Jamie Tworkowski

Jamie Tworkowski founded To Write Love on Her Arms (TWLOHA), a non-profit group dedicated to helping those who suffer from depression, addiction, self-injury, and suicidal tendencies find hope, support, and love. TWLOHA began as a simple attempt to tell the story of a friend in need of treatment, and soon became an internet phenomenon and global movement. In 2010, Mashable named TWLOHA the "Must-Follow Non-Profit" and in 2011, TWLOHA was awarded $1 million from the American Giving Awards. In order to fund his friend's treatment, Jamie Tworkowski posted a blog on MySpace and began selling t-shirts. Supported by the bands Switchfoot, Anberlin, and Paramore, TWLOHA became widely recognized in the music world, and its message was spread across towns and cities all over the world. TWLOHA now has the largest online audience of any non-profit on MySpace and Facebook and has donated more than $1 million to treatment and recovery organizations. For his work, Tworkowski has been interviewed by NBC Nightly News, CNN, MTV, and Spin Magazine. Tworkowski offers a message of hope and community to audiences at universities and conferences throughout the US and as far away as Australia and the UK. Jamie Tworkowski believes what matters most are the people, the real lives and real stories behind the statistics. With honesty and humanity, Tworkowski emboldens audiences with his message to "Please Stay Alive," aiming to break the silence surrounding issues such as depression and addiction while encouraging people to get the help they need and deserve. TWLOHA became inspirational speaker Jamie Tworkowski's life's work after learning the sobering statistics that two out of three people with depression do not get help, and that the third leading cause of death among 18-24 year olds is suicide. Each night, he shares his vision of hope, reminding students that "You are not alone and this is not the end of your story."