The Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS) is raising awareness for mental health and partnering with providers and cities across the state for awareness month events. In honor of mental health awareness, Governor JB Pritzker proclaimed May to be Mental Health Awareness Month in Illinois. According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, 1 in 5 youth aged 13-18 will experience a severe mental disorder at some point during their life, and approximately 1 in 5 adults will experience a mental illness in a given year. Each year Mental Health Awareness Month and Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day seek to raise awareness about the importance of mental health and how it is essential to a child’s healthy development. Research has long shown that the effects of trauma cause disparity in physical health, addiction, mental health conditions, suicide rates, economic vulnerability, educational attainment, violence of all types, and that these disparities are passed from generation to generation. The State of Illinois, along with more than 1,100 communities, 160 national collaborating organizations, and federal programs have organized local awareness day activities and events around the country. In Chicago, the Willis Tower, 875 North Michigan Avenue, and Prudential Plaza will be lit green.