By Karyn Brodsky
They say that knowledge is power. In the case of mental health and suicide among children, teens, and young adults, it’s more important than ever to have access to education. Families need to understand how to recognize the signs that their loved ones are struggling and get them the help they need.
It was exactly those two things—education and resources—that the Halliburton family realized they were missing when their son Grant, a Dallas teen who battled depression and bipolar disorder for several years, took his own life in 2005 at the age of 19.
The family didn’t want Grant to be remembered as a mental health statistic; rather, for all of his strengths and gifts as an artist, writer and musician. Grant’s mother, Vanita Halliburton and her family’s strength and resolve to honor Grant’s memory and provide resources to others that they didn’t have, was the impetus for founding Grant Halliburton Foundation in 2006.
The Foundation offers a variety of education programs, presentations, and an annual conference on mental health, suicide prevention, recognizing the signs of depression, stress management, building resilience and coping skills, and other issues impacting youth mental health.
Education programs for young people and adults include Building Blocks of Mental Health for children and teens, Managing Stress and Anxiety, Depression and Suicide Prevention, Road to Resilience, The Teenage Brain: A Work in Progress, and Setting Healthy Boundaries. Building Blocks of Mental Health series for adults is comprised of Stress and Anxiety Management: Supporting Youth, Depression and Suicide Prevention, Understanding the Teen Brain: A Work in Progress, Mental Health 101, and Increasing Mental Wellness in the Workplace.
Thrive is Grant Halliburton Foundation’s comprehensive mental health education strategy that “infuses mental health into the academic culture” (GrantHalliburton.org). It brings awareness, student education, adult training, research, peer-to-peer support and recognition of warning signs, support services, screening and early detection to the school community. The Foundation works with more than 175 schools to increase mental health resources on campuses through partner programs such as Hope Squad and telebehavioral health.
Moms and female caregivers of children facing mental health issues can meet regularly and experience encouragement and community through the Foundation’s Coffee Days peer support groups. Charlas con un Cafecito is its Spanish-language support group, launched in 2023.
According to Stephanie McGary, LPC-S, RPT-S, Director of Mental Health Education, the mission of Grant Halliburton Foundation is to strengthen the network of mental health resources for children, teens, and young adults, to promote better mental health, and to prevent suicide.
“The need for mental health education and resources has never been more urgent,” she says. “At Grant Halliburton Foundation, we’re stepping up to meet this challenge with work that is truly life-changing—and life-saving. We’re in schools and communities across North Texas, teaching people how to recognize when someone is struggling and how to help. Through a variety of education programs, presentations, and our annual conference, we cover topics like mental wellness, suicide prevention, anxiety, coping skills, resilience, and other issues affecting youth mental health.”
“The need for mental health education and resources has never been more urgent,” she says. “At Grant Halliburton Foundation, we’re stepping up to meet this challenge with work that is truly life-changing—and life-saving.”
Stephanie McGary, LPC-S, RPT-S, Director of Mental Health Education, Grant Halliburton Foundation
McGary notes that since its founding in 2006, Grant Halliburton Foundation has trained over 325,000 students, teachers, parents, and professionals to identify the signs of distress and support someone in crisis. “At Grant Halliburton Foundation, we’re committed to making mental health support more accessible and creating a stronger, more informed community for everyone,” McGary explains. “We created HereForTexas.com, an online directory of mental health and addiction resources across North Texas and the Here For Texas Mental Health Navigation Line. These free community tools aim to offer easy access for Texans seeking mental health and addiction information and resources.”
McGary is a Licensed Professional Counselor and a Registered Play Therapist, who works with families going through trauma. She notes that mental health struggles can look different among diverse cultures. McGary says she’s passionate about helping those with mental health, as she wants children and adults to feel safe and seen no matter what, and that is just what Grant Halliburton Foundation focuses on.
“I believe that you don’t need to be a licensed therapist to make a therapeutic difference. A compassionate person, equipped with the right knowledge about mental health and the right resources, can truly change the course of someone’s life. Grant Halliburton Foundation’s goal is to ensure there are more individuals of all ages across Texas who are prepared and empowered to support others in times of a mental health challenge,” McGary says.
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports from 2020 data that suicide is the second-leading cause of death nationally in young people, ages 10 to 24. One in eight Texas high school students report they have attempted suicide in the past 12 months—twice the national average (CDC). The State of Texas loses on average one teen to suicide every day, and in the Dallas-Fort Worth community, the number lost is two teens per week.
It is the hope of Grant Halliburton Foundation that the education, programs, resources, and support they offer will help children, teens, and young adults who struggle with mental health issues to get the help they need and eventually make these statistics a thing of the past.
By the Numbers
Why the increase in numbers of young people who are struggling with mental health issues?
According to data from the CDC, the U.S. Surgeon General, The Jed Foundation, and others, young people today face challenges not seen in generations before them, including:
• Close to 1/2 of teens report they are connected to the Internet “almost constantly”
• Young people ages 15-24 spend less than 1/2 as much time with their friends as those in the same age group did two decades ago, creating feelings of loneliness
• Doubling of global rates of childhood depression and anxiety symptoms during the Covid-19 pandemic
• Nearly 60% of youth ages 16-25 say they are either very or extremely worried about the climate
• Three in five college students face essential needs insecurity, including housing and/or food insecurity, or lack of access to affordable health care
• 60% of youth with major depression lack access to care and do not receive any form of treatment
Children, teens and young adults face these challenges and many more, and the data for communities of color, young members of the LGBTQ+ community, youth living in rural areas, and young women are even more alarming.
Here For Texas
To directly address the need for mental health education and resources, Grant Halliburton Foundation developed Here For Texas, a program that offers two free community tools.
HereForTexas.com is a website, available in both English and Spanish, with a searchable database of North Texas providers, created to help Texans locate mental health and addiction information and resources.
In 2019, the Foundation launched the Here For Texas Mental Health Navigation Line, the first of its kind in North Texas. The free helpline offers personal assistance with finding providers and resources where they need them, when they need them. In the five years since its inception, the Here For Texas Mental Health Navigation Line has helped over 2,500 callers. Real people answer the calls and offer information on available resources. They also follow up to make sure the services were received.
Click Here for Additional Resources of Grant Halliburton Foundation
988 Suicide & Crisis Hotline: Whether you’re facing mental health struggles, emotional distress, alcohol or drug use concerns, or just need someone to talk to, caring counselors are here for you. You are not alone.