A mother who lost the father of her children to gun violence is to share her story during a parent panel discussion aimed at helping teenagers who have faced mental health challenges to build resilience.

Maxine Brown is one of three “lived-experience champions” who will offer guidance during the event hosted by the Ministry of Health, the team behind the Youth Mental Health Plan and Bermuda Is Love.

She will be joined by parents Fitzgerald Williams and Kathleen Keane, as well as doctors Shawnee Basden, a mother and moderator, and Peter Yates, a father and child psychiatrist.

“Raising Resilient Teens: A Parent Panel Discussion” brings together parents, mental health professionals, educators and community members for an “open and practical” conversation about supporting young people’s mental health in Bermuda.

Ms Brown, who has been speaking publicly about mental health since 2018 but started volunteering for the Ministry of Health last year, said her teenage daughter fell into depression after the killing of her father in 2023.

Ms Brown told The Royal Gazette: “For my daughter, she lost her dad in a tragic way and it was the trigger event for her. She suffered depression after her dad passed away as a result of gun violence.”

She added: “A lot of parents will take on a lot of guilt, thinking it’s a reflection of bad parenting and will be afraid to ask for help as Bermuda is so small. If their child is struggling, they are afraid of the judgment.

“I want to share my story so parents know what it feels like and looks like.”

Ms Brown previously worked for the Bank of America as an audit manager and started its first mental health committee.

She also worked with the National Alliance on Mental Illness, helping underserved communities, and has spoken at different events in Bermuda.

She said she had witnessed “parental struggles in many ways”.

Ms Brown will also share her journey of caring for her younger son, who is neurodivergent.

“With my son, I had everyone telling me what his diagnosis was or wasn’t. As strong as I am, I still feel uncomfortable speaking about his care with some of the closest members of my family and friends, where there is judgment and a lot of opinions.

“I want parents to take their power back and not have to avoid stigma and judgment. I want to help them redefine their role. You want your children to be empowered with your support.”

Ms Brown will also speak on privacy issues around mental health discussions. She highlighted that she had spoken with her children about sharing the family’s story.

“My children are OK with what I am doing and are proud of what I do,” she said. “I don’t use their names or share names or any identifiable information.”

The event aims to help caregivers better understand the emotional challenges facing adolescents and how to respond with trust, communication and support rather than fear or stigma.

Mr Williams, who works as a mental health therapist with male counselling service Masc, will be speaking on the panel from the perspective of a father of two sons.

His youngest son, who is 19, was born premature and has undergone 18 surgeries throughout his life, travelling regularly overseas for treatment.

Mr Fitzgerald said: “He had the most challenges from the standpoint that he was born three months premature and spent the first six months of his life in Boston. He has had 18 major surgeries including a brain surgery and everything else.

“Many times, my wife and I didn’t know if we were making the right decisions.”

Mr Williams said his eldest son, who had dyslexia diagnosed, also experienced challenges, not least with his family members having to spend so much time overseas.

Mr Williams added: “I’ll be speaking on the impact this had on us as a family. With my oldest son, there was a lot of times he wasn’t with us when we were overseas so he experienced feelings like abandonment.

“It’s important to have an impact in people’s lives. Sometimes when you hear someone else’s story, some aspects might resonate with you and there may be some alignment which can, in turn, help you to approach a situation differently.

“I can say that we are still navigating but our sons are very resilient despite everything they have had to endure.

“My youngest is overseas in a special needs school now. He is moving forward in his life, he has a girlfriend.

“All we can do is try our best to provide them with the level of support that they need to make decisions that positively impact their life.

“I also want to speak to consistency. If we are consistent in terms of approach and how we deal with our children, it helps to ground them so they can be more comfortable in opening up to us.

“They have a better idea as to how our response is going to be. Fear can prevent our children wanting to speak up.”

The panel features child psychiatrist Dr Yates alongside parents and community leaders sharing both professional expertise and lived experience.

A spokesman for the event said: “Discussions will explore topics such as recognising early signs of emotional distress, building stronger parent-child communication, balancing safety with adolescent independence, reducing stigma within families and understanding how schools, healthcare professionals and the wider community can better support young people together.”

He said the event was part of a broader effort to strengthen Bermuda’s culture of early intervention and emotional wellbeing by giving parents practical tools, reassurance and space for honest conversation.

Audience members will have the opportunity to ask questions directly to the panel.

The event takes place at the Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute from 6pm to 7.30pm tomorrow and is open to the public.