get raffle tickets: https://t.co/XsOAbQbQWM
Sign up for the Walk: https://t.co/TMRAKdtcxQ

[Foundation of Hope | Mental Illness Research @walkforhope]

We’re still cooling down after one hot night at the Bahia Endless Summer Party on August 9!

Thanks to the generosity of our guests, sponsors, donors, and the wonderful Atlantic Beach community, more than $120,000 was raised for CHAAMP, our child and adolescent anxiety and mood disorders research program at UNC. Wow!!

That means more support for groundbreaking research and treatment focused on helping kids and teens struggling with anxiety and depression.

The food was amazing, the wine was flowing, and The Embers had everyone on their feet. But what made the night truly special was being surrounded by so many people who care deeply about giving kids and families in North Carolina more hope.

To everyone who joined us, supported us, sponsored the evening, or helped make it possible: THANK YOU!

Take a look back at the night:
https://t.co/kHYaoaJ3uq

Learn more about CHAAMP:
https://t.co/uDmvklVTIf

[UNC Psychiatry @UNCPsychiatry]

Join Team UNC Psychiatry for the 2026 @walkforhope Walk for Hope! We’re walking to support the 1 in 5 Americans affected by mental illness—and to help fuel the research that can lead to better treatments and better lives. 👟💙

https://t.co/2g94Hhdtn8

[Foundation of Hope | Mental Illness Research @walkforhope]

There’s something really special about what can happen when people come together around something they care deeply about.

At the Foundation of Hope, we see it every day. People give, volunteer, walk, sponsor, advocate, conduct research, and simply show up because they believe we can make a difference in the fight against mental illness.

And together, we are making a difference.

On National Nonprofit Day, we’re feeling especially grateful for the incredible community that surrounds the Foundation of Hope.

YOU are the heart of everything we do. 💚

A nonprofit may organize the work. But a community makes it possible.

Thank you for believing in this mission and for being part of ours.

We couldn’t do it without you.

[Foundation of Hope | Mental Illness Research @walkforhope]

Every fifth person at your table, please stand.

Look around the room.

Those standing represent the more than 1 in 5 U.S. adults living with mental illness.

And everyone around them represents something just as important: the family, friends, colleagues, neighbors, and communities who have the power to stand beside them.

Mental illness is often invisible, but our support shouldn’t be.

Yesterday, that powerful moment brought the message to life at the Kickoff Luncheon for the 38th Annual Walk for Hope, where team captains and sponsors came together at the Angus Barn. The support filling that room was anything but invisible.

A special thank you to Dr. Warren Taylor, Chair of the Department of Psychiatry and a member of our Scientific Advisory Committee, for reminding us exactly why this work matters and how the support of this community has helped UNC Psychiatry lead the way nationally and advance research that can change and save lives.

In 2025, you helped us make history by raising a record-breaking $1,029,000 for mental illness research at the Walk for Hope.

This year, we’re aiming even higher: $1.1 million!

1 in 5 is where this story starts. Together, let’s change where it goes. 💙

Join us Sunday, October 11 at the Angus Barn and be part of the fight against mental illness.

⚡ Save Now: Early-bird registration ends August 24.
👉 https://t.co/TMRAKdtcxQ