 Well, according to the National Alliance on Mental Health, about one in five youth ages 13 through 18 experience a severe mental disorder at some point during their life. The Brainerd and Pequot Lake School Districts have been working to shed light on the topic that so many deal with, but many are afraid to talk about. With this week's Golden Apple, reporter Rachel Johnson has more. In the age of technology and smartphones, human connection seems to be declining. Joe Beckman, a motivational speaker from the Twin Cities, talked to students and parents Monday about a direct connection to our mental health. There is no coincidence that anxiety, depression and suicide are up and at the same time human connection is down. The Brainerd and Pequot Lake School Districts have come together in an initiative to talk about mental health and its effect on students. We are constantly working on the safe and collaborative culture of our school and we want Pequot Lakes to be that place where every kid feel that they belong and there's kids that don't. To address this topic, the school districts brought in Joe Beckman to talk with students as well as parents. Joe started the morning at Brainerd High School and then traveled to Pequot Lakes where he spoke to middle schoolers and high schoolers, overall giving his talk to over a thousand students. I speak on stages in school communities all across the country to students, to teachers, to parents and the message that I really focus in on is the importance and the power of human connection. Joe focused on three main ideas. The first is the importance of self-worth. My hope is that kids understand that that they matter and that they're enough just where they're at right now. The second is resiliency. Knowing that all of us are going to get punched in the mouth by life at some point and the question isn't are we going to get punched the question is what are we going to do next. The third and what Joe argues is the most important is human connection. I talk about the importance of separating from our screens and looking up and realizing how important just eye contact and noticing somebody and talking to somebody sometimes just a few words or a smile. The school administrators hope that students and parents take away something important from Joe's talk. We have a mountain of evidence that tells us that if a student has just even one adult that is deeply engaged in them, knows them well, knows what they like, dislike that that student will be much more successful in school. So challenging our educators to be that staff member for somebody. Our kids face challenges today that that we as when we were kids we didn't face but there's also a reason to be hopeful. The schools hope to take what they have learned from hosting Joe and continue the conversation past the auditorium and into the school days ahead. Reporting from Pukot Lakes with this week's Golden Apple, Rachel Johnson, Lakeland News. If you enjoyed this segment of Lakeland News, please consider making a tax deductible contribution to Lakeland PBS.