Two days after Andre Courtemanche disappeared on a cold January night, his parents received a phone call to book an appointment for the 16-year-old with a psychiatrist B次元官网网址� a call they had been waiting on for two years.
But the call was too late. On the evening of Jan. 9, AndreB次元官网网址檚 body was discovered at Goldstream Provincial Park in Langford by volunteer groups, including Metchosin and Juan de Fuca search and rescue teams.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 heartbreaking,B次元官网网址� said Kirsten Marten, the organizer of the Facebook search group. B次元官网网址淣o child should ever feel as destitute as Andre was that day, believing that there was nothing left. Depression took over his life. This lack of support cannot happen to any more kids.B次元官网网址�
Marten didnB次元官网网址檛 know the Courtemanche family before Andre went missing, but the mother of two quickly built a bond with AndreB次元官网网址檚 parents.
She said AndreB次元官网网址檚 story shines a light on a bigger conversation around mental health among teens and her belief that there arenB次元官网网址檛 enough supports in place to help the next generation.
READ MORE: Body of missing 16-year-old Langford teen found in Goldstream Provincial Park
Lareen Buckley, an education assistant at Sangster Elementary, said sheB次元官网网址檚 seen students of all ages struggle with mental health issues.
She believes there isnB次元官网网址檛 enough provincial funding for mental health initiatives for youth when it comes to early intervention and prevention services. She has a psychiatrist for one of her own children who suffers from mental illness but has struggled to help him remain stable B次元官网网址� instead of in and out of a hospital bed.
According to the Canadian Mental Health Association, mental health disorders in youth are ranked as the second-highest hospital care expenditure in Canada, with 3.2 million youth between the ages of 12 and 19 at risk for developing depression.
One of the leading causes of death in Canadians between the ages of 15 and 24 is suicide, with 4,000 people dying by suicide each year.
Marten added that she plans to start advocating to have barriers built at Goldstream Trestle.
B次元官网网址淒id Andre really want to do it or did he just have a moment of weakness?B次元官网网址� said Marten. B次元官网网址淚f there was a barrier, would he have stopped and re-thought his decision? Now, we will never know.B次元官网网址�
While 84,000 children in B.C. are experiencing a mental health challenge at any given time, only one in three are accessing the services they need, according to B.C.B次元官网网址檚 Ministry of Mental Health and Addictions in Canada.
The Vancouver Island Crisis Line is available 24 hours a day at 1-888-494-3888. Crisis text services are available at 250-800-3806 between 6 and 10 p.m., seven days a week. For more local resources, go to goldstreamgazette.com/tag/mental-health-in-greater-victoria.
B次元官网网址� with files from Nina Grossman
ALSO READ: Mental Health B次元官网网址� Fractured services leave community to fill gaps
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