KNT Basketball is an organization that was created to focus on all of the aspects of mental health in our community. Our goal, as an organization, is to bring awareness to the growing stigma surrounding mental health, as well as educate our community on the importance of mental health in our everyday lives. With this goal in mind, we decided to partner with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP), a non-profit organization educating and assisting individuals and families in our community on ways to cope with mental health and suicidal thoughts. With this partnership, we created the KNT Basketball Tournament. This non-profit event is geared towards educating the community, with the focus being on athletes. This allows us to reach a different demographic that may not participate in other events that benefit mental health, truly making this a unique event.
In July of 2021, three friends decided to create the KNT Basketball tournament in memory of their friend Kobee Nyro Texter who last his battle to mental health and suicide. Kobee was a beloved family member, friend, and athlete in our community. When this occurred, this opened our eyes to the importance of mental health and how it affects our lives on a daily basis. With this in mind, we wanted to give our community an outlet and encourage them to speak on their mental well-being, struggles and hardships. During our event, we offer a variety of speakers and resources for our community to benefit from. We have representatives from Lehigh Center for Clinical Research (LCCR), St Luke’s University Health Network, Capital Blue Cross, and Preventative Measures, helping us to have a larger impact on the health of our community.
In the United States alone more than 50% of people will be diagnosed with a mental illness or disorder at some point in their lifetime. In 2020 there were approx. 1.2 million suicide attempts with a 26% success rate. Suicide is the 12th leading cause of death in the United States. There isn’t one specific thing that we can call the cause of suicide but there are some warning signs we can notice if we are looking for them.
With Kobee, we didn’t see the signs because he was always smiling on the outside and we didn’t know exactly what to look for. Some of the main signs that someone may be struggling with mental health or suicide include changes in their behavior, moods, and talk. These signs can be caused or created by some major risk factors in people’s lives. Some major factors that put people at risk of suicide is their environment, health, and family history. There are always outlets for anyone struggling with mental health, whether it be a family member, friend or even a trained professional. The AFSP in 2023 also created a hotline for those in a crisis, you can call or text “988”.
The more people aware of this growing epidemic, the more lives we can touch and save today and in the future. Together, with your help and the help of all in our community, we can make a large stride forward in ending the stigma that surrounds mental health and reaching the AFSP’s goal of reducing the suicide rate 20% by 2025. This year we used the saying “My Community is My Anchor”, just like a boat uses an anchor to stay on course and not drift away, so we want to be an anchor in our community, providing the help and guidance to guide all through their stormy days. KNT Basketball, more than just basketball.
