Comic-Con has always been hailed as the gathering of fans and followers of particular shows and superheroes in a bid to possibly glimpse the stars they admire and idolize so much. For the cast and crew of "Supernatural," a hit TV series, nothing could surprise them when attending this event as they have been doing it for 11 years since the show began. This notion, however, was immediately proven wrong when the fans themselves decided to give back to the beloved stars instead.
In an overwhelming surprise organized by the fans of Jared Padalecki, one of the two lead actors of "Supernatural," the panel for the said series turned out to be a massive show of support for the star's campaign against depression, addiction and suicide, called "Always Keep Fighting," according to E Online. The surprise came in the form of a candle lighting event - one that no one in the panel knew about until the last minute.
In addition to the candles distributed to the members of the audience, a note was passed along as well. It read, "Everyone is given a candle that burns just for them. When your flame flickers and you fear it will go out, know not seven the strongest wind lasts forever; and there are other lights to guide you even in the Darkness." It added, "And when your candle burns bright, you can ignite the hearts of others and hope will spread like wildfire. Always Keep Fighting, and you'll never fight alone."
This display of oneness for Padalecki came months after the actor revealed that he himself has been battling depression, according to Variety. In trying to fight off the condition, the "Supernatural" star decided to reach out to others in a similar situation by launching his "Always Keep Fighting" campaign.
"I hope that this campaign, while raising money for a wonderful charity, can also raise awareness about issues that affect more people than we know," Padalecki wrote in the campaign's page. He added, "I hope it inspires people battling depression, addiction, mental illness and suicidal thoughts to be vocal about their struggles." He went on to shared, "I also hope this campaign can help alleviate some of the stigma that the terms "mental illness" and "depression" sometimes evokes."
With this in mind, the actor continued with his work and campaigned relentlessly to reach out to others suffering from the same condition. As shown by the response of his fans and followers, it appears that Padalecki truly made a dent in creating a space for people battling the illness to come forward and seek help.
"I'm holding the candle in my pocket right now, I can't let go of it," he shared, referring to the memento from the surprise. He shared, "At first I didn't know what it is. I thought people were holding up their iPhones or something. And then someone handed me the note explaining it and I found out what was really going on. It took everything in my power not to cry."
