Life Fest Will Provide Free Mental Health Counseling in Kansas City

Two Missouri Mental Health Providers Team Up to Reverse Suicide Trends in the Midwest.

Kansas City, MO, June 23, 2019 --(PR.com)-- Kansas City residents don't need another barbecue or beer
fest. They need mental health access. They need to come together collectively to fight stigma and suicide.
They need to be reminded that life, despite setbacks, is worth celebrating and embracing. That is the
vision behind Life Fest.

Signature Psychiatric Hospital is rallying therapists, schools and mental health agencies to come together
to prevent suicides, which are plaguing Kansas City on both sides of the state line. The festival benefits
Tri-County Mental Health Services, which provides affordable mental health care to more than 8,000
people a year in Clay, Platte and Ray counties.

From 1999 to 2016, Missouri reported a 30-40% increase in suicide rates, and Kansas saw a 45%
increase, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. According to the World Health
Organization, anxiety and depression will be the #1 disability worldwide by 2020.

“The state of mind of our community and world is alarming,” said Lisa St. Aubyn, CEO of Signature
Psychiatric Hospital. “We must respond now to the suicide epidemic and mental health crisis happening
in our city.”

That's why Signature is taking its team to the streets with Life Fest, a mental health awareness and suicide
prevention event, Sept. 21, 2019, from noon to 6 p.m. at Mulberry Lake at The Villages of Briarcliff in
Kansas City, Mo. Life (L.I.F.E.) Fest, an acronym for “Live, Inspire, Fight Suicide and Embrace Life,”
will offer free on-site counseling from licensed clinicians for all ages, live music, art, yoga, meditation
and a kids' area. It is open to the public.

“Research shows if people can find help the first time they consider suicide, they are more likely to
recover and never make another attempt,” St. Aubyn said. “We want Life Fest to be that lifeline. We will
put the tools and mental health resources in the hands of those who need them. No insurance, no
paperwork[JS1] , no money necessary.”

Top causes of suicide are relationship issues and financial woes. However, St. Aubyn said growth in the
use of technology, which often replaces important face-to-face interactions, social media and gaming are
possible contributors as well as the opioid epidemic and geographic location.

“Missouri and Kansas have large rural areas that tend to be more isolated without access to proper mental
health care,” St. Aubyn said.

However, suicide crosses all ages, borders, incomes, races and professions. In fact, first responders are
some of the most vulnerable. For the third straight year (2016-2018), suicide is the leading cause of
line-of-duty deaths among police officers and firefighters. According to Blue H.E.L.P., 159 officers died

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by suicide in 2018, including three officers in Kansas and four officers in Missouri. The Kansas City Fire
Department saw five firefights commit suicide in the past four years, according to Eric Rose of IAFF
Local 42.

Life Fest's counselors will be experienced in post-traumatic stress disorder as well as other mental health
disorders affecting children, teens and adults.

Sponsors of the event thus far include Hy-Vee, the Global Warrior Center at Park University, the Valor
Recovery Program. A portion of all sponsorship proceeds will go to Tri-County Mental Health Services,
the premier provider of mental, behavioral and substance abuse care in Clay, Platte and Ray counties.

For more information on the event or sponsorships, visit www.lifefestkc.com or contact Brenda
Clevenger at (816) 501-6042.

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Contact Information:
Signature Psychiatric Hospital
Brenda Geiger
816-501-6042
Contact via Email
www.sphkc.net
816-691-5101 Lisa St. Aubyn (CEO)

Online Version of Press Release:

You can read the online version of this press release at: https://www.pr.com/press-release/788038

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