AUSTIN, Texas — Dozens of people came together Saturday to help promote mental health awareness. For one organizer, it's a far more personal issue.
"I feel like it's a good reason to bring people together on something positive," said Fabian Wood, member of the D. Wood foundation group at the university.
He said organizing this event gives him the opportunity to see a smile on other peoples' faces.
"Mental health is one thing that affects us all," Wood explained.
He said the goal is to get people comfortable with what they are experiencing and get them to seek help on any mental problem.
Of the dozens of smiles seen at Huston-Tillotson University at the "Time to Rise" rally, there is one smile he's only able to see through pictures.
"My organization is named after my mother, Deandrea Wood, who committed suicide at the age of 38," said Wood, teary-eyed.
This event is just two days away from the ninth anniversary of his mother's death.
Wood is now taking the time to remember his mother by promoting mental health awareness through this student-led rally.
According to the American Psychiatric Association, approximately 18% of U.S. adults have a diagnosable mental disorder in a given year, and approximately 4% of adults have a serious mental illness.
"My mother was a very loving person," Wood said. "The legacy she left is what she taught me, that's why I'm doing this for her."
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Among the vendors, there was the National Alliance for Mental Illness (NAMI) group of Central Texas.
"It is very important everyone realizes that mental health is as important as physical health," said Ari Samoya, a member of NAMI.
"If we are not OK here [mentally], then everything else is not OK," he explained.
Samoya said the most important step in battling a mental health problem is by talking about it.
"It's a great time to help celebrate individuals with mental health problems, and help raise awareness," he said.
"The reason why I'm doing it is because she'll do it for me," Wood explained.
His mother's death is a heartache slowly healing. Wood hopes this event prevents another tragedy, like the passing of his mother, from happening again.
"She always taught me that where there's a will, there is a way," said Wood. "She created the will and I created the way, and I appreciate her for that."
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