Jones knows the value of having someone to talk to when times are tough.
"From my experience, if you're having a hard time you do sometimes feel like keeping it inside but it just gets worse.
"Sometimes it just helps to talk to somebody about what's going on in your life," she said.
"There are a lot of kids out there who are having a hard time growing up that just need people to talk to."
The five-time national canoe slalom champion hoped she could encourage young people to work through life's tough patches to achieve their dreams.
In the year ending June 30, 2013, 3629 landline calls were made to 0800 What's Up from the Bay of Plenty.
It was estimated 15,477 mobile calls were made from the Bay of Plenty during the year taking the total number of calls from the region to about 19,106.
0800 What's Up manager Rhonda Morrison said she was thrilled to have Jones' support.