NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – October is National Stop Bullying Month, part of an effort to highlight a serious problem.

Devyn Rush, a former American Idol contestant who was working at Manhattan’s Ellen’s Stardust Diner when she found fame on the show’s tenth season, is using her talent to help ease the pain so many kids face every day.

She is the national spokesperson for the bully prevention organization Hey U.G.L.Y. (Unique.Gifted.Lovable.You.), through which she speaks and performs at schools all over the country, to build emotional awareness and self-love in children.