Editor's note: Mental Health Musings (MHM) will focus on community resources and stories throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Trigger warning: This article discusses suicide. Crisis Services operates a 24/7 hotline at 716-834-3131. The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline 24/7 is 1-800-273-8255.

Young adults and teens' disproportionality carry the mental health burdens of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to findings by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Two Buffalo organizations, Maria Love Fund in partnership with the One Last Goal Foundation, raised funds for a free Zoom “Behind the Mask” workshop to help teach teens, their families, teachers, and others in the region about mental health coping skills and to reduce stigma around seeking help today at 7 p.m.

The workshop will be led by Ross Zabo, a national mental health advocate and wellness director at Geffen Academy at UCLA.

Due to the COVID-19 in-person restrictions, the Maria Love Fund needed to pivot away from their traditional models of fundraising, like their Charity Ball, to something more virtual, said Sarah Williams, board president of the Maria Love Fund.

“One of the first ideas that we had was to do something in the mental health area particularly targeted towards young people,” said Williams. “Having gone through a year of a pandemic when they’re taken out of school, where there are stressors in the family, all the stressors that might have been added to an already stressful situation are happening.”

Even before the virus transformed life for America’s teens and young adults, one in three high schoolers experienced sadness or hopelessness and one in six made a suicide plan, according to a 2019 CDC report that documented changes over a decade.

The workshop’s name stems from the idea that people who are struggling with their mental health often hide this from the world, Williams said.

“Someone we know fits that same profile. Except now not only is he putting on a happy face, his behind a mask,” she said.

The Maria Love Fund helps Erie County residents with financial assistance to help with expenses from medical conditions including rental assistance and medical equipment.

It also gives out larger grants to different nonprofits throughout the region including the Food Bank of Western New York, Crisis Services, and Haven House.

The One Last Goal Foundation is a local nonprofit to help bring awareness to mental health issues. The nonprofit was founded in memory of Matthew Benedict, who died by suicide in 2019, by family and friends.

To register for the event, visit: marialovefund.ejoinme.org/REGISTERHERE