MANATEE COUNTY, Fla. — A nonprofit in Manatee County is making strides with mental health in LGBTQ+ youth.

ALSO Youth recently received a grant from the Bishop Parker Foundation that will fund more counseling services for the LGBTQ+ community.

Drawing allows Attacus Massmann to express creativity.

“I like art because it helps me express myself a lot,” he said.

It’s an activity Massmann does during his therapy sessions at Advocacy Leadership Support Outreach Youth — better known as ALSO Youth. The nonprofit helps LGBTQ+ community members aged 10 to 24 through various programs, including counseling.

“My entire life, I have been surrounded by a lot of people who did not accept who I was as a person,” he said.

He says he always felt different.

In 2019, when he was 15 years old, he came to the realization that he identified as a transgender man. But even before that, bullying was a common occurrence.

“I started feeling suicidal in eighth grade. So that was 2018. My first attempt at my life was also in 2018,” he said.

In 2024, 50% of LGBTQ+ individuals ages 13 to 17 reported being bullied, according to The Trevor Project. Additionally, 39% of LGBTQ+ people ages 13 to 24 have contemplated suicide in the last year.

Massmann still struggles with suicidal ideation but says therapy sessions have helped him.

“It helped me a lot because I didn’t have stable housing, and I was barely able to afford food or anything like that. And obviously, we all deal with mental health issues to some degree, and not having therapy for a long time really negatively impacted my mental health,” he explained.

Mel Gosselin, the executive director of ALSO Youth, says that this year there has been more than a 40% increase in the need for counseling services.

“Bullying is still a problem in schools. Sometimes families don’t know how to deal with situations, or some youth are homeless because they’ve been kicked out of their family unit,” she said.

More data from The Trevor Project shows that 84% of LGBTQ+ young people wanted help, yet nearly 50% couldn’t get it. One of the top reasons was cost.

A $32,433 grant from the Bishop Parker Foundation will help increase the number of available counseling sessions.

“We’re getting more and more inquiries. We are grateful — without these services, we would see kids engaging in self-harm or worse,” Gosselin said.

After receiving help from the nonprofit, Massmann now wants to pay it forward and has become a camp counselor.

This is their spring camp, called “Camp True Colors.”

“Having a space to provide for the kids where they’re able to be themselves and socialize — I really like that aspect of it,” Massmann said.

As Massmann continues his healing journey, he is eager to help others in the LGBTQ+ community do the same.

According to ALSO Youth, the organization served more than 2,000 people between Manatee and Sarasota counties. Currently, the organization is looking for a new location in Sarasota to continue serving LGBTQ+ individuals in need, as their former Sarasota location was damaged by last year’s hurricanes.