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Anyone Can Affect Mental Illness

The SHINE Initiative is a 501c3 non-profit charitable organization. Contributions are tax exempt to the fullest extent of the law.


Gifts of any size can be made to The SHINE Initiative either through our online giving portal:



or by mailing a check to:
The SHINE Initiative
9 Leominster Connector
Leominster, MA 01453

Unique and fun ways to get involved.

The Shine Initiative’s Keep Your Mind Open fundraising campaign is the only golf tournament we know of that starts and ends on the 19th hole!

The event strikes a winning balance between having fun and raising money and awareness for the very serious cause of Mental Illness. Participants enjoy great food while participating in a trivia challenge, hear guest speakers discuss the latest developments in the fight against mental illness and applaud the recipients of the Local Hero Award. Finally, we cap off the night off with a stand-up comedy performance from some of the funniest comedians around.

Michael’s Run launched on October 8, 2011 – a 5k through Leominster, Massachusetts in memory of Michael Jay Amico Wallace who has been missing from his home in California since February of 2003.

Michael was born and raised in Leominster, MA and was originally diagnosed at age 18 with clinical depression. With the help of his family, Michael sought treatment immediately and had the best care and support available. He graduated Harvard in 1995 and eventually moved to California to escape waves of depression that often coincided with the winter months. After a series of painful events, Michael began slipping into another depression.

There is much more to this story, and there are many theories, but all start and end with the fact that Michael simply disappeared from his home on February 4, 2003.

Michael’s family continues to struggle with the unknown every day, but were compelled to create this event to help raise awareness for the fight against mental illness.

To learn more about Michael’s story or to learn about this year’s run, visit www.MichaelsRun.org.

The Quarter Mile is a grassroots fundraising campaign dedicated entirely to Scientific Research. Each year teams work to raise over a mile of quarters for the fight against mental illness in children and young adults, through mini-fundraising events like yard sales, bocce and volleyball tournaments, and auctioning a variety of goods and services.

While we view the Quarter Mile as an ongoing initiative, its major fundraising is focused on one quarter of the year, April-June. Last year the employees of Fidelity Bank in Central Massachusetts raised over $21,000. 100% of the monies raised went directly to Scientific Research.