Thank you to all of the sound people who embraced #SoundEffect

The teams at A Lust for Life and Pieta House would like to extend a huge thank you to all of the sound people who embraced our #SoundEffect campaign.

We would also like to thank all of the people who participated in and supported our live events at Electric Picnic and those who offered their “ sound” testimonies on our Wall of Sound installation at the Mindfield Arena.

#SoundEffect engaged with millions of people online both on the island of Ireland and around the world – simply asking them to share acts of soundness, however small. Our vision was to create a wave of positivity – the SoundEffect hashtag providing a fulcrum for the human stories, actions and gestures that amplify our collective soundness. The campaign was also based on a core belief that people are fundamentally sound – a message that often gets lost in modern society.

The President of Ireland Micheal D. Higgins said “The #SoundEffect campaign highlights not only the many inspiring actions of people in Ireland but also the infinite possibilities – na féidireachtí gan teorainn-that present themselves when we work together and when people of all backgrounds and circumstances joining forces, choosing to support one another”.

You can read President Michael D. Higgins letter in full here.

An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said “We need to be reminded, in that wonderful Irish idiom of all the times people have been sound to us, and the times we have been sound to others. #SoundEffect encourages us to support mental wellbeing and combat negativity with something positive and affirming”.

Read An Taoiseach Leo Varadkar’s letter in full here.

Paula McLoughlin Chair and Acting CEO of A Lust for Life said “We have been humbled and exhilarated by the enthusiastic engagement of so many people across the nation and beyond in #SoundEffect. The campaign was intended to draw attention to the power and importance of being sound in the context of positive mental health. This is only the beginning of the conversation – we are excited to continue this important work to amplify and educate on the mental wellness benefits of simply focusing on the soundness within ourselves and others.”

Brian Higgins CEO of Pieta House added – “We are delighted with the success of the #SoundEffect campaign and its reach across Ireland and beyond our shores. We have reached over 6 million people, celebrating our collective soundness and our potential for positivity, let’s keep the sound wave rolling!”

We have no doubt that #SoundEffect will continue on its journey over the coming year, so watch this space!

Finally, there are some very special people we need to thank as the #SoundEffect campaign and our Electric Picnic conversations would simply not have happened without you.

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts Kathy Scott and Kate Gaynor for helping make all things Electric Picnic and #SoundEffect happen you two are starbars, Karen O’ Shea, Cat O’ Broin and Brian Higgins and all the Pieta House team it’s been an absolute honour to partner with you, Dr. Malie Coyne for always being there for us, Colm McCormack for your endless support, Alice Frain for taking care of our social media, Louise Healy we would have been totally lost without your support at Electric Picnic – you are rock solid, Natalie Keville for your design brilliance, Dara Munnis for filming, photographing and other Wall of Sound shenanigans, Roisin Ingle for massively supporting our work in many ways, Eoghan McDermott for helping spread the word so generously, Kerry Ann Conway for your top class communications expertise, Elaine Boyle for helping pull the early days together, the Circulate team for helping us out big time on social media, Atomic agency for creating our signage, Catapult for making our Wall of Sound, Kymann Power who gave up a full day to help us film on the streets of Dublin, to Ebay, the Radisson, CX Sport, Kat’s hairdressers, House Dublin, Renault Ireland, DHL for being all round legends and offering brilliant #SoundEffect giveaways, Marty Mulligan, Una McMahon and Naoise Nunn for having us in Mindfield, Charlotte Grenson, Peter Duffy and Amanda Whelan our Wall of Sound volunteers, to all our incredible panelists at Electric Picnic thank you for sharing your wisdom and turning up to be a part of this national dialogue – Eileen Flynn, Miriam O’ Callaghan, Sinéad Burke, Ellie Kisyombe, Mari Kennedy, Tony Griffin, Diarmuid Lyng, Colm Keegan, Jack McGrath, Michael Harding, Dr. Ciara Kelly, Minister for Health Simon Harris, Senator Lynn Ruane, Caroline McGuigan, Darragh Doyle, Razan Ibraheem, Dr. Easkey Britton, Joan Mulvihill, Moninne Griffith, Shane Byrne, Joe Caslin, Jack Reynor and Gerry Hussey.

To the Irish media thank you for welcoming this conversation into the public consciousness, we couldn’t have spread the word without your support. To the thousands of people all over Ireland and throughout the world who embraced #SoundEffect, THANK YOU, you created and amplified a giant ripple of sound across the land showing us that most people are in fact, sound, spreading waves of love and kindness rather than waves of fear. You made it happen.

With love from all the A Lust for Life team Susan Quirke, Paula McLoughlin, Bressie, and Pritesh Symonds-Patel

Check out some photographs of what has been a very special few weeks!