Nate (left) and Janise (right) pictured at a community event.
Mental Health Ambassadors
Meet the 2025 Mental Health Ambassadors from our mental health equity initiative.
In 2024–2025, as part of our mental health equity initiative, Vital CxNs partnered with five organizations to host and facilitate a mental health conversation series grounded in the Mental Design Institute’s Understanding Everyday Emotions framework.
Each partner adapted the course content and activities to ensure the series was culturally responsive and aligned with the specific needs of their community. Participants explored emotions, stress, and the body’s response to everyday challenges, building emotional vocabulary and practical regulation skills.
After the series, four participants, from participating sites at Young Man with a Plan and Brooke Charter High School, were trained as Mental Health Ambassadors to share mental health resources with their communities and provide one-on-one support to their peers. We sat down with the mental health ambassadors to hear about their motivations for engaging in this work and the impact the program has had on them and their future aspirations.
From left to right: Julphanya, Mary (VC Project Manager), Janise, Benjamin and Nate at an ambassador training session.
Nate Moise
The son of Haitian immigrants and the oldest of four siblings, Boston native, Nate, spends his free time playing video games, coding, making music, and designing art.Nate says he was motivated to become a mental health ambassador as a result of his cousin’s struggles with mental health – a topic he admits he didn’t fully grasp at first. “[Before doing this work], I didn’t really know how deep [mental health issues] went.” By participating in this initiative, Nate gained a deeper understanding of mental health, strengthened his interpersonal skills, and enriched his relationships with both peers and his family.
For example, he learned practical tools to deescalate situations or navigate intergenerational gaps in understanding mental health. It also provided him a meaningful opportunity to reconnect with his roots. “I got to interact with the community more and use my second language [Haitian Creole] more, which is something I haven't really done since my grandma died.” Nate says. “I think [being an ambassador] has made me a better person.” This experience has also informed new goals for Nate’s future. Nate shares he aspires to pursue an interest in media through storytelling, “I want to talk to more people and learn about them, what they do, and how they do it.”
“I think [being an ambassador] has made me a better person.”
Nate Moise, Young Man with a Plan, Mental Health Ambassador
Benjamin Nicolai
Born in Seattle and raised in Boston, Benjamin’s worldview has been shaped by his family - specifically his dad’s work in labor unions and his mom’s work in grassroots organizing. His decision to become an ambassador was driven by his academic interest in psychology and neuroscience, along with his personal experience with autism, ADHD, and depression: “It's amazing to be able to talk to people about these issues that I have struggled with myself and tried my best to overcome, and maybe even help them formulate a way they can take on these issues.”
Benjamin found the opportunity to learn more about mental health fascinating, saying it corrected some of his own misconceptions and helped him to better recognize “toxic views” and behaviors. Benjamin also echoed Nate’s sentiment that learning about the nuances of people’s experiences and struggles have “challenged” him “to be a better person.” As an ambassador, Benjamin enjoyed becoming a trusted confidante and resource to his peers at his martial arts gym and other fitness spaces. Through this peer-role he was able to provide resources and feedback, for example reminding others that “You don't need to have depression to do [therapy].” Benjamin’s ultimate takeaway is one of grace: challenging himself and others to have more tolerance with everyone, including themselves.
Nate (left) and Benjamin (right) are recognized with certificates at the end of the project.
“It's amazing to be able to talk to people about these issues that I have struggled with myself.”
Benjamin Nicolai, Young Man with a Plan, Mental Health Ambassador
Janise Burge
Janise lives in East Boston with her parents and older brother. For her, the role of a mental health ambassador felt like a natural evolution. “I've been an ambassador [of mental health] most of my life,” she says referring to her habit of speaking openly about mental health and checking in on her friends’ mental wellbeing regularly. Janise says she participated in this initiative to learn how to give better advice and provide resources to those in need. She reflects that being an ambassador opened her eyes to the diversity of struggles people face and the range of approaches someone may take to address a situation.
A defining moment of her time as an ambassador was helping a friend through “a really tough situation” that spanned half the school year – an experience that both strengthened their bond and showed her the importance of “lean[ing] on each other.” Overall, being an ambassador provided Janice with the tools to better “understand people and what I can do to help them figure out ways to regulate their emotions and get through whatever challenges they might have.” While the experience reaffirmed her interest in pursuing a career in the mental health field, Janice views mental health education as a global necessity, “Mental health is a big part of every community across the globe that needs to be talked about more” she says, “more people [need to] get involved, so we can help society function better.”
“Mental health is a big part of every community across the globe that needs to be talked about more.”
Janise Burge, Brooke Charter High School, Mental Health Ambassador
Julphanya Alabre
Originally from Florida, Julphanya “Jojo” lives in Boston with her Haitian immigrant mom and younger brother. She describes her family as very close, saying they talk frequently and enjoy sharing stories with each other. Julphanya loves everything related to the arts, baking, and reading. Her decision to become a mental health ambassador was driven by an interest in psychology and desire to lead by an example. “[This role] meant stepping out of my comfort zone and being vulnerable, which allows other people to be vulnerable,” she says. While balancing the demands of the program with her studies and personal life has been challenging, Julphanya values the interpersonal skills she has gained.
She has learned, in her own words, “how to approach people, meet them where they are at, and not to jump to conclusions, [but rather] be open minded and [...] put myself into other people's shoes.” Through this role, Julphanya has also recognized a systemic barrier to seeking support—“A lot of people struggle because they are too scared to ask for help since society makes it seem wrong to ask for help or to be vulnerable.” Julphanya is determined to dismantle that stigma. Whether she is serving as a youth ambassador or a mental health practitioner in the future, she is committed to ensuring that no one feels too scared to seek the support they deserve.
Janise (left) and Julphanya (right) recognized with certificates at the end of the project.
“[This role] meant stepping out of my comfort zone and being vulnerable, which allows other people to be vulnerable.”
Julphanya Alabre, Brooke Charter High School, Mental Health Ambassador
Written by Briana Acosta (January 2026)