A Massachusetts mental health and suicide prevention awareness organization has helped over 100,000 students across New England, and its founder is connecting its growth to Patriots star cornerback Christian Gonzalez.

Jim Johnson, of North Attleboro, has turned tragedy into a cause for the common good by breaking the stigma around mental health, not only in the Bay State but across New England.

Johnson established KyleCares with his wife, Sue, and their two daughters to promote mental health awareness and suicide prevention after their son, Kyle, died at the age of 19 in 2018.

Seven years into its existence, the nonprofit is helping change the narrative around mental health, that the term doesn’t always equate to mental illness, but rather that a healthy mind is a vital component to overall well-being.

Johnson says KyleCares has helped about 130 schools across New England, reaching roughly 113,000 students. The nonprofit has invested close to $700,000 into the cause by providing grants and other support to high schools and colleges.

Though KyleCares maintains a narrow focus on helping students in New England, it has built national recognition from a partnership with Gonzalez through the Patriots Foundation.

Gonzalez is a keen advocate of mental health awareness. His close friend, Keith Miller III, died in April 2024, and the death hit Gonzalez hard. The cornerback has highlighted how he and Miller grew up and played together through high school before playing at the University of Colorado.

KyleCares and the Patriots Foundation have partnered for the past four years, with the nonprofit hosting mental health conferences for high school student leaders at Gillette Stadium every April.

The NFL selected Gonzalez during the 2024 season as one of three players out of roughly 1,500 to be featured in a commercial for “My Cause, My Cleats,” an initiative that allows players to express their commitment to causes most important to them each December.

Gonzalez ultimately decided to honor his late friend and KyleCares on his cleats. He continued to do so this season.

Johnson describes Gonzalez as a “very genuine” 23-year-old.

“He’s genuine in the love he had for his friend,” the KyleCares founder and president told the Herald in a phone interview, “but he’s very genuine in the fact that he wants to use his platform to make an impact, to try and help other young people who may be struggling, like his friend and like our son, Kyle, did.”

Whenever his busy football schedule allows, Gonzalez visits high schools with fellow teammates, giving speeches on the importance of mental health and seeking help. The star cornerback stopped by last year’s annual student conference at Gillette, which featured nearly 600 students and educators from 37 high schools.

“This topic is hard to pinpoint the true impact,” Johnson said. “You never know who you are helping or who is listening.”

“We do know, though, that young people idolize professional athletes,” he added. “His willingness to use his platform … helps shine a light on the mental health crisis and normalizes the conversation for young people who look up to him.”

Gonzalez has starred in the NFL’s “My Cause, My Cleats” commercials the past two Decembers. Jacob Mongeon, 18, of Cranston, Rhode Island, also appears, saying, “Christian Gonzalez is truly incredible. The most impressive thing about him is his work with mental health.”

Gonzalez says, “We want to let people know it’s OK to speak up, to be able to talk about mental health, and be the one people want to come to. I love it for sure. Being able to partner with KyleCares means a lot.”

“We are more than NFL players, you know?” he adds. “We are people, too.”

KyleCares has received phone calls from people all around the country because of the commercials, Johnson said. The national exposure, he said, has strengthened the nonprofit’s credibility, enabling it to enter more schools and help more young people and educators.

KyleCares first worked with individual schools “one by one,” Johnson said. Because of its growth, though, it has been invited to a wide array of conferences, whether for principals, national honor societies, or student councils, he said.

“A lot of that growth can be directly tied back to our relationship with the Patriots and Christian,” Johnson said.

Gonzalez continues to shine on the field for the Patriots, who are in Santa Clara, just days away from appearing in a Super Bowl no one could have imagined. Before New England flew out to California, the cornerback told the Herald that he hasn’t lost sight of the importance of mental health.

“To break that stigma that men shouldn’t speak up, but everybody goes through things,” Gonzalez said after the team’s last practice in Foxboro. “I just want to bring light to it.”

Johnson looks fondly back at last April’s student conference at Gillette. Mike Vrabel, just three months into being the Patriots’ new head coach, made remarks, congratulating students for taking a lead in changing the conversation at their school around mental health.

Johnson said it’s evident that Vrabel and his coaching staff truly care about their players as human beings. The head coach told reporters last week that players “don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.”

“Whatever we can do to try to help them off the field, grow as men – there’s a lot of great guys in there that are husbands and fathers,” Vrabel said.

Johnson attributes that mindset as a “big part in the success of the team that has led them to where they are today, on the cusp of a Super Bowl championship.”

“Everyone who walks into that building every day knows that they are being cared for,” he said, “they feel connected.”

Patriots cornerback Christian Gonzalez reacts after catching an interception during the first quarter of an Oct. 6 game at Gillette Stadium. (Nancy Lane/Boston Herald, File)