By Rich Chrampanis
OCEANPORT – Teddy Sourlis was one of New Jersey’s great long-range 3-point shooters during his high school career at Rumson-Fair Haven, playing a key role in the Bulldogs back-to-back section championships in 2017 and 2018. Behind the thrills of an excellent high school career, almost nobody knew the struggles he was battling off the court.
“I struggled internally with anxiety and depression and suffering from ADHD as well,” Sourlis said. “I’ve also seen the other side of it where I know what it culminates into and that’s suicide. That’s a word that has been stigmatized – especially among men.”
Sourlis went on to a college basketball career at Babson and it was there – one of the nation’s top entrepreneurial colleges – where he formed Men’s X Mental, a nonprofit organization looking to shine the spotlight on male athletes to break the stigma around speaking up about mental health.
“We are forming a community of vulnerable athletes from across the country from some of the biggest schools and biggest names that have taken that step to speak up and seek help and further form themselves within that community,” Sourlis said.
Sourlis is using social media and a website filled with accounts from athletes sharing to spread the word, along with valuable resources for those who are seeking help.
His love of basketball brought another way to share the important message. A fall hoops showcase Nov. 5 at the Fort Athletic Club in Oceanport brought teams from around the East Coast to tune up for the upcoming season. DeMatha and Roselle Catholic high schools were the main attraction in a full day of high school basketball, along with local schools like Red Bank Catholic and Rumson-Fair Haven.
“To get the national powers that we had and the incredible athletes that we had – the young athletes who are the next generation – it was incredible,” Sourlis said. “That’s where we really want to start. The solutions to problems start with the youth and that’s the next generation of activists and those who really care about this cause.”
Rumson-Fair Haven boys basketball coach Chris Champeau is one of the founding partners of the Fort Athletic Club and coached Teddy in high school. He’s seen one of his sharpshooters evolve into an activist who’s making a huge impact.
“I think what he’s doing is really going to change people’s attitudes,” Champeau said. “(People may say) I might be a tough guy, but sometimes it’s even tougher to admit that you need some help and go get some therapy. I’m just so proud to be a part of it with him.”
The success of this first Men’s X Mental showcase is on track to achieve its goal of maintaining the message throughout regular season play; teams like Dematha, Roselle Catholic and Hudson Catholic are already on board to continue to support this important initiative.
Much like his never-ending range from his high school days, Sourlis is thinking big to save lives beyond the borders of New Jersey.
“Our vision is definitely nationwide,” Sourlis said. “We want to effect and save as many lives as possible. We want to keep our roots to the local community here on the Jersey Shore and even the Boston area that we have heavily af fected as well. Going nationwide is certainly the goal. We just hope that as many people as possible get behind the movement.”
To learn more about Soulis’ work, visit mensxmental.org.
