California Department of Health Care Services and BrightLife Kids Launch Heartfelt Valentine’s Day Campaign to Inspire Self-Love and Emotional Well-Being in Elementary Schools
Business Wire
5 min read
Watch "The Self-Love Letter Project" Campaign Video HERE, Created in Partnership with ATTN:
SACRAMENTO, Calif., February 15, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--BrightLife Kids, a free mental health and wellness platform for children and families backed by the California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS), today launched The Self-Love Letter Project, a first-of-its-kind initiative encouraging elementary school children to write love letters to themselves. Launching on Valentine’s Day, the campaign aims to foster self-love and emotional well-being in elementary school children across California. The campaign features a short film produced by ATTN:, the impact-focused media company and creative agency, that highlights what four children between ages 6 and 9 love about themselves.
"We wanted to create a moment where kids not only feel seen but see themselves in a new light. The most powerful words they’ll ever hear are the ones they say to themselves. The Self-Love Letter Project by BrightLife Kids is about giving them the tools—both emotionally and creatively—to build confidence, kindness, and resilience from an early age," said Jarrett Moreno, Co-Founder and Co-CEO, ATTN:.
"BrightLife Kids is committed to fostering self-love and emotional well-being in children. The Self-Love Letter Project encourages kids to express appreciation for themselves, helping to build confidence, resilience, and strong self-worth," said Sabrina Sandalo-Lee, Senior Director, BrightLife Kids Marketing.
"DHCS is pleased to support BrightLife Kids as part of the state’s Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative (CYBHI), recognizing self-love as a crucial foundation for mental well-being. By fostering positive self-image and emotional wellness, BrightLife Kids serves as an essential resource in CYBHI's mission to transform youth behavioral health and ensure every child has the support to thrive," said Autumn Boylan, Deputy Director of DHCS’ Office of Strategic Partnerships.
To drive the Self-Love Letter Campaign, BrightLife Kids set up interactive self-love writing stations in elementary schools throughout California, where kids will write love letters to themselves to boost confidence and emotional resilience. More than 3,000 students in Sacramento and Santa Clara counties and 100,000 students in Los Angeles County are set to participate in the BrightLife Love Letter Stations. The letters will be compiled and arranged as murals within the schools, so that kids don’t just feel good from writing their own notes but can also gain insight into what others love about themselves and draw inspiration by seeing other examples of self-love en masse. The Valentine’s Day Cards feature a QR code that links to BrightLife Kids and provides parents with access to free mental health services, as well as custom self-love Valentine’s Day stickers. BrightLife Kids partnered with Paper Mate®, which donated 100,000 pens for the Self-Love Letter Project.
"Paper Mate is thrilled to donate over one hundred thousand pens and pencils to such a joyful initiative. It is our mission to help people, especially young people, find joy through writing. We’re excited to spread the joy of Paper Mate and facilitate self-love through this partnership because we believe it’s important to celebrate who you are today and embrace who you’ll become tomorrow," said Lina El-Beshbeeshy, Global Paper Mate Brand Director.
The campaign was born out of rising concerns about youth anxiety, self-esteem, and emotional health. Like gratitude, self-love has been identified as a practice that can factor greatly into achieving better emotional outcomes in adults. The Self-Love Letter Project aims to start those habits of mind in childhood, so care for and confidence in oneself become ingrained early on. The campaign is a part of DHCS’ broader push to provide free mental health services through BrightLife Kids.
About DHCS DHCS is the backbone of the state’s health care safety net, serving nearly 15 million Californians – one-third of the state’s population. DHCS collaborates with federal, state, county, and other partners to ensure equitable access to quality health care, leading to a healthy California for all. DHCS also provides mental health and substance use disorder treatment services and oversees 13 CYBHI initiatives, including the Behavioral Health Virtual Services Platform and Next Generation Digital Supports, which include BrightLife Kids and Soluna.
About BrightLife Kids: Funded as part of the CYBHI, BrightLife Kids is a CalHOPE program by Brightline that provides personalized support for California families. Kids ages 0–12 can get free, expert coaching for sleep issues, worry, social skills, and more. Live one-on-one video sessions, secure chat, on-demand content, and more are available. supports the mental health of families who live in California with children aged 0–12. BrightLife Kids is free for all California families. It serves as an added layer of behavioral health support for students and families; provides easy access to bilingual coaches and live translation services in 19 languages, with no insurance or referrals required; offers dedicated coaches for live sessions via video, secure chat (with your dedicated coach), and on-demand digital resources; and provides care navigation to community resources for kids who may need help outside of BrightLife Kids.
About Paper Mate For more than 75 years, Paper Mate has been a leader in the world of writing instruments, providing progressive, performance-driven pens, pencils and correction products. Today, with its recognizable two hearts logo, Paper Mate offers a wide range of products to help create meaningful connections through writing. Paper Mate is part of the Newell Brands global portfolio of leading brands.
For more information, please visit www.papermate.com and follow the brand on Instagram: @paper_mate.
About ATTN: ATTN: is a media company and social publisher that bridges entertainment with topical issues to create a more informed world. Masters of modern storytelling, ATTN:’s creative shop leverages its publisher roots to put brands at the center of culture and, ultimately, the center of attention. ATTN: is part of Candle Media, an independent, creator-friendly home for cutting-edge, high quality, category-defining brands and franchises.
