$10 million gift to USOPC won`t only benefit athletes` mental health | Opinion

.....Yucca and Gary Rieschel’s latest gift will help save lives.

The Rieschels are donating $10 million to be used to bolster the USOPC’s mental health program. It follows the couple’s $1.5 million donation for the same purpose in 2020, which was used to hire additional staff psychologists and psychiatrists and create a registry of local providers for athletes.

“It is a bloody epidemic in the United States,” Gary Rieschel told USA TODAY Sports. “… This is a step toward addressing what I think is a problem for this next generation that we literally all have to work to solve. Whether it’s an athlete, whether it’s someone that’s a teacher or a nurse, you should know it’s OK to seek help.

“If part of this messaging reduces that stigma, that’s where we want to be.”.....

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Bethany`s Notes: What a gift...wow. An investment in the future of mental health for those at the elite level and those aspiring to be at the elite level. Thank you Yucca and Gary Rieschel!