Park City-based youth mental health nonprofit Live Like Sam has launched a new campaign called “Same Inside,” and it’s designed to lower the barrier to honest conversations, helping youth, families and community members break the silence and recognize they are not alone when it comes to dealing with issues of emotional and mental wellbeing.
“Many young people appear fine on the outside, but inside, they are struggling, often quietly,” the organization said in a press release. “That struggle is not unique to youth. Adults carry the same weight. But for young people today, that pressure has intensified, shaped by constant comparison and expectation to appear as though everything is figured out.”
The nonprofit cited recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention showing that two in five high school students report persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness, one in five adolescents experience severe anxiety that affects daily life, and 61% of teens with depression receive no treatment. Despite growing awareness, according to 2025 SHARP data, many young people still do not speak up.
The “Same Inside” campaign draws on the idea that people are more alike on the inside than they reveal on the outside. Participants are invited to write one word that reflects what they carry internally, wear it or share it, and pass it on. A single word becomes a visible act that moves through communities and replaces silence with connection.
“This is about demasking,” said Ron Jackenthal, co-founder of Live Like Sam. “When someone shares what they are actually carrying, a few remarkable things happen at once. The person sharing feels less alone, and the people listening feel compassion and realize they can relate. That is what breaks isolation and where connection begins. And sharing may feel vulnerable at first but that kind of vulnerability transitions to bravery.”
Unlike traditional mental health campaigns, Same Inside is built on participation that leads to conversation rather than one-directional messaging, making the community itself both the message and the medium.
Live Like Sam will roll out Same Inside across schools, community partners and social platforms as part of May’s Mental Health Awareness Month curriculum.
The first major activation will take place at the organization’s second annual Leading with Kindness event at Woodward Park City on May 9, a free community gathering featuring workshops, youth activities, access to Woodward’s trampolines and skate park, and complimentary lunch for Kids. Last year’s event had close to 500 attendees.
Jackenthal hopes the campaign will touch communities beyond Summit and Wasatch counties. He plans to enlist local and national voices whose participation can help to reinforce the campaign’s core message. Early outreach includes alpine skier Bode Miller and other Olympic athletes.
“Youth mental fitness is a huge priority for me and my family,” said Miller. “I believe in what Live Like Sam is building, not just awareness, but real solutions. Communities like ours should lead the way in putting mental and emotional fitness on the same level as physical fitness.”
Jackenthal added, “We are all more alike on the inside than we show on the outside. Self-doubt is normal and entirely human. Silence is what makes it isolating. Same Inside shines a light on quiet suffering and invites people into a more honest, connected way of showing up.”
Throughout May, donations to Live Like Sam will be matched dollar-for-dollar up to $100,000. Supporters can learn more and participate at livelikesam.org.
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