The Wellness Council of Indiana (WCI) is not a new name for the Colts. The organization, which was acquired by the Indiana Chamber of Commerce in 2011, has partnered with the team twice to deliver suicide prevention training to staff.
2025 was the first year the Council applied for the Kicking The Stigma Legacy Action Grant, and it's one-for-one. Kicking The Stigma is the Colts and Irsay family initiative to support mental health awareness, research and treatment while working to remove the stigma so often associated with mental health. Each year, mental health initiatives across the state are encouraged to apply for financial support.
"We've offered mental health first aid as a training program since 2021," director of programs and training Olivia Lockard said. "(Employers) were really looking for more, more and more. We just felt it was right place, right time."
The WCI's mission is to "improve the quality of live for Indiana residents by empowering employers and communities to create thriving places to live, work, learn and play."
Struggling with mental health challenges in a workplace setting can be challenging, and it can be even more difficult to come forward and talk about it. WCI wants to build safe environments for employees to be able to talk about their struggles with someone in the building, and how the confidant can handle that information.
"Mental health is highly stigmatized," Lockard said. "So, we are able to really build and give them those skill sets and tools of how to start the conversation."
When initially applying for the grant from Kicking The Stigma, the hope was to begin a new initiative: Thrive at Work Indiana: A Statewide Mental Health Initiative. The goal was to equip employers with "tools, strategies and resources to prioritize mental wellness and support employees effectively." The grant has helped with much more than that.
"executive director Ashley O'Rourke said. "This has absolutely supported the initial goal of the application to increase access to mental health education and reduce stigma in the workplace."
Through training modules such as The Working Mind, Naloxone, Overdose Response and Question, Persuade, Refer, WCI hopes to continue its impact in the workplace for both employers and employees, and make sure nobody struggles alone.
"I always ask, 'How can I support you? How can I provide a resource if you are in need of one,'" Lockard said. "It's about trying to be that open line of communication."
