Brighter Future Symposium Aims to Teach Resiliency to Children of Smith County

Champions for Children and the Smith County Behavioral Leadership Team recently hosted the annual Brighter Future Symposium in East Texas. The event is an opportunity for the community to share information about raising resilient kids and giving them helpful tools to assess and work through adversity.

Guests included health care workers, law enforcement representatives, social workers, educators, and counselors.

According to KLTV 7, Keisha Morris, the Chair of the Smith County Behavioral Health Leadership Team, emphasized that kids, even up into adolescence, are struggling with their mental health, and the symposium is designed to address the current needs of the community.

"The biggest thing is our high suicide rate for this area," Morris said. "As well as, you know, teen violence, dating violence, you know, our teens are going through a lot and encountering a lot and, of course, with the aftermath of COVID, we're dealing with a lot more anxiety, issues of anxiety and depression."

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