On Wednesday, January 14th, Dana Hall hosted its first-ever dedication games in partnership with the Morgan’s Message club. Varsity and Junior Varsity (JV) swim, basketball, and squash participated in the event.
Morgan’s Message is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to break the stigma regarding mental health for athletes specifically. The organization was founded in honor of Morgan Rodgers, a Division I soccer player for Duke, who took her own life in 2019 after struggling with injuries, including a career-ending knee injury, and mental health battles for years.
Morgan’s Message has chapters in high schools around the nation. The chapters focus on education within the school community, aiming to spread awareness about student-athlete mental health.
The Dana Hall chapter of Morgan’s Message began this year, when Maddy Mahoney ‘26 became an Ambassador. She aims to bridge the gap between mental health resources and student-athletes. Maddy believes “the message hits so differently coming from a fellow athlete,” and wants to be relatable and welcoming to athletes in the community seeking out mental health resources.
Student-athletes seeking mental health resources can be a challenge due to the pressure on athletes to be “tough.” Maddy believes that “athletes at a young age have been told to push through, to keep going, and ignore pain. When these messages are ingrained in you that you have to tough it out to be great, it is very hard for someone with a less tangible mental health battle to seek resources out.”
Maddy Mahoney is head of the club alongside Petra Hinkle ‘26, Olivia Deleonardis ‘27, and Ella Austin ‘27.
One of the many ways the organization raises awareness surrounding student-athlete mental health is through dedication games. Dana Hall athletics held its first dedication game last month.
Athletes wore Morgan’s Message shirts during warmups, put pins on their swim parkas, and wore an orange wristband in honor of the organization. Before each game, one of the club heads or members of Morgan’s Message delivers a speech. The speech provides context about the club and the mission, as well as the goal of the dedication games. A nine-second moment of silence is held in honor of Morgan Rodgers, as she wore the jersey number nine. These games allow for the message to spread more broadly, with athletes from Dana Hall, the opposing team, and friends and families spectating. Although the aim of the dedication game is serious, the club hopes that the dedication games raise school spirit and gets the community excited.
Looking back on the games, Maddy says, “it was nice seeing the community come out and support, but I really loved, and it stuck with me, how excited the teams were.”
Director of Athletics Mike White was “very proud of the effort” and believes “mental health awareness in athletics is something everyone can get behind.” He was very proud of the initiative and hopes that dedication days continue as a Dana Hall tradition.
Maddy hopes the club continues to raise awareness for mental health in the community. The club holds monthly meetings, following the schedule of the organization. They hope to dedicate games in the coming months for the spring athletic teams.
Image source: Maddy Mahoney