LEDVANCE, the makers of SYLVANIA General Lighting in the US and Canada, has launched their Brighter Days Ahead Campaign and we were humbled to attend their launch party.

They did a nice job tying together the brighter days we are now experiencing as the pandemic wanes, with their product, which is, obviously, light.

However, instead of a product-focused story, the campaign was human-interest focused.  Award-winning journalist, television producer and Co-Founder of The MOMS Denise Albert led the event asking the audience the following questions:

• Who haven’t you seen due to COVID that you are desperate to see again?
• What celebration are you looking forward to doing in person?
• What is your heart, mind, and soul looking forward to?
• What are you excited to do again?

During the press event, LEDVANCE launched a contest to help make those moments happen. The program starts today and goes through 31 JUL.   Go to Sylvania.com/Brighterdaysahead and answer the question, “What are you looking forward to in Brighter Days Ahead?” Five people in the US and five in Canada will be chosen to win $1,000 and a selection of the latest SYLVANIA General Lighting products to help make their Brighter Days Ahead even brighter.

LEDVANCE’s Glen Gracia, Head of Communications and Brand, explained that the company is honored that people have placed their trust in SYLVANIA for over 100 years.   After Glen discussed the contest, the campaign took an unusual but refreshing twist.  They tied in mental health in a big way. Experts entered the stage and talked about the effects of COVID on mental illness—it was a fascinating discussion, and we congratulate LEDVANCE for launching such a bold campaign.

Katrina Gay of the National Alliance of Mental Illness (NAMI), explained that May is mental health awareness month and today, 20 MAY is mental health action day.  Katrina said that if you can’t be a light for someone else, be a light for yourself and others will see that.   She explained that NAMI has 700 local affiliate chapters, and their services are free.  NAMI wants to bring mental health help to people wherever they are.

Actor, director and writer Andrew McCarthy talked about the harmful effects of lack of human physical contact during COVID.  Hugging and holding hands is very good for mental health.  He explained that he shook hands today for the first time in over a year which was a great experience and immediately raced home to wash his hands, which makes sense since we have all been trained about the importance of handwashing.