How a Hazy IPA is Starting a New Conversation Around Mental Health

Joel Frieders, Nicole Henzel, and Tom Halaska Discuss a Unique Collaboration

Hope for the Day is a nonprofit organization working to promote mental health education and proactive suicide prevention. Breweries worldwide are partnering with them to participate in their “Things We Don’t Say: Craft Beer for Mental Health” project. Together, they aim to help smash the stigma surrounding mental health and encourage people to have open discussions.

Joel Frieders, Nicole Henzel, and Tom Halaska are all part of the “Things We Don’t Say” project, hailing from various backgrounds and breweries. Joel is the Director of Public Policy at Hope for the Day, Nicole is the Regional Craft Sales Manager at Malteurop Malting Company, and Tom is the Brand Alchemist at WellBeing Brewing Company.

Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn

Joel Frieders explains how the “Things We Don’t Say” project began
Nicole Henzel shares why they decided to create a hazy IPA as the signature beverage for the project
Joel discusses how breweries got involved with the project
Tom Halaska talks about the recovery and discovery community and redefining what sobriety means
Where can you find collaborating breweries, and how can you get involved?
The future goals of “Things We Don’t Say”
Some of Joel, Nicole, and Tom’s favorite bottle shops and bars

In this episode…

Is there a correlation between mental health and craft beer? How can for-profit companies partner with nonprofit organizations to make a difference? Why are breweries the perfect place to start talking about mental health? And why is the nonprofit organization Hope for the Day serving up an IPA recipe on their website? To find out, the Pitcher This! podcast has invited today’s three guests to give us the scoop.

Joel Frieders, Nicole Henzel, and Tom Halaska all come from different companies and backgrounds. They have banded together to create a beer, an ongoing conversation, and a collaboration with their project “Things We Don’t Say: Craft Beer for Mental Health.” You might be wondering how craft beer and mental health go together, and they’re here to tell you everything you need to know.

On this episode of the Pitcher This! podcast, host Darren Fox sits down with Joel Frieders, Nicole Henzel, and Tom Halaska from Hope for the Day, a nonprofit aiming to remove the stigma around mental illness and promote proactive suicide prevention. Joel, Nicole, and Tom discuss their project “Things We Don’t Say: Craft Beer for Mental Health,” how they came together and got the project on its feet, the breweries that are involved, and much more. Stay tuned!

Sponsor: Hope For The Day

This episode is brought to you by Hope For The Day. A non-profit movement empowering the conversation on proactive suicide prevention and mental health education. Visit HFTD.org to learn more.

Resources mentioned in the podcast

About the Pitcher This! Podcast

On the Pitcher This! Podcast, we talk to founders and brand managers about how they got into CPG and the brand origin stories. We cover everything from product development to success in retail and leveraging marketing for growth. We’re excited to discuss the inspirations, challenges, and memorable moments along the way.