Local fundraiser spreads hope and mental health awareness
Scotchy Jamaican Grill and Howdy Homemade Ice Cream are bringing back their Catch Ah Vibe — Scoop and Smiles fundraiser for a second year, partnering with NAMI Greater Indianapolis to raise awareness about mental illness and connect community members with mental health resources.
The event, scheduled for June 6, follows the NAMIWalks Greater Indianapolis event at Celebration Plaza in White River State Park and will serve as an official post-walk ice cream social from 3-5 p.m. at Howdy Homemade Ice Cream. Organizers hope to build on the success of last year’s fundraiser, which raised nearly $4,000 for mental health awareness and advocacy efforts.
“This year, we’re aiming to double our impact through a new partnership with NAMI Greater Indianapolis and the NAMI Walk on Saturday, June 6,” said Marlon Llewellyn, founder of Scotchy Jamaican Grill.
Llewellyn said the fundraiser was always intended to become an annual tradition.
“Last year, our inaugural Catch Ah Vibe – Scoop and Smiles event raised close to $4,000 to support mental health awareness and advocacy. But from the beginning, my amazing partners at Howdy Homemade Ice Cream and I knew this would never be a one-time event,” Llewellyn said. “Our vision was clear: bring people together through the joy of ice cream, food, community and conversation while supporting individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities and tackle the stigma surrounding mental illness.”
The partnership also reflects Howdy Homemade’s mission of creating meaningful employment opportunities for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
“Howdy Homemade Indy and Scotchy Jamaican Grill’s partnership blossomed out of a need to change the world,” said Cindy Carter, vice president of LEL Home Services. “Through excellent food, we are challenging the limitations put on people by labels with celebrating the unique gifts of each person.”
This year’s event comes with an expanded focus through its partnership with NAMI Greater Indianapolis, the local chapter of the nation’s largest grassroots mental health organization. Participants in the NAMI walk will be invited to continue the day’s activities at the ice cream social, where organizers hope to foster additional conversations about mental health and available support services.
For Llewellyn, the initiative is deeply personal.
“Twenty-one years ago, I was unexpectedly diagnosed with a mental illness. At the time, neither my family nor I understood what was happening,” Llewellyn said. “Through sports, achievement and life distractions, I learned how to keep moving forward even when I was silently struggling inside.”
Llewellyn said he spent years trying to hide his diagnosis and cope with the stigma surrounding mental illness.
“For years, I carried shame, fear, and doubt of it, because I wanted to be normal, as if my diagnosis never happened,” he said. “I experienced moments where people weaponized my diagnosis or viewed me differently because of it. Reflecting, I realized I was living with the stigma surrounding mental illness.”
The experience eventually inspired him to become an advocate.
“It took loss, healing, faith, and 21 years for me to finally speak openly about my diagnosis and experience,” Llewellyn said. “Today, I have chosen to turn my pain into purpose through Catch Ah Vibe Scoop and Smiles, and my new initiative, Tackle the Stigma — using advocacy, education, and programming to help individuals and student athletes know they are not alone.”
Organizers say one of the primary goals of the event is helping people understand that mental health challenges affect individuals from all walks of life and that support is available.
“My aim is simple: that people struggling in silence understand there is support, there is hope, and there are people and organizations like NAMI Greater Indianapolis ready to walk beside them through their darkest moments,” Llewellyn said.
In addition to raising awareness, attendees can enjoy specialty summer ice cream flavors inspired by Scotchy Jamaican Grill, including Rum Raisin and Grapenut, created by Howdy Homemade Ice Cream.
“Year two is about hope, and showing people, they are not alone,” Llewellyn said.
Registration and donation information for both the NAMI walk and Catch Ah Vibe — Scoop and Smiles is available through NAMI Greater Indianapolis at namiindiana.org/events/namiwalks-indiana.
This reporting is made possible by a grant from the Indianapolis African-American Quality of Life Initiative, empowering our community with essential health insights. https://iaaqli.org/
Contact Health & Environmental Reporter Hanna Rauworth at 317-762-7854 or follow her on Instagram at @hanna.rauworth.
Hanna Rauworth is the Health & Environmental Reporter for the Indianapolis Recorder Newspaper, where she covers topics at the intersection of public health, environmental issues, and community impact. With a commitment to storytelling that informs and empowers, she strives to highlight the challenges and solutions shaping the well-being of Indianapolis residents.
