Goldie Hawn had a decades-long acting and producing career but over the past two decades, the Academy Award winner’s Hawn Foundation has shifted some of her attention to youth education and well-being improvement strategies for students.
Hawn shared some of those foundation messages of positivity and encouragement with the U-46 community Tuesday via a Zoom call with Superintendent Tony Sanders. Parts of the video-conference call were posted on the district’s website and social media pages as it looks to assist families struggling with the uncertainties associated with the coronavirus.
“I want to wish you the best future,” Hawn said in the three-minute video message. “Hold tight, things are going to change — please believe it.”
She urged families to take some time off during their days to do breathing exercises — a “brain break,” as Hawn called it — with their children, which can be done on a daily basis.
“If you feel angry, breathe. If you feel scared, breathe. Help your children do the same thing,” she said.
“Stress is not a good thing for your brain, it’s not a good thing for your body, it’s not a good thing for how you relate to each other,” she added.
Sanders said he was introduced to Hawn through a mutual friend and the two connected via email. He had been trying to make contact with the Hawn Foundation, he said.
“When the pandemic hit, I sent her a note telling her how our communities are struggling and asked if she would perhaps share the work of her foundation, MindUP (the foundation’s signature program), and perhaps activities families could use in these stressful times,” he said.
The two ultimately found time to chat virtually on Tuesday, Sanders said. The Zoom call coincided with the district promoting the Illinois Department of Human Services’ new Call4Calm support line. Call4Calm allows callers in English or Spanish to reach a mental health professional via a phone call or text; a mental health professional will then reply back within 24 hours.
The district’s COVID-19 website now includes a wellness page with well-being resources for children and parents.