On the night of Thursday, April 18, Rocky Mountain High School hosted the “Mental Health Matters” event to help parents and young kids understand the importance of mental health among their community. Presenters provided resources for students and the parents to help them understand and be more helpful with mental illness.

The keynote speaker, Sarah Younggren, talked about her experiences and helped the audience be more aware about the community’s mental illness. Younggren stated that “children’s mental health and physical health needs are treated unequally,” and she gave contact information and resources such as phone numbers, emails, and possible places that one can use to better their mental illness.

Younggren made a metaphor about mental illness within young teens, stating, “when you plant lettuce and it doesn’t grow, don’t blame the lettuce. There’s other factors that cause the lettuce to not grow, such as soil, fertilizer, or the environment.” She went on to explain that it is not the kid’s fault—there a lot of other things that factor around why they feel a certain way. She explained ways society can help better the health of parents with kids, such as communication and reasoning.

Plenty of parents who came enjoyed this event and were very open about asking questions and learning ways to help better their kids’ states of mind. The event was full of resources and helped raised awareness around the community.