Cover credit – Aiden Lorenzo
For the past nearly fifteen years, P.S. I Love You Day has had one goal in mind: eradicating the stigma that surrounds mental health and helping those who are affected by mental illness. Every second Friday in February, many people have taken the time to wear purple and let everyone know that they are loved.
And this year was no different, as 2025’s P.S. I Love You Day just happened to have fallen on Valentine’s Day.
One thing that has been done to spread awareness was when the students of Cherry Avenue Elementary School collaborated with local coffee shop, The Sayville Bean, in order to create coffee sleeves with positive messages written on them.
P.S. I Love You Day was founded by Brooke and Jaimie DiPalma, who created this organization following the suicide of their father in 2010.
This, in addition to the suicide of a high schooler from West Islip, led to the town coming together to support those affected and seven months later, P.S. I Love You Day was created. Since that day, it has grown into a yearly tradition of Long Island, where every year, people wear purple and spread more awareness as it gets more and more attention than the last.
“I grew up with the founders of P.S. I Love You Day and I think that they are spreading a lot of great messages that are very universal.” says Andrew Bell, manager of The Sayville Bean.
But how did Cherry Avenue Elementary get involved? The Messenger spoke to Principal Lisa Ihne about how her school became involved.
“I feel that real human connection has been somewhat lost in recent years thanks to technology and the COVID-19 Pandemic,” said Ihne. “We have done this as a way to restore a similar connection with our kids.”
Another person who has been essential in spreading awareness for P.S. I Love You Day is Nicole Teufel, a Bayport resident and long-time math teacher at Cherry Avenue.
“As someone who is closely associated with the Christopher Coluccio Foundation in Bayport-Blue Point, I think that it is really important to recognize mental health in children and it’s important for something like P.S. I Love You Day to exist so that they know that they are loved every day,” said Teufel.
In addition, Sayville Schools’ Superintendent, Dr. Marc Ferris, made an appearance to film a small promotional video with the kids as a way to not only get their thoughts on being involved with such a cause, but to also spread awareness of P.S. I Love You Day.
When asked about how they felt about being involved with this, eight-year-old Miles said, “If someone is having a bad day, it’s always important to make them feel better”.
And that message right there is why P.S. I Love You Day is so important. Because even something as simple as giving someone a positive message can do so much.
So, next year, wear your finest purple and continue to spread the word about P.S. I Love You Day. Because everyone deserves love in any way, shape, or form.
