The City of Columbia Parks and Recreation Department is holding a special event for National Youth Violence Prevention Week.
The event will feature a 1-hour presentation called “Ending the Silence” where teens will learn about warning signs of mental health conditions that typically appear in teens/early adulthood, warning signs of suicide and what to do about both. The presentation will be presented by Kaitlyn Hunter, ETS Program Coordinator of NAMI of South Carolina, NAMI is the National Alliance on Mental Health.
The event will also feature a skit that teaches teens and young adults how to deal with their different emotions. The skit will be presented by Dr. Germon Miller, Program Coordinator for the City of Columbia Parks and Recreation Department. Breakout sessions facilitated by local school counselors and social workers will follow the skit to provide the opportunity for the attendees to learn methods of conflict resolution and coping mechanisms.
At the conclusion, refreshment will be served to those who attend.
“The mental health and psychological well-being of our youth is more critical now than ever. Just recently an incident occurred in our community, which resulted in one sibling fatally injuring another. That tragedy was devastating and unfortunately there are other violent acts committed by youth that occur too frequently. We must take a stand as a village and it starts with open dialogue with our children,” said Mayor Pro Tem Ed McDowell.
The full event schedule is as follows:
6:00 pm – 7:00 pm – “Ending the Silence” Presentation presented by Kaitlyn Hunter, ETS Program Coordinator, NAMI of South Carolina
7:00 pm – 7:20 pm – “The X Factor” presented by Dr. Germon Miller, City of Columbia Parks and Recreation
7:20 pm – 7:40 pm- Breakout Sessions with local school counselors and social workers
7:40 pm – 8:00 pm – Refreshments served
This event will take place Hyatt Park, 950 Jackson Avenue from 6:00 pm -8:00 pm. on Thursday, April 27, 2023.