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Dennis Gillan is on a mission to reverse the current trends in completed
suicides and to seriously reduce the stigma associated with getting help
for one’s mental health. Dennis has been deeply touched by suicide,
and after years of sitting on the sidelines he jumped into helping those
in need by working on the suicide prevention hotline when he lived in
Chicago. After moving to South Carolina Dennis got involved with the
American Foundation for Suicide Prevention and is on the board of the
local state chapter. In this capacity, he gets to lobby lawmakers for
additional funding for suicide prevention and raise funds and
awareness to help combat the rise in completed suicides in America.
Dennis’s real calling is telling his personal story of how he (sort of)
recovered from his losses and what he has learned along the way. He's
an author, TEDx speaker and all around good guy, please welcome, Mr.
Dennis Gillan.
Dennis is a national thought leader on the topic of suicide prevention and mental
health advocacy. He travels internationally speaking, raising awareness and reducing
the stigma surrounding mental health. Dennis has been deeply touched by suicide after
the loss of both of his brothers to suicide, eleven years apart. After years of sitting on
the sidelines, he jumped into helping those in need by working on the suicide prevention
hotline when he lived in Chicago. After moving to South Carolina, Dennis got involved
with several non-profits that take on mental health issues, and this allows him to lobby
lawmakers and raise awareness by sharing his story. Dennis gave a TEDx talk about
loneliness that has received over 25,000 views! Dennis also co-wrote a children's book
about dealing with sadness and showing children how kindness can save a life. Dennis
is the executive director of a non-profit called the Half a Sorrow Foundation. The name
of the foundation comes from an old Swedish proverb that states a shared joy is a
double joy, a shared sorrow is half a sorrow. The mission of the Half a Sorrow
Foundation is to improve mental health by promoting real conversations. Dennis’s keynote talk definitely promotes real conversations and his style and delivery is like nothing else out there. He combines his losses with real world solutions and even sprinkles in humor from time to time to disarm the audience and let the message land.

That message is life is worth living!
You can find out more here: www.halfasorrow.org

“Dennis Gillan is effective in tearing down the walls of silence which long have surrounded the issue of mental health, especially depression and suicide. His approach is gentle, testimonial, and even sometimes humorous. Several students made the decision to seek help through Counseling Services following his presentation at Gardner-Webb University.”
Tracy Jessup

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