Mississippi leaders,
We’ve faced some hard storms before – together. We know what it means when young lives hang in the balance and every day matters.
This week, Gov. Tate Reeves line-item vetoed $500,000 for Hope Squad in House Bill 1924, along with funding for two other groups. His reason was clear and responsible: these items had not appeared in the final vetted report from the Opioid Settlement Fund Advisory Council that the Legislature created for good stewardship and transparency. Process matters, especially with important public dollars meant to fight addiction and its deep effects on families.
At the same time, Hope Squad leaders and supporters, including state Sen. Jeremy England, have shared that their application was submitted on time and received confirmation of receipt. A glitch in the new system apparently kept it from showing up properly during the council’s review. It feels like a technicality in a brand-new process – one that shouldn’t stop a program already working quietly in our schools.
Hope Squad is not just another program. It is students helping students. Trusted young people are trained to notice when a friend is struggling – the quiet withdrawal, the heavy silence, the hidden pain that social media and life’s pressures can bury. They learn to reach out with kindness, listen without judgment, stay with them, and connect them to help before it’s too late. Through these peer connections, young people often feel better about themselves, find genuine acceptance and belonging from their classmates, and discover healthy support instead of turning to the bottom of a pill bottle.
In my soon-to-be-published book, “Finding Hope: 25 Lifelines to Pull You Through Any Storm,” I wrote extensively about Hope Squad and the powerful stories behind it. In Jackson County, after a heartbreaking wave of teen suicides – including the loss of Sawyer Magee – community leaders Paige Roberts and Shannon Wall stepped up. They connected with Emma Benoit, a courageous young woman who survived her own suicide attempt and now dedicates her life to breaking the silence around mental health. Their efforts brought Hope Squad into our schools in 2023.
One student, Jacob DeAngelo, who lost his close friend Sawyer, put it plainly and powerfully: “I’ve got a chance to save the next Sawyer Magee.”
That’s exactly what Hope Squad is about – kids looking out for kids, turning grief into lifelines in hallways from St. Martin to Ocean Springs, Moss Point, Pascagoula-Gautier, George County, and beyond.
Gov. Reeves, Attorney General Lynn Fitch, legislative leaders, and members of the Advisory Council — you have shown care for doing this right. Reversing course in light of the glitch and the timely application is not bad government; it is good, compassionate government that puts our children first while still honoring accountability.
Now, with clear evidence of a timely application affected by a glitch, I respectfully and earnestly ask: Please don’t let this die this year.
Our kids cannot wait another full cycle while the paperwork catches up. Every month, every week, another young person may be sitting in class carrying a storm no one sees. Hope Squad is already in our schools, already training students to spot the signs and act with compassion. It is already saving lives by reducing isolation and connecting hurting kids to real help.
We have hundreds of millions in opioid settlement funds coming to Mississippi over time. This small investment — vetted through the proper spirit if not yet the exact letter because of a technical issue — goes straight to prevention in the places where the next generation is growing up.
Leaders, your hearts are in the right place. You want these dollars used wisely to fight addiction and support families. Hope Squad does exactly that by addressing the mental health struggles that so often intersect with substance issues. Let’s review the documentation, clarify the glitch, and find a compassionate path forward now — whether through reconsideration, an override if needed, or an expedited process that honors both accountability and urgency.
To every parent, teacher, coach, and student on the Coast and across our state: Keep doing what you’re doing. Check on the quiet ones. Speak up with kindness. If you or someone you love is struggling, text or call 988 right now — help is there, day or night, no judgment.
We don’t have to choose between good process and saving lives. We can honor both. Our grandchildren and every child in our schools deserve to know that when hope is at work in their hallways, we will protect it.
Please, let’s not wait a year. Let’s keep these lifelines strong this year.
With respect and hope for our kids,
Ricky Mathews
The views expressed by contributors are their own and not the views of SuperTalk Mississippi Media.