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Suicide and mental health awareness event to be held in June

In December 2020, 15-year-old Brianna Dorgan took her own life. Her father has made it his mission to help others avoid this tragedy.

DALLASTOWN, Pa. — Editor's note: The above video is from April 21 and was produced by KYTX. It explores the mental health struggles of children during the pandemic.

On June 26, an event will be held in Dallastown to raise awareness about suicide and mental health struggles in young people.

On December 3, 2020, after having been cheerful and upbeat with her family throughout the day, 15-year-old Brianna Dorgan took her own life. Her father, Matt, and her brother, John, were in the house at the time. Brianna had been dealing with demons for some time, and her father was helping her work through her past traumas.

As noted by her father, Brianna's story is not unique. Teenagers throughout the world struggle with self-harm, depression, and suicidal thoughts. This is why in the wake of Brianna's death, her family started the Brianna Dorgan Memorial Fund, a charitable organization that aims to provide the "tools necessary to not only bring awareness to the problem of child self harm, child suicide, and child abuse," but also, "the tools necessary to solve these issues so children and families won't have to suffer the pain of this trauma in the future," according to the fund's website.

The event will be held at Lions Park in Dallastown from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. It is free to attend and the event will include food trucks, live music, raffles, motorcycle rides, kid activities, law enforcement demos, and vendors.

If you would like more information about this topic, please call Matt Dorgan at 717-858-3242, or email: matt@buildingbridgesforbrianna.com

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