Offering ‘Mom Hugs’ at Ball State University

Crosswalks at Ball State University are full of frantic movement.  But as IPR’s Daniel Huber reports, there’s one woman who’s standing still, waiting for those who need her in a moment.

Yvonne Dodrill wears a t-shirt and bears a sign with a simple mission: “Mom Hugs.”  Because sometimes all you need is a hug.

“Cause the world is kind of dark… I just want people to see a smile and a friendly face and know that there’s a word of encouragement there. And I see you.”

She started giving hugs because she wanted to make a difference in someone’s life.

“So, I was like, what can I do? And so, this was something that I just felt like, you know, is important.  You guys have really grown up in a really weird world, and nothing is normal. Normal just kind of bit the dust five years ago.”

A 2023 study published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health found that participants who hugged more often had lower cortisol levels, a primary stress hormone.

Read More: Your college student is back home and you want to talk mental health? Keep this in mind.

For Dodrill, a hug is just what some people need.

“You know, that’s the bonus if I can help somebody realize that. Hey, you were seeing today. Somebody saw you, and somebody acknowledged you, and somebody recognized your presence and your space in this world. It’s a good thing.”

Daniel Huber is a news fellow with Ball State Public Media’s Public Media Accelerator student fellowships.