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Father will share family's mental-health journey

High Point Enterprise - 4/25/2022

Apr. 26—HIGH POINT — Brandon Blair doesn't just advocate for the importance of mental health — he lives it every day.

"I think sometimes we have to witness to people about mental health," said Blair, who not only serves on the board of Mental Health Associates of the Triad but also attends weekly counseling sessions for his own mental health.

"You can be a normal business owner like I am, and you can still have mental illness and reach out for help and not put it off. If we break our arm, we don't wait six months to go to the doctor. Mental health is important."

Blair will be the keynote speaker Thursday evening at a community outreach event for MHA. During his presentation, "A Father's Story," he plans to share his family's personal mental health journey in the wake of the death of his teenage daughter, Abby, who died in a house fire in January 2017.

According to Blair, who owns B&H Heating and Air Conditioning in High Point, his entire family has been affected by mental illness. Abby, who was 18 when she died, had a borderline personality disorder. Blair and his wife, Suzi, have been in counseling since Abby's death, as has their teenage son, Charlie.

"We try to stay committed to mental health," Blair said. "Life's difficult, but it doesn't have to be — people need to know that there's hope."

Blair finds hope through his Christian faith and through his weekly counseling sessions, but he also strongly advocates for MHA and its many mental-health programs and services.

According to Ellen Cochran, executive director of MHA of the Triad, Blair's advocacy has been a blessing to the organization.

"One of the things we're facing is just an ongoing stigma related to mental health," Cochran said. "For a person like Brandon to step forward with his personal journey, it's very impactful."

Sharing his family's story is difficult but also therapeutic, Blair said.

"Getting through that day was the hardest," he said. "I relive it daily and always will till the day I die. And doing this speech — writing it and revisiting that day — has been difficult, but I have to do that. It's important to share my story to help others."

jtomlin@hpenews.com — 336-888-3579

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