Editor's Note: This story is part of Southwest Michigan Second Wave's Voices of Youth Battle Creek program which is supported by the BINDA Foundation, City of Battle Creek, Battle Creek Community Foundation, and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.


Stigma and cost are two main reasons young people don't reach out for the mental health support they might need. Battle Creek siblings Logan Stevens, 17, and Kai Stevens, 15, were inspired to collaborate on an art and writing project that encourages their peers to find the type of therapy that suits them as an impactful form of self-care.









Logan, 17, (left) and Kai, 15 (right) are siblings who participated in Voices of Youth Battle Creek.

Logan Stevens is a 17-year-old homeschooled senior who is the artist behind this project. They like using anything they can get their hands on to create art. Thanks to his mentor, Casey Grooten, Logan got to use a vast array of donated Sharpie markers, highlighters, and paint markers for this project and use art supplies that would otherwise be sitting there or getting wasted away, alongside other items he will use for as long as he can to make even more art for the world.

Kai Stevens is a 15-year-old homeschooled sophomore who is the writer behind this project. They were too busy playing "Stray" on the PS4 to finish this little piece about themself until the last minute. Kai enjoys watching videos with a vast array of genres, but they particularly like watching medical professionals reacting to shows that deal with their particular medical field and explaining inaccuracies or misinformation.