Nearly $9,000 Raised for United Services at 7th Annual Free Music Festival Held in Memory of Local Musician, the Legendary Jack Young, Jr.

Organizers of the annual benefit music festival Particle Accelerator: A Day of Music and Hope have announced that this year’s festival, held on June 8 at Rotary Park in Putnam, has raised a record $9,000 to support mental health and suicide prevention programs at United Services, Inc.

The free concert is organized by family and friends of local musician Jack Young, Jr., who was lost to suicide on his 27th birthday in 2007.  They hold the concert to honor Jack’s memory while also working to raise awareness and funding to help prevent such tragedies from happening to others.

This year’s event featured a lively and diverse line-up of popular bands and performers, including Seed, White Rose Confession, Santa Mamba, Our Burgundy and Kala Farnham.  The family-friendly festival also featured art displays, children’s activities and booths from local nonprofit organizations providing information on various local family, community and mental health services as well as suicide prevention.

John Deary, an active member of the “Quiet Corner” community and owner of Deary’s Gymnastics Supply, has signed on as Chair of this year’s event.

“Hardly a week goes by that one doesn’t encounter a heartbreaking story related to mental illness,” Deary said in a letter asking local businesses and community leaders for support.  “The loss of my brother to depression and finally suicide has brought the problem of mental illness all too close to me and my family, and has left a scar on our hearts that will never fade.  That’s why I’m proud to serve as this year’s Honorary Chairman of the seventh annual Particle Accelerator.”

Proceeds from sponsorships and donations to the event will go to support Mental Health First Aid Training and other mental health programs at United Services, Inc., Connecticut’s most comprehensive mental and behavioral health center, which serves 21 towns in the Quiet Corner.  United Services was the first behavioral health center in the state to offer Mental Health First Aid training, and does so free of charge for the area’s first responders, educators, healthcare workers, and many other members of the community.  Last year’s Particle Accelerator raised nearly $5,000 for these programs.

To find out more about Particle Accelerator and to donate, sponsor or volunteer for the event, visit www.particleaccelerator.org or email sandra.gould@particleaccelerator.org.   To find out  more about Mental Health First Aid and other mental health programs available through United Services, visit www.UnitedServicesCT.org or call 860-774-2020.

 

ABOUT PARTICLE ACCLERATOR

Particle Accelerator began in 2007 in response to the suicide of local youth and musician The Legendary Jack Young, Jr.  Young’s parents and good friends have put the concert on each year since his passing to honor his life and raise awareness of depression and suicide, while also raising funds for United Services, Inc. of Dayville.

ABOUT SUICIDE AND MENTAL ILLNESS

  • Mental illness can affect anyone – regardless of race, background or social status.
  • Throughout the nation, one in four adults – approximately 57.7 million Americans – will experience a mental health disorder in a given year.
  • Yet less than one-third of adults – and one-half of children – who have a diagnosable and treatable mental disorder will actually receive mental health services.

These disparities indicate some of the reasons why:

  • Three times more people die by suicide each year than in drunk driving accidents.
  • More military veterans are now dying by their own hand than in combat.
  • Families impacted by such preventable tragedies are left to struggle with their losses for decades to come.